By Request

By Betty Shimabukuro

Wednesday, September 8, 1999

By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
A tangle of green onion slivers and a ring of cucumber slices
garnish the Halekulani's Fried Tofu Salad.

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Choice salads from buffets

ONE of the more efficient -- financially speaking -- ways of trying the food in the finer hotel restaurants is to get yourself invited to a wedding. The buffets on those occasions can give you a taste of what the restaurants have to offer.

It's a little dicey, waiting for a wedding to happen, so Lynn Morita wants to duplicate at home two salads she enjoyed at wedding buffets at the Ihilani Resort and Spa and the Halekulani.

The Ihilani's Korean-style salad is quite simple, with only a few ingredients and only two major steps: Mix and toss.

The secret is in the dressing, with its sweet Thai chile sauce.

Halekulani's tofu salad is a bit more involved, requiring the frying of tofu cubes, separate blanching of several vegetables and the mixing of a dressing.

In both cases, the results are salads that Morita proclaims delicious.

The Halekulani salad is on the Sunday brunch menu at Orchids; the Korean salad rotates through the Sunday brunch menu at the Ihilani.

FRIED TOFU SALAD

Chef Darryl Fujita, Halekulani

1 pack firm tofu, drained and cut in cubes
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 cups salad oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup sliced asparagus
8 Chinese snow peas, sliced
1 red bell pepper, diced
6 shiitake mushrooms, sliced

Dressing:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup sliced green onions
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons water

Toss tofu in cornstarch, season with salt and pepper. Heat oil, then fry tofu until golden brown. Set aside.

Blanch vegetables separately, about 30 seconds each, in boiling water with a pinch of salt. Cool in ice water. Set aside.

To make dressing: Simmer together all ingredients except cornstarch and water. Combine cornstarch with water and use to thicken dressing. Strain and combine with tofu and vegetables. Serve cold. Serves 4.

Approximate nutritional information, (without added salt): 640 calories, 29 g total fat, 4 g saturated fat, no cholesterol, greater than 2,000 mg sodium.*

KOREAN BEEF AND WATERCRESS SALAD

Chef Randal Ishizu, Ihilani Resort and Spa

2 cups watercress sprigs
2/3 cup bean sprouts
2 ounces cooked roast beef, julienned
6 tablespoons Korean Dressing (recipe follows)

Soak watercress in ice water 15 minutes; drain well. Mix with sprouts and beef; toss with dressing. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

KOREAN DRESSING

1 cup Thai sweet chile sauce (Nuoe Cham Ga)
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil

Combine ingredients and mix well; chill.

Note: For a vegetarian salad, use sliced cucumber, mushrooms and carrots instead of beef.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 100 calories, 4 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 480 mg sodium.*

Send queries along with name and phone number to:
By Request, Honolulu Star-Bulletin Food Section,
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Or send e-mail to bshimabukuro@starbulletin.com

Asterisk (*) after nutritional analyses in the Body & Soul section indicates calculations by Joannie Dobbs of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.