Din Tai Fung-Style Shanghai Rice Cakes

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp Oyster-free oyster sauce (For the sauce)
• 1 tbsp Soy sauce (For the sauce)
• 1 tsp Sugar (For the sauce)
• Dark soy sauce (Optional, a tiny splash; mainly for color)
• 0.5 tsp Mushroom seasoning (Contains MSG; alternatively use 1/4 tsp MSG)
• 250 g Rice cakes (Soak briefly in warm, not boiling, water to soften)
• 2.5 Garlic (About 2–3 cloves; use as much as desired)
• 1 cup Napa cabbage (About 1 cup of the thicker white parts, cut into strips)
• 0.5 cup Napa cabbage leaves (Remove about 1/2 cup worth of leaves)
• Mature spinach
• Olive oil (For heating in the pan; amount not specified)
• 0.25 cup Vegetable broth (To help steam the rice cakes)
• Sesame oil (A little, added at the very end)

Steps

1. 1

   Stir together the oyster-free oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar to make the sauce.

2. 2

   If desired, add a tiny splash of dark soy sauce for color. Stir in the mushroom seasoning, or use 1/4 teaspoon MSG instead.

3. 3

   Briefly soak the rice cakes in warm—not boiling—water, just until softened; do not cook them in the soaking water.

4. 4

   While the rice cakes soak, prepare the vegetables: cut the thicker white parts of the napa cabbage into strips, remove about 1/2 cup worth of leaves, and prepare the garlic and mature spinach.

5. 5

   Heat a pan with olive oil, then add the garlic. Cook for about 1 minute.

6. 6

   Add the spinach to the pan and cook for about 1 minute.

7. 7

   Add the softened rice cakes and about 1/4 cup vegetable broth. Cover the pan and cook for 3 minutes to steam.

8. 8

   Uncover and toss in the napa cabbage and prepared sauce. The transcript says to add the spinach again here, although it was already added earlier; follow the stated sequence as desired.

9. 9

   Finish with a little sesame oil and serve.

Notes

The transcript's vegetable sequence is inconsistent: it says to add spinach before the rice cakes, then later says to toss in the spinach and sauce. The video OCR also shows cabbage and sesame oil at the end. White pepper is suggested by the creator as an optional improvement, but no amount is given.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• vegetarian
• stovetop
• quick
• East Asian-inspired