Buddha's Delight / Luóhàn zhai

Buddha's delight, often transliterated as Luóhàn zhai, lo han jai, or lo hon jai, is a vegetarian dish well known in Chinese and Buddhist cuisine. It is sometimes also called Luóhàn cài.

The dish is traditionally enjoyed by Buddhist monks who are vegetarians, but it has also grown in popularity throughout the world as a common dish available as a vegetarian option in Chinese restaurants. The dish consists of various vegetables and other vegetarian ingredients (sometimes with the addition of seafood or eggs), which are cooked in soy sauce-based liquid with other seasonings until tender. The specific ingredients used vary greatly both inside and outside Asia.

As suggested by its name, it is a dish traditionally enjoyed by Buddhists who are vegetarians, but it has also grown in popularity throughout the world as a common dish available in Chinese restaurants (though often not including all of the ingredients) as a vegetarian option. It is traditionally served in Chinese households on the first day of the Chinese New Year, stemming from the old Buddhist practice that one should maintain a vegetarian diet in the first five days of the new year, as a form of self-purification. Some of the rarer ingredients, such as fat choy and arrowhead, are generally only eaten at this time of year.

Buddha's Delight

Ingredients

• 4 dried Shiitake or Chinese black mushrooms
• 1/2 cup dried lily buds
• 4 dried bean curd sticks
• 8 ounces bamboo shoots
• 6 fresh water chestnuts
• 2 large carrots
• 1 cup shredded Napa cabbage
• 4 ounces snow peas
• 1/4 cup canned gingko nuts
• 1 knuckle of ginger, crushed
• Sauce:
• 4 tablespoons reserved mushroom soaking liquid or vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• Vegetable or peanut oil for stir-frying, as needed
• Salt, Accent or MSG to taste

Method

• In separate bowls, soak the mushrooms, dried lily buds, and dried bean curd sticks in hot water for 20 to 30 minutes to soften. Squeeze out any excess liquid. Reserve the mushroom soaking liquid, straining it if necessary to remove any grit. Remove the stems and cut the mushroom tops in half if desired.
• Slice the bamboo shoots. Peel and finely chop the water chestnuts. Peel the carrots, cut in half, and cut lengthwise into thin strips. Shred the Napa cabbage. String the snow peas and cut in half. Drain the gingko nuts. Crush the ginger.
• Combine the reserved mushroom soaking liquid or vegetarian stock with the Chinese rice wine or sherry, dark soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Set aside.
• Heat the wok over medium-high to high heat. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the heated wok.
• When the oil is hot, add the carrots. Stir-fry for 1 minute, and add the dried mushrooms and lily buds. Stir-fry for 1 minute, and add the water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, snow peas and ginger. Stir in the shredded cabbage and gingko nuts. Add the bean curd sticks.
• Add the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover, turn down the heat and let the vegetables simmer for 5 minutes. Taste and add salt or other seasonings as desired. Serve hot.