The bountiful harvest that was my shopping basket yesterday, included fresh Okinawa tofu, mustard greens, garlic, sprouts and zucchini… oh, and a lovely container of Okinawa tuna – all perfect ingredients for the specialty known as Okinawa Chanpuru, and oh, it’s delicious and healthy! Crisp up the tofu, and you have some incredible textures and flavors.

Chanpurū (チャンプルー) is an Okinawan stir fry dish. It is considered the representative dish of Okinawan cuisine.[1][2] Chanpurū generally consists of tofu combined with some kind of vegetable, meat, or fish.[2] Luncheon meat (such as Spam or Danish Tulip), egg, moyashi (bean sprouts) and gōyā (bitter melon) are some other common ingredients. Spam is not typically used in mainland Japan; but it is more common in Okinawa due primarily to the historical influence of its introduction by the US Navy. Chanpurū is Okinawan for “something mixed” and the word is sometimes used to refer to the culture of Okinawa, as it can be seen as a mixture of traditional Okinawan, Chinese, mainland Japanese, Southeast Asian and North American culture. The term originates from the Malay or Indonesian word campur (pronounced “cham-poor”), meaning “mix”.[3]

Web Source: Wikipedia- chanpuru

Chanpuru – Okinawa stir-fry

• 1 can tuna
• 1 Goya (bitter melon) sliced in half lengthwise then in thin pieces)
• 1 1- inch piece of ginger
• 1 bunch mustard greens, washed, trimmed and roughly chopped
• 1 c bean sprouts, washed and trimmed
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 T sesame oil
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Soy sauce, 1-2 T per taste (serve more on the side
• Bonito flakes
• Best quality tofu, drained, seasoned and fried

Directions

1

Cut the bitter melon lengthwise in half. Using a spoon, scoop out the seeds and white pith. Cut into 5 mm slices and soak in water for about 20 minutes. Peel the ginger and cut into thin shreds. Open the can and drain the tuna. Beat the eggs. Thoroughly drain the bitter melon. Boil mustard greens in salted water 3 minutes, drain and pay dry.

2

Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan placed over medium heat. Spread the bitter melon and ginger slices over the surface and fry for around 3 minutes. Add mustard greens and sprouts.Sprinkle with salt, turn over, and fry for about a minute. Make a well in the center, add the tuna, and stir-fry for a couple of minutes.

3

Drizzle the egg in a circular motion and wait 10 seconds before stirring with a wooden spatula. Stir-fry for about 30 seconds. Gently add fried tofu. Sprinkle with soy sauce, add the bonito flakes, and lightly mix together. Get out your chopsticks and dig in – itadakimasu!