Okinawa-Style Fu Champuru Is a local dish from Okinawa Island in Southern Japan. In the Okinawan dialect, chanpuru means “a mix of things”.
I took a trip with my family to Okinawa and was impressed by the cooking. The food was simple and featured many local ingredients prepared in interesting ways. Okinawa noodles, Shima (Island) tofu, Goya (bitter melon), awamori (red liquor) were all used in local cooking, and Champuru was a wonderful way to synthesize many ingredients into a delicious meal.
As a dish, champuru is a stir-fried combination of ingredients easy to find locally in Okinawa and other Ryukyu islands. It comes in many varieties (there are probably as many recipes as there are households on the islands), but chanpuru typically includes eggs, vegetables, and a protein.
The ingredients differ but the concept of chanpuru is the same – it’s a mixture of various ingredients, usually whatever you happen to have around the home. The concept of champuru is used to describe the Okinawa and Ryukyu island culture itself – since it’s truly a unique mix of Japanese, Chinese, and US influences.
In Okinawan cooking, Fu is sometimes used as a meat substitute. Fu, also known in some countries as “seitan”, is made from wheat gluten. Fu can be purchased in dried sheets that can be sliced up and rehydrated using egg, water or milk. It has a “meaty” texture and when flavored properly makes a healthy vegan alternative to chicken or pork.
When there is no Fu available, Okinawa-Style Fu Champuru can be made with other proteins such as tofu, chicken or beef, or with Goya (bitter melon) or mung beans. The sauce, which is made with cooking sake and dashi flakes is absolutely incredible.