Christine Dabney wrote:
> Use the tofu in something else. There are a lot of tofu recipes out
> there... It doesn't have to be a main dish... Just do a search on
> some recipe site, or on a food blog search like this one:
>
> http://foodblogsearch.com/
> Another good site:
> http://www.cookthink.com/home/get_all_tags

The OP is no cook. A recipe follower, yes, but not a cook. When one is
so rigid that he or she can only follow a recipe without the flexibility
to make the dish his or her own, that person may as well just eat out.



> And the tiger lily buds I have are dried. So it is no problem to just
> use what you want, and store the rest til the next time you need them
> in a recipe.

Like, the next time the OP makes hot and sour soup... D'oh! Bet Mr. Bill
hadn't thought of that!



>> I am not a Chinese cooking expert by any means...

Well obviously.



>> but there are so many
>> ingredients you need to even think about starting the recipe. Then
>> you are left with a bountiful collection of ingredients you might not
>> be able to consume in a month.
>
> Many chinese ingredients you don't have to use up right away: they
> keep perfectly fine for eons. Many are dried, such as the tiger lily
> buds: I keep mine in a glass jar and just use what I need when I need
> them. Same for dried mushrooms.

Many Chinese dishes are made with rather ordinary ingredients which are
easily consumed in a month or less when used in for other meals. Flex
your brain a little, Mr. Bill.



>> Right now, I have egg roll wrapers that are molding in the
>> refrigerator and will be in the trash Saturday. I only needed six but
>> had to buy a package of twenty.
>
> They freeze well. Use what you need, and freeze the rest.

Or make something from the egg roll wrappers that might not be egg
rolls. Stretch!



> It's really not that hard to adapt all this..

It is when you don't really want to, Christine.