Since we published this recipe in March 2014, it has garnered many 5-star reviews from readers ! As of June 2019, we ’ ve re-tested and updated the recipe with new photos, clear instructions, a recipe video, and nutrition information .
What is Mapo Tofu?
Mapo Tofu is a popular chinese cup of tea from Sichuan Province, where piquant food is king and the key signature spice of the region––the Sichuan Peppercorn––gives dishes a unique “ numbing ” effect. It ’ s about like the Sichuan peppercorns are there to not entirely add their aroma and flavor, but besides to numb your tongue so it can take more inflame !
The diagnose of the serve roughly translates to “ pockmark grandma ’ sulfur tofu. ” Whatever its origins, mapo bean curd has made it out of Sichuan Province and gap around the earth. The dish has taken on many forms as restaurants and takeout joints have put their own spin on it, frequently lessening spice levels, adding different vegetables, and transforming the smasher into something else entirely !
traditional and authentic Sichuan mapo bean curd is what we ’ ra going for in this recipe. The hot sauce coats the easy cubes of satiny bean curd, tasty bits of grate pork, leek, and Sichuan ( or Szechuan ) peppercorns .
Getting That Restaurant Taste At Home
I know vitamin a well as the future epicure how difficult it can be to approximate restaurant-favorites at home, sol if you ’ ve never tried one of our recipes, you may be thinking, “ what a load of lesser panda crap ! Is this just another alleged ‘ authentic ’ serve ? ”
not so my friends—we preceptor ’ thymine maneuver round at The Woks of Life. If we say authentic, you better betchyo pineapple buns that it ’ south gon na turn out authentic. Plus, the backstory of this recipe says it all .
It was the summer after my newcomer year of college, and I was spending it in Beijing with my parents and sister. It was a hot and smoggy day, which meant “ showery day ” activities that didn ’ thymine require venturing out into the noxious Beijing air .
I was parked in my parents ’ bedroom, flipping through the channels of countless historical drama ( you can literally go through ten square channels, and each time the screen changes, you ’ ll see actresses in traditional dress, fighting back tears in disturbingly clear HD ), chinese nature documentaries ( run little deer, ruuuun ! ), and unmindful extended infomercials for the best chinese dried dates you ’ ll always taste, or your money back guaranteed ( …or not ) .
Anyways, I was knocked out of my daze when my limited chinese vocabulary was able to detect that the latest cook program I had settled on was featuring a professional chef explaining how to make Mapo Tofu the right way .
For the adjacent 2 minutes, my eyes were glued to the screen, genius strive to understand fair what the heck he was saying. right after it was over, I scrambled to find a pen and paper to write down what I had seen and heard. After that and much testing/consulting with my family ’ s preference bud, hera ’ s the finish intersection !
Adjusting the Recipe
Feel free to adjust this recipe to your own preferences. While we worked on making this recipe as close to what is served in szechwan restaurants across China and here in New York, recipes can be profoundly personal and consequently adjusted to your like .
A NOTE ON SICHUAN PEPPERCORNS!
szechwan peppercorns vary widely in choice ( and in numb forte ). The freshman the peppercorns, the more potent their numbing effect will be. If your peppercorns are extremely fresh or high quality, you should consider reducing the measure of peppercorns we call for in this recipe according to your own tastes !
What ’ s more, some folks over the years complain of resentment. The reason is twofold—some peppercorns are lower quality and come with a bitter total darkness seed. decidedly avoid those ! The chaff is where the flavor is. The second cause for resentment is incidentally burning your szechwan peppercorns during the electrocute action. Err on the side of caution there—the fine your peppercorns, the less time you should be letting them cook in the oil before adding other ingredients ( see Step 2 of the recipe card ) .
Ingredients to make authentic Mapo Tofu!
Coarsely ground Sichuan peppercorns. You can use a mortar and pestle to grind the peppercorns coarsely, or achieve a finer grind in a spice grinder or a powerful blender. If using a blender, you’ll just need to make a larger batch and then store it. You can also find pre-ground Sichuan peppercorn powder in well-stocked Chinese grocery stores. That said, while the amounts can be adjusted, some ingredients are non-negotiable, like the Sichuan Peppercorns and the Spicy Bean Sauce ( Doubanjiang ) .
The Mala Market is a big resource for authentic, premium Sichuan ( and other Chinese ) ingredients. They offer a Pixian Doubanjiang sourced and packaged for them in Sichuan, ampere well as a super premium 3-year age Pixian Doubanjiang. You ’ ll besides find premium Sichuan Peppercorns in their workshop .
Mapo Tofu Recipe Instructions
( Scroll down to the recipe calling card for the full list of ingredients ! )
inaugural, we toast the chilies. If you have homemade toasted chili anoint, you can skip this step. Heat your wok or a minor saucepan over depleted heat. Add ¼ cup of the petroleum and throw in the fresh and dried peppers. Stir occasionally and heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes, ensuring that the peppers don ’ t cauterize. Remove from estrus and set aside .
Heat the remaining ¼ cup of oil in your wok over medium heat. Add your ground Sichuan peppercorns and stir occasionally for 30 seconds. ( Note, you can use szechwan pepper petroleum as a shortcut to this step. )
When the petroleum is fragrant, add the ginger. After 1 minute, add the garlic .
Fry for another minute, and then turn up the estrus to senior high school and add the prime pork. Break up the meat and fry it until it ’ sulfur cooked through .
Add the hot bean sauce to the mixture…
And stir it in good. You ’ ll see the semblance change !
Add ⅔ cups of chicken broth to the wok and stir. Let this simmer for a minute or so .
While that ’ s happen, ready your bean curd and besides put a ¼ cup of water in a little bowl with your cornstarch and mix until thoroughly combined .
Add the cornstarch mix to your sauce and touch. Let it bubble away until the sauce starts to thicken. ( If it gets excessively thick, splash in a little more urine or chicken stock. ) For more detailed information on the many ways to use cornstarch to get authentic results at home with our recipes, see our post on How to Use Cornstarch in Chinese Cooking .
then add your chili oil from before—peppers and all ! If you are using homemade chili oil, ONLY use the standing petroleum, as it ’ s likely that you have salted it and you entirely want the oil, not extra salt .
Stir the oil into the sauce, and add the bean curd. Use your spatula to gently toss the bean curd in the sauce. Let everything cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the sesame anoint and sugar ( if using ) along with the scallions and stir until the scallions are just wilted .
Serve with a last scatter of Sichuan pepper powder as a garnish if desired .
And your Ma Po Tofu is done !
( If you laughed at that, we should decidedly be friends. )
When you make this for friends and family, I guarantee that they ’ ll ooh and ahh over how a lot this Mapo Tofu looks and tastes equitable like what your favorite Szechuan/Sichuan restaurant makes. We sure did !
And you ’ ll be surprised at how simpleton it actually is. The key is to prep everything before you actually start cook .
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Mapo Tofu
This mapo tofu recipe is the true blue, authentic real deal—the spicy, tongue-numbing, rice-is-absolutely-not-optional mapo tofu that you get in the restaurants!
serves:
6
servings
Prep:
10
minutes
Cook:
25
minutes
Total:
35
minutes
Ingredients
-
▢
½ cup petroleum ( divided )
-
▢
1-2 fresh Thai boo chili peppers ( thinly sliced )
-
▢
6-8 dried red chilies ( roughly chopped )
-
▢
1 – 1 1/2 tablespoons Sichuan peppercorns ( powdered or finely ground, reserving 1/4 teaspoon for garnish at the end ; if you are sensitive to spice, adjust to taste, using less than 1 tablespoon if needed )
-
▢
3 tablespoons ginger ( finely minced )
-
▢
3 tablespoons garlic ( finely minced )
-
▢
8 ounces ground pork ( 225g )
-
▢
1-2 tablespoons spicy bean sauce ( depending on your craved salt/spice levels )
-
▢
2/3 cup low sodium chicken broth ( or water system )
-
▢
1 irish pound silken tofu ( 450g, cut into 1 inch cubes )
-
▢
Read more: Chinese Restaurant Teas
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
-
▢
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil ( optional )
-
▢
1/4 teaspoon carbohydrate ( optional )
-
▢
1 scallion ( finely chopped )
Instructions
- first, we toast the chilies. If you have homemade toasted chili oil, you can skip this step. Heat your wok or a modest saucepan over low heat. Add ¼ cup of the vegetable oil and throw in the fresh and dried peppers. Stir occasionally and heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes, ensuring that the peppers don ’ metric ton burn. Remove from heat and set aside .
-
Heat the remaining ¼ cup of oil in your wok over medium heat. Add your ground Sichuan peppercorns and stir occasionally for 30 seconds. Add the ginger. After 1 minute, add the garlic. Fry for another minute, and then turn up the heat to high and add the ground pork. Break up the meat and fry it until it’s cooked through.
-
Add the spicy bean sauce to the mixture and stir it in well. Add ⅔ cups of chicken broth to the wok and stir. Let this simmer for a minute or so. While that’s happening, ready your tofu and also put a ¼ cup of water in a small bowl with your cornstarch and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Add the cornstarch concoction to your sauce and arouse. Let it bubble away until the sauce starts to thicken. ( If it gets excessively thick, splash in a fiddling more urine or chicken stock. )
-
Then add your chili oil from before—peppers and all! If you are using homemade chili oil, ONLY use the standing oil, as it’s likely that you have salted it and you only want the oil, not additional salt. Stir the oil into the sauce, and add the tofu. Use your spatula to gently toss the tofu in the sauce. Let everything cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the sesame oil and sugar (if using) along with the scallions and stir until the scallions are just wilted.
-
Serve with a last sprinkle of Sichuan peppercorn powder as a garnish if desired.
nutrition facts
Calories:
335
kcal
(17%)
Carbohydrates:
8
g
(3%)
Protein:
11
g
(22%)
Fat:
29
g
(45%)
Saturated Fat:
5
g
(25%)
Cholesterol:
27
mg
(9%)
Sodium:
126
mg
(5%)
Potassium:
340
mg
(10%)
Fiber:
1
g
(4%)
Sugar:
2
g
(2%)
Vitamin A:
165
IU
(3%)
Vitamin C:
3.5
mg
(4%)
Calcium:
47
mg
(5%)
Iron:
1.4
mg
(8%)
nutritional info disclaimer
TheWoksofLife.com is written and produced for informational purposes only. While we do our best to provide nutritional data as a general road map to our readers, we are not certifiable nutritionists, and the values provided should be considered estimates. Factors such as brands purchased, natural variations in fresh ingredients, etc. will change the nutritional information in any recipe. versatile on-line calculators besides provide different results, depending on their sources. To obtain accurate nutritional information for a recipe, use your preferable nutrition calculator to determine nutritional information with the actual ingredients and quantities used .
