Spicy Sichuan Mapo Tofu
Healthy, nutritious popular Sichuan mapo tofu recipe made with minced meat, tender tofu, and savoury spicy mapo sauce. Serve it with a bowl of plain rice or noodles. Super delicious!
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Servings: 4 - 5
Calories: 226kcal
Equipment
- Large wok/pan Nonstick or traditional
Ingredients
- 200 gram Tofu block Firm or medium-firm tofu ( About 7 oz )
- 200 gram Chicken mince Or beef, pork, or turkey mince (About 7 oz )
- 2 tbsp Garlic Finely chopped
- 2 tsp Ginger Finely chopped or grated
- 2-3 Spring onions Cut thin slices
- ½ cup Water Warm water/ low-sodium chicken stock ( add more if needed )
- 3 tbsp Oil Vegetable or neutral flavour oil
- 1 tsp Corn starch ( mixed it with 2 tbsp of water )
Spices and Seasonings
- 1 tbsp Light soy sauce ( or all-purpose soy sauce )
- 1 tbsp Shao Xing wine Chinese cooking rice wine or mirin
- 1 tbsp Chilli powder Or paprika powder
- 1 tbsp Crushed chillies dried crushed chilli flakes
- 1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns Crushed or grinded
- 1 tbsp Fermented black beans Douchi ( see details in note )
- 2-3 tbsp Chilli bean paste La Doubanjiang ( see details in note )
- 2 tsp Sugar ( optional )
Instructions
- Prepare and gather the ingredients, before you heat the wok. First, heat the wok/pan over medium heat, drizzle oil and saute the garlic and ginger for a few seconds until fragrant.
- Next, add the fermented black beans and follow with the crushed chillies and Sichuan peppercorns. Cook for a few seconds until fragrant. Stir in chilli powder and chilli bean paste.
- Place the minced meat and stir fry everything well until the meat is dry and crisp up.
- Then pour the warm water in and bring it to simmer. Season the dish with soy sauce, Shao Xing wine, and sugar.
- Now add the tofu cubes and stir it gently to combine well with the sauce. Continue cook with low medium heat for another 10 minutes or until the tofu is cooked through.
- Add cornstarch slurry to the sauce and stir it gently. Once the sauce starts to get thicken, turn off the heat and finish with chopped spring onions.
- Serve immediately while hot with plain rice or noodles.
Notes
- Tofu bean curd - Use regular firm tofu, medium-firm, or soft tofu. Do not recommend silken tofu for this recipe. Available at Chinese/Oriental Asian grocery stores or supermarkets' vegan/vegetarian fridge sections.
- Protein choice - Instead of chicken mince, you can add beef, lamb, pork, ground turkey, etc.
- Fermented black bean - is also called Douchi and is made with salted fermented black soybeans. You can substitute it with black bean garlic sauce if you cannot find it.
- Spicy chilli bean sauce/paste - is called La Doubanjiang and is made from fermented broad beans and chillies. A must-add ingredient to this recipe.
- Vegetarian mapo tofu - to cook vegetarian and vegan mapo tofu, you can swap minced meat with vegan minced meat, finely chopped fresh mushrooms or dried shiitake mushrooms.
- Sichuan peppercorn - It has a sizzling numbing hot sensation. Crushed it into the coarse grind with a mortar pastel or food processor. Do not suggest adding in whole.
- Can you freeze or reheat it? Do not recommend freezing mapo tofu but if you have any leftovers you can store them in an air-tight container and keep it in the fridge for a couple of days. Simply reheat it in the microwave or over the stovetop until piping hot.
Nutrition
Calories: 226kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 351mg | Potassium: 420mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1260IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 2mg
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