Mopu Tofu Recipes

MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• First, we toast the chilies. If you have homemade toasted chili oil, you can skip this step. Heat your wok or a small saucepan over low heat. Add ¼ cup of the oil and throw in the fresh and dried peppers. Stir occasionally and heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes, ensuring that the peppers don't burn. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Heat the remaining ¼ cup of oil in your wok over medium heat. 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 your ground Sichuan peppercorns and stir for about 15-30 seconds, taking care to not let it burn, as it will turn bitter if it does.
• 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 mixture to your sauce and stir. Let it bubble away until the sauce starts to thicken. (If it gets too thick, splash in a little more water 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.

MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• Heat a wok over medium-high heat and toast the Sichuan peppercorns until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Remove from heat and transfer the peppercorns to a bowl to cool. Coarsely grind the peppercorns in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle and set aside. In a medium bowl, stir together the chicken broth, hot bean paste, cornstarch, hot sesame oil, soy sauce and sugar; set aside.
• Heat the wok over medium-high heat. Add the canola oil, garlic, ginger and fermented black beans and cook until fragrant, stirring often, about 10 seconds. Add the ground pork and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up the meat with a wooden spatula or spoon, until it is browned, 3 to 5 minutes. (Lower the heat to medium if the garlic starts to burn.) Add the reserved ground peppercorns, the tofu and the soy sauce mixture. Cook, stirring once to combine, until the sauce is reduced, thickened and glossy, about 2 minutes.
• Remove from heat and garnish with the scallions. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.

MAPO TOFU RECIPE

Steps:

• Add a small pinch of salt and ground pepper. Mix well and set aside.
• Cut tofu into square cubes (around 2cms). Bring a large amount of water to a boil and then add a pinch of salt. Slide the tofu in and cook for 1 minute. Move out and drain. This helps to remove the raw soy flavor form tofu.
• Get a wok and heat up around 2 tablespoons of oil, fry the minced meat until crispy. Transfer out and leave the oil in.
• Add another 1 tablespoon of vegetable cooking oil and fry doubanjiang for 1 minute over slow fire until the red turns red (bring us a lovely red color dish) and add fermented black beans, garlic, scallion white and ginger, cook for 30 seconds until aroma. Optionally mix pepper flakes in. Pepper flakes should be added at the end because it contains little water and can be burnt easily.
• Pour in water or stock. Add light soy sauce, sugar and half of the cooked beef (providing more flavors to the soup) after the broth boils and let it continue simmering for 2-3 minutes. Place the tofu in, simmer for another 6-8 minutes. The longer time of simmering helps the tofu to absorb the flavors.
• During the process of simmering, mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2.5 tablespoons of water in a small bowl to make water starch. Stir the water starch and then pour half of the mixture to the simmering pot. Back push and wait for around 30 seconds and then pour the other half. You can slightly taste the tofu and add pinch of salt if not salty enough. Add cooked beef to creates some crispy texture and then drizzle sesame oil. Mix well.
• Transfer out when almost all the seasonings stick to tofu cubes. Sprinkle Szechuan peppercorn powder (to taste)and chopped garlic greens if using.
• Serve immediately with steamed rice.

MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Bring a pot of water to a boil and set up a bowl of ice water.
• Cook the gai lan in the boiling water, 3 minutes, then plunge into the ice water to cool. Drain and pat dry.
• Add 2 tablespoons peanut oil and the shiitake mushrooms to a 12-inch cast-iron pan and stir to coat the mushrooms. Put the pan into the oven and roast, stirring as needed, until slightly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and allow to cool slightly before roughly chopping. Set aside until ready to use.
• Heat a medium saucepan on medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil. Add the millet and toast, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add half of the chives to sweat for a minute. Add 1 tablespoon doubanjiang and 3 cups water. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes. (Add more water if it is cooked out and the millet is too al dente).
• Meanwhile, in a wok or wide saucepan, add 2 tablespoons peanut oil. Add the remaining 1/2 cup chives, along with the ginger and garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and stir to combine. Add the Shaoxing, dark soy sauce, sugar and remaining tablespoon doubanjiang and continue to cook until heated through, adding a little water if it becomes too dry.
• Combine the two mixtures together and add the Sichuan peppercorns and soy sauce to season. Spoon into a serving bowl and top with the tofu, chile oil and gai lan. Garnish with the peanuts, crispy shallots, cilantro and more chives. Add a pinch of ground Sichuan peppercorns over the top.

SPICY SICHUAN TOFU (MAPO DOUFU)

Steps:

• Grind peppercorns in grinder and set aside.
• Cut tofu into 3/4-inch cubes and pat dry.
• Heat wok over high heat until it begins to smoke, then pour oil down side and swirl to coat bottom and side. Stir-fry pork until no longer pink. Add bean sauce, black beans, and chile powder and stir-fry 1 minute. Stir in stock, soy sauce, sugar, tofu, and a pinch of salt. Simmer, gently stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, stir together cornstarch and water until smooth.
• Stir cornstarch mixture into stir-fry and simmer, gently stirring occasionally, 1 minute. Stir in scallions and simmer 1 minute. Serve sprinkled with Sichuan pepper.
• **Serve with:**perfect steamed rice

MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• Get all the ingredients ready before you start cooking and set them out in bowls. Drain the tofu and cut it into 1.5cm cubes. Put it in a bowl and cover with very hot water. Leave this while you get on with everything else.
• Heat a wok and pour in the groundnut oil. Get this really hot and fry the pork until it's crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon but leave the oil behind.
• Add the bean paste and cook, stirring for a few mins until fragrant, then add the black beans, ginger and garlic. Cook, stirring, for a min or so, then add the stock and let it bubble away.
• Stir the cornflour and water into the mixture in the wok, drain the tofu and stir it into the sauce. Tip in the spring onions and the mince.
• Add the chilli oil, if using, and sprinkle over the Sichuan peppercorns. The sauce shouldn't need seasoning with salt, as many of the ingredients are salty already. Serve with boiled white rice.

VEGAN MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• Mix vegetable broth, maple syrup, soy sauce, and cornstarch in a bowl.
• Heat peanut oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, black beans, green onions, garlic, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorns. Saute until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add chili bean paste and the soy sauce mixture. Cook and stir until thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Add tofu; cook until heated through, about 1 minute more.
• Transfer cooked tofu to a serving dish; drizzle chile oil and sesame oil on top. Top with chopped peanuts.

VEGAN MAPO TOFU

Steps:

• Remove stems from mushrooms. Make a light mushroom broth by simmering stems in 2 cups water for 15 minutes, then strain and reserve broth (discard stems). Dice mushroom caps and set aside.
• Cut tofu into 1-inch cubes. Cover with boiling salted water, let steep for 15 minutes, then drain.
• Put oil in a wok or wide skillet over medium heat. Add red peppers, black beans and bean paste and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add garlic and ginger and let sizzle, then add mushrooms, soy sauce, sesame oil and Sichuan pepper. Add 1 1/2 cups mushroom broth and cook mixture gently for 2 minutes.
• Carefully add tofu cubes. Shake pan to distribute sauce, using a wooden spoon to help. Try to avoid smashing tofu. Drizzle in cornstarch mixture, gently swirling pan to incorporate (sauce will thicken) and simmer tofu in sauce for 2 minutes more. Thin with a little mushroom broth if necessary. Transfer to a low bowl or platter. Sprinkle with scallions and cilantro sprigs.

CHINESE MABO TOFU

Steps:

• Mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl; set aside.
• Brown ground pork in a small skillet over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes. Drain fat.
• Heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet or wok. Cook the garlic and ginger root in the oil until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tofu and cook for 2 minutes. Season with the soy sauce, hot bean sauce, and sugar; stir to combine.
• Stir in the cooked pork and green onion. Sprinkle with the cornstarch and water mixture; cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir the sesame oil into the thickened mabo tofu.