Mapo Tofu

麻婆豆腐, mápó dòufu

This recipe is mostly a commentary/lazy knock off of this one. I follow the proportions of ingredients pretty closely, but I’ll note which steps I’m skipping and why. I would basically follow the linked recipe instead if you’re trying to make very pretty mapo tofu. I would basically never do this because why are we dressing oil-pork-tofu slop but to each their own.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Sichuan peppercorns or whatever kind of chili pepper seeds you can get your hands on. I use the seeds from the dried chilis that a lot of takeout places use. Separate these into two even groups to be used at different stages. This seems really important but it’s honestly the most skippable ingredient. See direction #2 for more details.
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons cold water
• 1 1/2 pounds medium to firm silken tofu, cut into 1/2-inch cubes.
• 1/4 pound ground pork. He uses beef which I find ridiculous but do your thing.
• 3 garlic cloves grated or finely minced.
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger grated or finely minced
• 2 tablespoons fermented chili bean paste like sambal
• 2 tablespoons Xiaoxing wine
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1/4 cup low sodium chicken stock. I usually substitute 1 bouillon cube with the same volume of water as the stock described here.
• 1/4 cup roasted chili oil like lao gan ma (老干妈)
• 1/4 cup finely sliced scallion greens

Directions

1. There is a whole step where you can boil your cubed tofu in cornstarch water. This supposedly makes them keep form better. The science seems sound but this is absolute bullshit to me. You’re just going to mush that shit up when you mix it with your rice anyway. I will never do this so please refer to the linked recipe for more info.
2. In a pan or wok, toast half of your peppercorns/chili seeds until they start to darken. Remove from the pan and set aside. Definitely crush them up a bit if using peppercorns, optional for chili seeds (I don’t do it).

If using chili seeds instead of Sichuan peppercorns, this is a pretty mild addition in terms of spice, but it’s such an easy step there’s no point in skipping it. Having the bits is also nice for presentation at the end; it makes it look spicier.

3. Heat your oil on low in an empty pan and introduce the rest of the peppercorns/chili seeds for an oil infusion. Remove peppercorns/chili after 1.5min.

If using chili seeds, you can absolutely skip this shit. What the chili seeds can impart isn’t as substantial as the peppercorns and it’s a pain in the ass to separate them even in a wok.

4. Bring oil to high heat and introduce your ground meat. Stir constantly for 1min. Then add ginger and garlic, stirring until fragrant (~15sec).
5. Add in chicken stock, soy sauce, xiaoxing wine, and chili paste (sambal). Bring to a boil.
6. Add cornstarch slurry and mix in until it sufficiently thickens the mixture.
7. “Carefully” fold in your tofu at this point. You can add half your scallions and the chili oil at this stage as well.
8. Remove from heat and prepare to serve over fresh rice. You can top it with the remaining scallion and your toasted peppercorn/chili seed.