Mapo Tofu
Silky tofu in a fiery, numbing Sichuan sauce with crisp ground pork. On the table in 25 minutes, and better than any takeout version.
Mapo tofu is the dish that converts people who think they do not like tofu. The tofu here is not the point on its own — it is a soft, neutral carrier for a sauce built on fermented chili bean paste, rendered pork fat, and the electric tingle of Sichuan peppercorn.
Two things separate a good version from a great one. The first is blanching the tofu, a step almost every English-language recipe skips. Sixty seconds of salted water firms the outside just enough that the cubes hold together through simmering and stirring. The second is frying the doubanjiang in bare oil rather than dumping it into liquid. That half-minute in hot fat is when the paste releases its color and its fragrance; skip it and you get a muddy brown sauce instead of a brilliant red one.
The numbing quality — málà — is not optional, and it is not the same thing as heat. Sichuan peppercorn produces a buzzing, slightly citrusy vibration on the lips that makes the chili feel brighter. If you have only ever had a takeout mapo tofu that was simply hot, this is the missing half of the dish.
Instructions
- 1
Bring a pot of salted water to a gentle boil. Slide in the tofu cubes and blanch for 2 minutes, then drain. This firms the curd so it survives the pan and washes off the raw soy flavor.
- 2
Toast the Sichuan peppercorns in a dry wok over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, until they smell citrusy and floral. Grind to a powder and set aside.
- 3
Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over high heat. Add the ground pork, breaking it into small pieces, and cook 3 to 4 minutes until browned and slightly crisp at the edges.
- 4
Push the pork to one side. Add the doubanjiang to the bare oil and stir-fry for 30 seconds, until the oil turns deep red. Add the garlic and ginger and stir another 15 seconds.
- 5
Pour in the chicken broth and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Slide in the tofu and simmer 3 minutes, nudging rather than stirring so the cubes stay whole.
- 6
Stir the cornstarch slurry, then pour it in while gently moving the pan. Cook 1 minute until the sauce thickens enough to cling to the tofu.
- 7
Off the heat, drizzle with sesame oil and top with the ground Sichuan peppercorn and scallions. Serve immediately over steamed rice.
Cook’s Notes
- Your doubanjiang decides how this tastes. Pixian doubanjiang from Sichuan is fermented far longer than generic chili bean paste and has a depth nothing else matches.
- Grind the peppercorns yourself and add them at the end. Pre-ground powder loses its tingle within weeks, and cooking it hard kills what is left.
- Push rather than stir. A silicone spatula and a gentle hand are the difference between mapo tofu and pork-flecked tofu scramble.
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