Mapo Tofu

Overview

Mapo is a representative dish in Sichuan cuisine. The main raw material is tofu. The ingredients include minced beef or pork, chili and Sichuan peppercorns. The numbness comes from Sichuan peppercorns and the spiciness comes from chili peppers. This dish highlights the spicy characteristics of Sichuan cuisine. This dish was first seen around Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty, and was created by Chen Liu, the proprietress of a small restaurant called Chen Xingsheng Restaurant in Wanfuqiao, a northern suburb of Chengdu. Because Chen Liu had pockmarks on her face, she was called Chen Mapo, and the roasted tofu she invented was called Chen Mapo Tofu

Tags

• vegetarian dishes
• old man
• sichuan cuisine
• spring recipes
• lunch
• famous dishes
• chili oil
• doubanjiang
• minced pork
• sichuan pepper oil
• water tofu
• zanthoxylum bungeanum

Ingredients

Steps

1. 1 Wash two pieces of tofu, make sure they are tender. Northern tofu is too hard and not tasty.

   

2. 2 Prepare the minced pork, marinate it in soy sauce for ten minutes, add a little starch and mix well.

   

3. 3 Prepare pepper oil and pepper.

   

4. 4 For Sichuan doubanjiang, don’t use the Haitian doubanjiang from Guangdong as it won’t produce an authentic taste. Use those from Sichuan.

   

5. 5 Prepare peppercorns.

   

6. 6 Cut the tofu into square pieces and boil it in a pot of boiling water to remove the beany smell.

   

7. 7 Put the minced meat into the pan and stir-fry the oil.

   

8. 8 Pour in the cooked tofu cubes.

   

9. 9 Add bean paste, soy sauce and a little salt and pepper, add peppercorns, add a little water and cook for a while to let it taste. You can pour some chili oil (red oil) to make it redder and brighter.

   

10. 10 Thicken the gravy with water starch and pour in pepper oil after serving.