Cherry & Dennis Recipes
Mapo Tofu with Minced Pork
麻婆豆腐
Recipe overview
Mapo tofu is a mildly spicy, numbing dish of soft cooking tofu, minced pork, chilli bean paste, fermented black beans and ground Sichuan pepper. Warm tofu briefly in near-boiling lightly salted water, drain and discard the water. Cook pork until fully changed colour with no pink. Fry doubanjiang and fermented black beans before stock, move tofu only by shaking or pushing from below, add cornstarch slurry in two stages and add Sichuan pepper at the end. Check soy, wheat, oyster-sauce and sodium labels; it is not low sodium.
01
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 600 gabout 2 blocks soft cooking tofu
- 250 g minced pork
- 4 cloves garlic
- 15 g ginger
- 3 stalks scallions
- 300 ml unsalted chicken stock
- about 1.2 litres tofu-warming water
- 1 teaspoons salt for tofu-warming water
Minced pork marinade
- 1 teaspoon Soy sauce (used for Minced pork marinade)
- 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 teaspoon Cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon Sesame oil (used for Minced pork marinade)
- a pinch White pepper
Mapo sauce
- 1.5 tablespoons Chilli bean paste (Check soy, wheat and sodium label)
- 1 teaspoon Fermented black beans
- 1 teaspoon Oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon Soy sauce (used for Mapo sauce)
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Chilli powder
Two-stage cornstarch slurry
- 2 teaspoons Cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons Water (Stir and add in two stages)
Numbing aromatic finish
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Sichuan pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Sesame oil (used for Numbing aromatic finish)
Cooking oil
- 1.5 tablespoons Cooking oil
02
Tools
- deep nonstick pan or wok
- deep nonstick pan or wok
- small pot
- lid
- wooden spoon
- slotted spoon
- bowls
- sieve
- measuring cup
- knife
- board
- tablespoon
- teaspoon
- chopsticks
- kitchen paper
- fine sieve
- serving plate
03
Steps
Step 1
Step 1
Total time: 40 minutes. Difficulty: Medium. Category: Sichuan-style family cooking, eggs and tofu, pork, mildly spicy. Methods: cutting, warming in water, frying aromatics, simmering, two-stage thickening. Dish type: main, tofu. Audience: Hong Kong families, beginner helpers and adults able to eat soy and pork. Collection: Sichuan Family Cooking, Hong Kong Home Cooking, 30-Minute Dinner. Introduction: Mapo tofu is a mildly spicy, numbing dish of soft cooking tofu, minced pork, chilli bean paste, fermented black beans and ground Sichuan pepper. Warm tofu briefly in near-boiling lightly salted water, drain and discard the water. Cook pork until fully changed colour with no pink. Fry doubanjiang and fermented black beans before stock, move tofu only by shaking or pushing from below, add cornstarch slurry in two stages and add Sichuan pepper at the end. Check soy, wheat, oyster-sauce and sodium labels; it is not low sodium. Tools: deep nonstick pan or wok, small pot, lid, wooden spoon, slotted spoon, bowls, sieve, measuring cup, knife, board, tablespoon, teaspoon, chopsticks, kitchen paper, fine sieve, deep white plate. Main ingredients: soft cooking tofu 600 grams; minced pork 250 grams; garlic 4 cloves; ginger 15 grams; scallions 3; unsalted chicken stock 300 millilitres; tofu-warming water 1.2 litres and salt 1 teaspoon, discarded after use.
Step 2
Step 2
Cut tofu: Check and cut 2.5-centimetre cubes.
Step 3
Step 3
Heat salted water: Heat gently near boiling.
Step 4
Step 4
Warm tofu: Keep at 80–90°C for 2 minutes, drain and discard water.
Step 5
Step 5
Marinate pork: Loosen gently for 10 minutes.
Step 6
Step 6
Prepare beans: Rinse, dry and chop fermented beans with aromatics.
Step 7
Step 7
Mix sauce and slurry: Keep slurry separate for two additions.
Step 8
Step 8
Brown pork: Fry loose pork until fully coloured and no pink remains.
Step 9
Step 9
Fry pastes: Fry aromatics, doubanjiang and beans until fragrant, not burnt.
Step 10
Step 10
Add stock: Simmer thin sauce.
Step 11
Step 11
Simmer tofu gently: Shake pan or push from bottom only.
Step 12
Step 12
Thicken twice: Add half slurry, assess, then add remaining gradually.
Common mistakes
- dessert tofu, violent boiling, keeping warming water, pink pork, unfried or burnt paste, rough stirring, one thick slurry addition, early Sichuan pepper, too much oil, thick gel sauce or assuming this dish is low sodium.
Tips
use soft cooking tofu, drain after warming, cook pork fully, use doubanjiang with care for heat and allergens, keep tofu intact, add slurry twice, and avoid for people unable to eat spicy/numbing food, soy, wheat, pork or oyster-related ingredients.
Step-by-step cooking for this recipe is being checked.
