tonight's midnight meal

mapo tofu, silky and numbing over rice

Name: mapo tofu, silky and numbing over rice
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 2 bowls over rice
Cuisine: Sichuan
Ingredients: 1 block (about 14 oz) silken or soft tofu, cut into 3/4-inch cubes; 7 oz (200 g) ground pork (or beef); 2 Tbsp doubanjiang (spicy fermented broad bean paste); 2–3 Tbsp chili oil, plus more to finish; 1 Tbsp gochugaru or Sichuan chili flakes, to taste; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tsp grated ginger; 1 cup chicken or pork stock (or water); 1 Tbsp soy sauce; 1 tsp sugar; 1 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbsp water; 1 tsp whole Sichuan peppercorns, toasted and ground, plus more to finish; 3 scallions, thinly sliced; cooked white rice, to serve

⏱ 30 min🍽 2, over rice

Ingredients · tap to check

1 block (about 14 oz) silken or soft tofu, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
7 oz (200 g) ground pork (or beef)
2 Tbsp doubanjiang (spicy fermented broad bean paste)
2–3 Tbsp chili oil, plus more to finish
1 Tbsp gochugaru or Sichuan chili flakes, to taste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp grated ginger
1 cup chicken or pork stock (or water)
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbsp water
1 tsp whole Sichuan peppercorns, toasted and ground, plus more to finish
3 scallions, thinly sliced
cooked white rice, to serve

The Way

Cut the silken tofu gently into cubes. Bring a small pot of lightly salted water to a bare simmer, slide the tofu in, and let it sit off the heat while you build the sauce, this firms it just enough to hold its shape.
Toast the whole Sichuan peppercorns in a dry pan until fragrant, then grind them fine (a mortar and pestle is perfect). Set aside.
Heat a little oil in a wok or pan over medium-high. Add the ground pork and cook, breaking it up, until browned and a bit crisp at the edges.
Push the pork aside, add the doubanjiang and chili oil to the fat, and fry for a minute until the oil turns deep red. Stir in the garlic, ginger and gochugaru.
Pour in the stock, soy sauce and sugar and bring to a simmer. Drain the tofu and slide the cubes in, gently pushing them under the sauce without stirring hard so they stay whole. Simmer 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir the cornstarch slurry and drizzle it in, folding gently, until the sauce turns glossy and clings to every cube.
Off the heat, shower with the ground Sichuan pepper and sliced scallions and finish with a little more chili oil. Spoon over hot rice.

midnight tip. the ground Sichuan pepper goes on at the very end, off the heat, so it keeps that bright tingling buzz instead of cooking flat. add half, taste, then decide if you want the full numbing hit.

Questions

silken or firm tofu?

silken (or soft) is what makes mapo tofu feel like mapo tofu, custardy cubes that almost melt into the sauce. the quick dip in barely-simmering salted water firms the outside just enough to handle. firm tofu works if that's what you have, it just eats more like a stir-fry.

how do I get it numbing and not just spicy?

that tingling, buzzy feeling is the Sichuan peppercorn, not the chili. toast and grind it fresh, and add it at the end off the heat. doubanjiang and chili oil bring the heat, the peppercorn brings the ma (numbing). you want both.

no doubanjiang, can I still make it?

doubanjiang is the soul of the sauce, so it's worth seeking out. in a pinch, use a spoon of gochujang plus extra chili oil and a little miso for the fermented depth. it won't be identical, but it'll still be a good spicy tofu bowl.

mapo tofu, silky and numbing over rice

Ingredients · tap to check

The Way

Questions

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