Spice up your meal with a steaming plate of easy Chinese mapo tofu. A dish of soft tofu and ground beef cooked in a spicy, fragrant and rich sauce.
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Easy Side Dish
Here’s a beginner-friendly side dish that you can make easily at home — mapo tofu! A delicious meal made complete with rice, you can have it ready to be plated within just 30 minutes!
What Is Mapo Tofu?
Mapo tofu is a well-loved Chinese dish that’s a staple in a lot of restaurants and take out orders. It originates from the Sichuan province, which is known for its cuisine with spicy and bold flavors. And mapo tofu embodies those flavors quite well.
The dish typically consists of cubed tofu cooked in a spicy and fragrant sauce, often with minced meat such as pork or beef. The two key ingredients are doubanjiang (a spicy fermented chili bean sauce) and Sichuan peppercorns. However, for this recipe, I just use Sichuan pepper powder instead.
Origin Story
It’s said that the dish was created by a woman named Chen Mapo. Hence, the name “mapo tofu”, which roughly translates to “pockmarked grandmother’s tofu”.
Ingredients You’ll Need
(For full ingredient measurements, please proceed to the recipe card below.)
- Ground meat: I use ground beef. But you can substitute with ground turkey or pork.
- Soft tofu
- Doubanjiang (spicy chili bean sauce)
- Garlic
- Oyster sauce
- Light soy sauce
- Sichuan pepper powder: This is a pre-ground version of the Sichuan peppercorns, and you can usually find this in Asian grocery stores. If you’re grinding fresh Sichuan peppercorns to use for this recipe, be cautious of the amount that you’ll use. Usually, the fresh ones are spicier.
- Sugar: Sugar is often added not to sweeten the dish, but just to help round out the flavors.
- Water or Chicken broth
- Cornstarch slurry: Cornstarch slurry is a mix of cornstarch and water. It’s used to give the sauce a thicker consistency.
how to make easy mapo tofu
- To a frying pan over medium heat, add your ground beef and break up any clumps. Pan fry until the meat browns, stirring occassionally. Optional step: Drain out half of the grease.
- Add minced garlic and the spicy chili bean sauce (doubanjiang). Stir until everything is well combined and let it cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Pour in water or chicken broth and season with the sauces, sugar and sichuan pepper powder. Stir and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Add cornstarch slurry and stir. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Add the cut up tofu and stir until well combined. Let it simmer for 1-2 minutes and serve. Enjoy!
Notes For Easy Mapo Tofu
- Doubanjiang amount: Add more or less based on how spicy you want it.
- Seasoning amount: Adjust the amount of seasoning to taste.
- Tofu: You can use any kind of tofu you like. I prefer soft tofu for this.
More Side Dishes
- Garlic Bok Choy (15 minutes)
- Easy Asian Cucumber Salad
- 15-Minutes Bok Choy Mushroom with Oyster Sauce
- Easy Salt And Pepper Shrimp
- Honey Walnut Shrimp
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Easy Mapo Tofu
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 14 or 16 oz soft tofu cut into cubes
- 1-2 tbsp doubanjiang (spicy chili bean sauce) see notes below
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 3 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1.5 tsp sichuan pepper powder adjust to taste
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 cup water/chicken broth
- 2 tbsp water + 1 tbsp cornstarch for cornstarch slurry
Instructions
- To a frying pan over medium heat, add your ground beef and break up any clumps. Pan fry until the meat browns, stirring occassionally. Optional step: Drain out half of the grease.
- Add minced garlic and the spicy chili bean sauce (doubanjiang). Stir until everything is well combined and let it cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Pour in water or chicken broth and season with the sauces, sugar and sichuan pepper powder. Stir and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Add cornstarch slurry and stir. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Add the cut up tofu and stir until well combined. Let it simmer for 1-2 minutes and serve. Enjoy!
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