Low-fat Mapo Tofu Recipe!
Mapo tofu is one of the signature dishes from Sichuan, China. Silky soft tofu swimming in spicy sauce. Originally, mapo tofu was a very oily dish, but I made this recipe easier on our tummy by reducing the excess fat amount.
Mapo tofu is also a dish that is very easy to turn into a plant-based/vegetarian dish. All you have to do is use different protein, vegetarian oyster sauce, and veggie broth instead of chicken broth. I will explain more details as I go.
You can definitely adjust the spiciness to your liking. It is fantastic with warm cooked rice. 🤤 But if you are doing a keto diet or low carb diet, cauliflower rice will do! I have massive respect for people who can do keto/low carb because I can’t give up my rice or noodles! 😂
You can make this less than 20 minutes if you are an experienced cook or 30 minutes if you are a beginner. Easy fix meal for weeknight dinner, or it can be a weekend treat! Are we ready? Let’s get started!
As all the great Asian recipe starts, we need to chop Asian trinity. 3 large cloves garlic, 2 oz ginger, and 3 green onions. Oh, also, 1 chili. Chili is optional for those who love spicy food like me!
Don’t forget to save some green part of green onion for later for garnish.
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Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a small mixing bowl, set aside.
Ingredients for the sauce:
- 2 tbsp tobanjang, Chinese chili bean paste (use Doenjang, miso, or yellow bean paste for non-spicy version!)
- 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine, optional
- 1 tbsp black vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar or agave nectar
Bring 1 block (14 oz) of silken tofu to a cutting board. Make sure to drain all liquid in the package. Cut them into 3/4-inch cubes.
I always use this Korean brand of tofu because it’s the best taste tofu for me. You can use any brand of tofu you like.
Heat a cast-iron wok over medium heat. (if you are using carbon steel wok, heat over high heat and adjust cooking time throughout the recipe.) Add 1 tbsp cooking oil (I use avocado oil for my all-propose oil), 1 tbsp chili oil (you can substitute to cooking oil if you want it to be mild), chopped garlic, ginger, chili, and green onions. Stir fry all together for about 1 minute, then stir in 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorn powder. (You can prepare Sichuan peppercorn by yourself or purchase already toasted & grind for you!)
If you want to make your homemade chili oil and know how to prepare Sichuan peppercorn, check out my chili oil recipe! It is the BOMB!!! You will never go back to store-bought chili oil!
Add 1/2 lb of your choice of protein and breakdown into small pieces. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until fully cooked and ground edges.
The portion you can use are :
- ground pork
- ground beef
- ground chicken
- ground lamb
- ground turkey
- crumbled tofu
- chopped mushrooms
- plant-based meat
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Pour the sauce mixture and stir fry sauce, protein, and aromatic vegetables together for about 2 to 3 minutes. This way, aromas and flavors from the sauces will enhance!
Pour 2 cups of chicken or veggie stock and deglaze the bottom of the wok. Bring it to boil. Add cubed tofu and carefully stir. You want to keep the shape of tofu as square as possible. Bring back to boil.
Meanwhile, mix 1 tbsp cornstarch and 2 tbsp water. Pour the starch mixture into boiling mapo tofu base while carefully stirring. This is very important because the cornstarch mixture will thicken mapo tofu immediately, only where it is added into.
Garnish with some chopped green onions and extra Sichuan peppercorn powder. Serve with warm cooked rice. Enjoy!
Low-fat Mapo Tofu
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 2 tbsp tobanjang, Chinese chili bean paste
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp shaoxing wine, optional
- 1 tbsp black vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar or agave nectar
For Mapo Tofu
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tbsp chili oil (you can substitute to cooking oil)
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 oz ginger, chopped
- 1 red chili, chopped (optional)
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 1 tsp toasted and grind Sichuan peppercorn*
- 1/2 lb ground pork, chicken, beef, lamb, turkey, crumbled tofu, chopped mushrooms or plant based meat
- 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 block (14 oz) silken tofu, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
- 1 tbsp corn starch
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients for sauce in a mixing bowl, set aside.
- Heat a cast iron wok over medium heat. (if you are using carbon steal wok, heat over high heat and adjust cooking time through out the recipe.) Add cooking oil, chili oil, chopped garlic, ginger, chili and green onions. Stir fry all together about 1 minute then stir in Sichuan peppercorn powder.
- Add your choice of protein and breakdown into small pieces. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until fully cooked and ground edges. Pour sauce mixture and stir fry sauce, protein and aromatic vegetables together about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Pour stock and deglaze bottom of wok. Bring it to boil. Add cubed tofu and carefully stir. You want to keep the shape of tofu as square as possible. Bring back to boil. Meanwhile, mix cornstarch and 2 tbsp water. Pour starch mixture into boiling mapo tofu base while carefully stirring. This is very important, because cornstarch mixture will thicken mapo tofu immediately only where it added into.
- Garnish with some chopped green onions and extra Sichuan peppercorn powder. Serve with warm cooked rice. Enjoy!
Notes
Toast Sichuan peppercorn on dry skillet until you can smell aroma. Grind with mortar and pestle or coffee/spice grinder until fine but still a little coarse powder.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
16 comments
Mapo tofu… My all time favorite! Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
This was absolutely amazing. I loved it. I used tofu and mushrooms. I fried the tofu first and then instead of cornstarch I just simmered until the liquid thickened. It was amazing.
I just had to run to the store, get the ingredients and make this tonight for dinner. It’s amazing! Thank you so much!
★★★★★
So glad I could help out! (:
Love this dish! I have whole szechuan peppercorns and not ground… How should I use them in the dish? I heard the small black seeds within the husk are bitter and to remove them, is this true? Should I just use the husk of the peppercorn in my dish?
I usually toss the whole peppercorns on a pan and grind them up to get them like a powder.
Can I substitute gochujang for tobanjang?
No you can not ):
Turned out really nice,will definitely make it again.
Lovely dish.
★★★★★
How do you grind whole peppercorns? With back of the spoon? I don’t have a grinder
I’m making this recipe right now can I use Chili Oil with Black Bean in this recipe..
and can I use reg wok on this recipe..
The seeds are tasteless and gritty, so they are not meant to be consumed. Remove the seeds and use only the outer husks.
It was really good but 2 oz of ginger is way to much. You might want to rewrite the recipe. I think it should be 2T. I
★★★★★
Can I substitute Laoganma for Tobanjang?
It was easy and fun to make i wish u peppercorns though
★★★★
Mapo tofu is my all time fav. I’ll definitely be adding shiitake mushrooms and maybe some English peas. Thanks for this post!