Mapo tofu

And my search for healthy, tasty food that leans toward a less meat diet continues. It seems I have gone from mugging innocent cultures, to abusing public reference material…

Searching Wikipedia for other references, I came upon an entry for Mapo Tofu. This is my first try at recreating that dish..

I’ve applied a few tricks learned in confinement, primarily, pressing tofu.

Pressing Tofu

• Slice the tofu into 1/3’s on the thin side
• Wrap the tofu in three layers of paper towel
• Place the wrapped tofu on a plate
• Add a plate on top, and add a weight on the top plate
• I use a 1/2 gallon olive oil jug for this
• Leave for 30 minutes
• Remove tofu from paper
• Rewrap and repress for 30 minutes

Another trick I’ve picked up is tossing the tofu in cornstarch, and frying at a medium temp to get a crisp and colored skin. Then tossing with a sauce in the pan to make sure the sauce is absorbed while the tofu cools.

Spicy Tofu

Crispy, creamy, spicy, tasty.

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Chinese

Servings 4

Calories 246 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Main

• 1 lb tofu extra firm, pressed, and cubed to 1/2"
• 2 tbsp Corn Starch
• 8 oz Mixed Mushrooms or Button washed, sliced
• 1 head Broccoli trimmed to florets
• 1 ea Sweet onion peeled, minced
• 1 tbsp neutral oil

Sauce

• 1 tbsp Sambal oelek
• 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
• 2 tbsp Mirin
• 1 tbsp Minced Garlic
• 1 tsp Brown Sugar

Instructions

 

Sauce

• Combine all in a small dish, set aside

Main

• Toss pressed, cubed, tofu with cornstarch
• Place a large skillet / wok over medium high heat and add oil,
• when oil spiders add tofu and fry for ~5 minutes, we want some color and a crisp side
• Toss tofu to flip sides and fry for an additional 5 minutes, repeat once more
• Add 2 tbsp of sauce and toss once more, cook to thicken, ~ 2 minutes
• Remove tofu to plate
• Add onions and mushrooms, saute until onions are translucent and mushrooms have color
• Remove to plate
• Add broccoli to pan, add 2 tbsp of water, and cover for 3 minutes
• Remove cover and toss to remove and liquid, looking for a tender crisp veg
• add the mushrooms, onions, and tofu back along with sauce
• Toss to coat and warm through

Notes

One can either serve over / with rice, or add hot cooked noodles and toss

 

Nutrition

Calories: 246kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 18gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 937mgPotassium: 713mgFiber: 6gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 947IUVitamin C: 137mgCalcium: 223mgIron: 3mg

Keyword Fried, Spicy, Tofu

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