The Best Vegan Mapo Tofu Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What can I use instead of meat in mapo tofu? ›

This meatless version with fresh shiitake mushrooms is completely satisfying, and surprisingly easy to make. For the best texture, use soft tofu rather than firm, taking care to cook it gently to keep it from crumbling.

The Best Tofu for Mapo Tofu Recipe

There are many different types of tofu available, but I recommend using soft tofu for the best texture. Soft tofu is smooth, soft, and creamy, which pairs beautifully with the savory sauce and ground meat.

Mapo Tofu is traditionally a Chinese dish, but Koreans love it so much that they created their own twist to it! Korean Mapo Tofu is generally spicier than its Chinese counterpart. This recipe is great if you need to come up with dinner in a rush.

Ground pork stir fried with silken tofu in a rich, mildly spicy and deeply flavorsome sauce. Mapo Tofu is a classic Chinese dish full of protein, but this one is healthier as there's less of the chillies and oil. It's very easy to make and great for meal prep too.

The dish is often made without meat to appeal to vegetarians, using shiitake, other edible mushrooms, or plant-based meat substitutes.

The pleasant numbing spice of mapo tofu comes from Sichuan peppercorns, which have a pleasant numbing effect which makes it so you can eat more and more spice until you realize that you're entirely spiced out. It's called “málà” in Chinese and is prized in Sichuan cooking.

Add tofu and carefully fold in, being careful not to break it up too much. Stir in chili oil and half of scallions and simmer for 30 seconds longer. Transfer immediately to a serving bowl and sprinkle with remaining scallions and toasted ground Sichuan pepper. Serve immediately with white rice.

Many may compare doubanjiang to Korean fermented pastes like gochujang, a sweeter, tangier fermented chili paste, or doenjang, a mild and savory fermented soybean paste. While they share an etymology, they are quite different - doubanjiang has a distinct heat and savory element - the flavor of Sichuan China.

Anyone who says tofu is bland or boring hasn't eaten mapo tofu, the intoxicatingly spicy, fragrant dish from the Sichuan Province of China.

Vegetarian Mapo Tofu. This meat-free version of a popular Sichuan dish boasts tender tofu draped in a savory, mouth-numbing sauce. The characteristic tongue-tingling comes from Sichuan peppercorns.

What to pair with mapo tofu? ›

Serve the mapo tofu with the tempura zucchini, ponzu sauce, and cooked rice on the side. Enjoy!

It's a dish that stems from humble origins, though its name does little to stoke an appetite. Mapo tofu is said to have originated in Chengdu in the late 1800s. Ma translates to “pockmarks”, while po refers to an older woman. Together these reference the dish's inventor, Mrs Chen, an elderly woman with smallpox scars.

Steamed Fish and Vegetables

Takeout menus tend to offer a mild-tasting variety of protein-rich white fish, such as sole, and it's paired with mixed vegetables. The veggies add fiber, a key nutrient for digestion and heart health. If you have the chance to choose or add Chinese eggplant as a veggie, go for it.

Its silky tofu consistency, mixed with a spicy and flavorful sauce, is such a great dish to add to your table of Lunar New Year dishes. Mapo tofu is a great vegetarian-friendly dish that you can pair with rice or eat as is. It's also one that acts like a cozy, fuzzy blanket- have some of this, and you'll warm right up!

Doubanjiang substitutes

If you can't get hold of doubanjiang, Thai chilli sauce sambal oelek has a similar spicy flavour, and you could also try gochujang or toban djan mixed with red chilli flakes to increase the spiciness.

Meat alternatives such as tofu and wheat gluten are still associated with Buddhist cuisine in China and other parts of East Asia.

Tofu is rich in nutrients, contains all essential amino acids and is low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Its adaptability allows for use in diverse dishes, whether as a meat substitute in vegetarian meals, blended into smoothies, or grilled, baked or stir-fried for added protein in a range of recipes.

The main replacement for the pork is mushrooms (he recommends a mix of wood ear, morel, and porcini), because of the good match in flavour. To get the texture he uses the Chinese technique of "dry frying", typically used for meat.

Yes, tofu can be used as a replacement for chicken in many recipes. It can absorb the flavors of the ingredients it's cooked with.