Ma Po Tofu is a classic Chinese dish from Sichuan province, and the first dish with tofu I happily ate. Ma Po Tofu was also the start of my affinity towards spicy Chinese cuisine. You can always separate a good Sichuan restaurant from an average one by the quality of their Ma Po tofu. It should be spicy enough to make your lips slightly numb with the strong fragrance of Sichuan peppercorns, which makes it a great introductory tofu dish for non-tofu eaters and spicy-food addicts like me.
Makes enough for two hungry people
1 Tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns
250g ground pork or beef
2 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 block silken tofu, cut into 2cm cubes
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 Tablespoons chilli bean paste
1 Tablespoon fermented black beans, crushed
1 Tablespoon Chinese cooking wine
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
2 spring onions, chopped
Chilli oil and fresh chilli, chopped
Pinch of sugar
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Half cup of water or stock
What to do
Heat dry pan and roast Sichuan peppercorns until fragrant. Take off heat and roughly grind or pound. Set aside.
Heat oil in pan to medium-high heat and fry the ground meat to get a little colour, breaking the meat up into smaller pieces as it cooks.
Add garlic and chilli bean paste to pan and fry for 2mins. Lower heat and add black beans, cooking wine, soy sauce, half the peppercorns, chilli oil, chilli and sugar to taste (to balance the saltiness of chilli bean paste). Simmer for another 2mins.
Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl, add to pan with tofu and white part of spring onions. Stir gently to avoid breaking the tofu and simmer for 5mins.
Garnish with remaining peppercorns and green part of spring onions. Serve with steamed white rice and bak choy.
