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Spicy mapo tofu in a shallow green ceramic bowl.
5 from 1 vote

Super Spicy Mapo Tofu

Super spicy mapo tofu uses four different kinds of chilies—dried chile peppers, Thai peppers, chile flakes, and chili crisp. This is one hot and numbing dish!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Chinese
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 431kcal
Author: Kelly (Garlic All Day)

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 1 ½ pounds soft or silken tofu see Note 1
  • 2 heads minced garlic around 20–25 cloves
  • 2 tablespoons minced ginger
  • 5 to 10 dried chile peppers see Note 2
  • 5 to 10 fresh Thai chile peppers
  • 2 tablespoons doubanjiang
  • 2 tablespoons chili crisp *optional
  • 6 to 8 ounces ground pork
  • 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
  • 1 tablespoon chile flakes see Note 3
  • ½ cup water or chicken stock use ¾ cups if you're on a gas stove
  • 2 teaspoons ground Sichuan pepper
  • ½ tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 2 scallions diced

Instructions

  • Drain 1 ½ pounds soft or silken tofu and slice into cubes, no bigger than 1 inch. In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon chile flakes, ½ cup water or chicken stock, 2 teaspoons ground Sichuan pepper, ½ tablespoon cornstarch, and 1 teaspoon sugar. Set these aside.
  • Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a wok on medium-high heat. Add 2 heads minced garlic, 2 tablespoons minced ginger, 5 to 10 dried chile peppers, 5 to 10 fresh Thai chile peppers, 2 tablespoons doubanjiang, and 2 tablespoons chili crisp. Fry for about half a minute, just until aromatic.
  • Add 6 to 8 ounces ground pork and fry it until the pork is no longer pink.
  • Stir in 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine and let it sizzle until nearly completely evaporated.
  • Add the sliced tofu to the wok and pour over the cornstarch mixture. Stir it all together until the sauce thickens.
  • Sprinkle with 2 scallions and serve over white rice.

Notes

  1. Tofu: Traditional Sichuan-style mapo tofu uses soft or silken tofu for a smooth, creamy contrast to the spicy fried meat sauce. But you can also try it with firm tofu if you’d like.
  2. Dried Peppers: We use tien tsin pepper which is a very hot Chinese pepper. You may find them simply labelled as Chinese red peppers They’re called 朝天椒 in Chinese, which translates to “facing heaven pepper.” Why are they called that? No clue. But anyway, if you can’t find these specific peppers, chiles de arbol or dried Thai chili peppers work well.
  3. Chile Flakes: Use regular red pepper flakes for more heat, or a milder pepper like gochugaru or Aleppo pepper for less spicy.

Nutrition

Calories: 431kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 302mg | Potassium: 673mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 521IU | Vitamin C: 36mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 3mg