Vegan mapo tofu
250 grams Beyond meat mince meat
A block of pressed tofu, preferably unicurd, approximately 250 to 300 grams. Silken tofu is too soft, but you dont want “normal” firm tofu. So go with pressed tofu, or “soft” tofu.
About a teaspoon or two Sichuan peppercorns, both red and green. Enough for at least a teaspoon of powder. If you can’t find whole, get some ground Sichuan pepper.
Stock cubes. I prefer the V-cubes Chicken flavored cubes. Otherwise, normal veggie stock works as well.
2 tbsp doubanjiang. I’ve used both Lee Kum Kee Chili Bean Sauce, as well as the “China time-honored brand” Pixian Doubanjiang. The former is a bit spicier, the latter you have to chop first. Both work well.
1 tbsp Black Bean sauce. I use Lee Kum Kee, and I don’t always use this ingredient.
2 cloves of garlic
cornstarch slurry
Alright, there’s some available shortcuts to this recipe, so let’s get to this.
Chop your tofu into cubes, about 1 to 1.5 cm a side. If you want a somewhat better texture, put on a pot with well-salted water. Bring to a boil, then move to the lowest possible flame, and add the cubed tofu. Blanch for two to three minutes. Carefully remove tofu from the water.
If you use whole Sichuan peppercorns: grab a cold wok, add about a teaspoon or two of Sichuan peppercorns, and heat up slowly. Once the peppercorns leave small spits of oil, and when you can start to smell them, remove them from the heat. Transfer to a mortar and start crushing them into a fine powder.
Slice your garlic thinly. I also tend to slice my stock-cube into fine slivers, so it dissolves more easily. Lastly, make a cornstarch slurry by mixing a tablespoon of cornstarch with about three tablespoons of lukewarm water in a bowl. Mix thoroughly.
Heat up your wok to a pretty high heat. Add some oil (not olive oil, use sunflower oil). Add the garlic, fry until fragrant. Add the mince meat, and fry for about 4 to 5 minutes. During the last minute or two, move the meat to the side, and add a tablespoon or two of doubanjiang to the oil at the bottom (you can add a bit of oil, if there’s no oil pooling at the bottom of the pan). If your doubanjiang is not particularly salty, you can add half a tbsp to a full tbsp of black bean sauce as well. The doubanjiang brings the spiciness, so adjust accordingly. Fry the doubanjiang for a bit, then mix it into the mince meat.
Now the Sichuan pepper. Depending on whether you use freshly ground powder or pre-ground, it can vary significantly how much you should use. The numbing effect increases with dosage, but so does the somewhat herbal taste, which won’t be to everyone’s liking. I’d say start with about a quarter a half a teaspoon of ground pepper, and you can move up from there. Add directly to the meat.
Now, add the stock cube to the meat, and add the cup of hot water. Drop the tofu in the water as well. From now on, all stirring should be done with a lot of care, otherwise you’ll break up the tofu. Let simmer for a couple of minutes. At this point, your mapo tofu should look fairly red, and ideally have some red oil floating on top of the water. Set the heat to low, and grab your cornstarch slurry. Mix it up again, as the starch will probably have settled to the bottom of the bowl, and add a tablespoon of the slurry at a time to thicken the mapo tofu. Once it has reached a desirable thickness, you’re done.
Serve with jasmin rice, and add sliced spring onions on top.
