Mabo Tofu (麻婆豆腐) is a delicious Chinese dish with a Japanese twist. Made with ground pork, tofu and onions served in a fragrant and spicy sauce, the Japanese version contains miso and is not as spicy as its Chinese counterpart. Mabo tofu is a Japanese family favourite and a typical home cooked dish!
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Difficulty level: ★★☆☆☆
Mabo Tofu?
What is "mabo tofu"?
Mapo Tofu (mabo dofu in Japanese) is originally Chinese but it's also a common dish that nearly every family in Japan have regularly. I'd compare it to spaghetti bolognese for English family, something I noticed when I lived in England haha.
Mapo Tofu is a spicy dish made up of minced pork, tofu and onion in a thick, spicy sauce, and it's usually served with rice. It even appears in Japanese school lunch (Of course that means it's a lucky school lunch day!)
Rather than only posting traditional Japanese or fusion recipes, I also want to share recipes for food that you commonly see on tables of Japanese family homes, in restaurants and izakayas too.
Also the fact that Japanese-style "mabo dofu" is a bit different from authentic Chinese Mapo Tofu makes it even more interesting. We use regular miso rather than Chinese miso, and it's also not too spicy so it can be enjoyed by everyone!
Making Mapo Tofu
This Mapo Tofu is
- Filling
- Very Easy to Make
- Nicely Spicy
One issue you might find is, you might need to go to an Asian supermarket to get some of the ingredients to make this, but I will suggest alternative for ingredients where I can. If you have any trouble, you can always leave a comment below, send us an email or comment on instagram!
When I was back in England, there were times where I didn't have enough money to go to Asian supermarkets and buy proper ingredients to make the home food that I missed, so I had to improvise.
I know the pain of not being able to get what you need on a recipe and feeling incomplete.
So don't worry, I've got you covered.
Ingredients and Substitutes
These are some substitutes specifically for this recipe and might not work as substitutes in other recipes.
- Sake - white wine or dry sherry
- Miso paste - (if you can't get it, omit it for this recipe)
- Chili Oil - Mix 2 tsp of sesame oil with ¼ tsp chili flakes
- Sichuan Chilli Paste (doubanjian) - see below
TOBANJAN (DOUBANJIAN)
One of the most important ingredients in this dish is called “la doubanjian” (also can be spelled toban djan or tobanjan). It’s a spicy fermented bean paste from Sichuan and it’s delicious! It's easy to find in supermarkets in Japan because Szechuan style food is very popular here.
It’s a pretty popular ingredient so if you live near an Asian supermarket, look for a label with “辣豆瓣酱” or ask for Chinese chili bean paste. I’m sure you’ll find it! You can also buy it on Amazon.
SUBSTITUTES FOR TOBANJAN
If you can’t get it, I’ve read about a few substitutions you can try. (I warn you though, the taste will be quite different!)
- Sambal Oelek (Thai chili paste)
- Gochujang (Korean chili paste)
- Mix black bean paste with chili flakes
- Mix oyster sauce with chili flakes
- Mix miso paste with chili flakes
So you have a few options to try but if you like spice and you’re interested in Chinese cooking, I really recommend buying a small jar of la doubanjian. Once opened you can keep it for a year in the fridge so you don’t need to rush to use it up, it really is unique and delicious!
Check out our video for How to Make Japanese Style Mabo Tofu
Print
Spicy Japanese Mabo Tofu (mapo tofu)
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 Servings 1x
Description
Delicious and warming ground pork and tofu cooked in a rich and mildly spicy Szechuan style sauce, best served with rice or noodles. (Serves 2)
Ingredients
Mabo Tofu
- 100g (4 oz) pork mince
- ½ white onion
- 1½ tbsp sake
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- ½ tbsp miso paste
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil or sesame oil
- ½ tbsp Chinese chilli bean paste (aka toban djan - see post for alternatives)
- 1 tsp garlic paste
- 200ml (¾ cups) chicken stock
- 300g (10 oz) firm tofu
- ½ tbsp oyster sauce
- 30g (1) Spring onion / scallion finely chopped
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp of cold water mixed with 2 tsp cornstarch (slurry)
- 2 tsp chili oil
- 1 pinch of dry chili flakes (to garnish)
- 2 Portions of cooked rice (optional)
Instructions
- Cook the pork mince in the frying pan on a medium heat until it gets brown. ( You don't need to add any oil at this point as the fat in the mince will create enough juices not to stick to the bottom of the pan.)
- Add the ½ an onion finely diced into the pan together with the pork and fry until softened slightly.
- Next, add ½ tsp of sake, ½ tsp soy sauce and ½ tbsp of the miso paste and mix together until well incorporated.
- Push the cooked mince to one side of the pan.
- To the centre of the pan, add 1 tbsp of sesame oil (or vegetable oil), ½ tbsp Chinese chilli bean paste and 1 tsp garlic paste. Cook on a medium high heat until fragrant.
- Pour 200ml of chicken stock into the pan, add the cubed tofu and bring to a boil.
- Once it's boiling, give it a mix and turn down the heat to a simmer.
- Add 1 tbsp sake, ½ tsp soy sauce, ½ tbsp oyster sauce, a handful of chopped spring onion (scallions) and 1 tsp black pepper to the pan.
- Mix well and simmer until the sauce is reduced to about half.
- Add the 2 tbsp of water mixed with 2 tsp cornstarch to the frying pan and mix, it will begin to thicken.
- Once thickened, add 2 tsp of chilli oil, mix and turn off the heat.
- Serve with white rice and enjoy!
Notes
Sichuan chilli bean paste has a unique flavour which is hard to substitute. See in post for substitutions.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Meat
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: Chinese/Japanese
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