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–+ servings

Japanese Style Mapo Tofu (Mabodofu)

Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 2 Servings

Ingredients 
 

Pork

Broth

  • 200 ml chicken bouillon or other types of bouillon of your choice
  • 1 tbsp sake or Shaoxing wine, dry sherry, dry white wine
  • ½ tsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu)
  • ½ tbsp oyster sauce
  • ¼ tsp ground black pepper
  • finely chopped green onions to garnish
  • 2 tbsp cold water to make slurry
  • 2 tsp cornstarch to make slurry, or potato starch
  • 2 tsp chili oil (rayu) optional, adjust to taste
  • chili threads optional garnish

Instructions 

  • Heat the pan on medium and add 100 g ground pork. Sprinkle it with 1 pinch salt and pepper and fry until browned. (You can add a little oil if it's sticking, but if you're using a non-stick pan, generally the pork has enough fat to prevent it from sticking to the pan.)
    browning pork mince for mapo tofu
  • Add the ½ onion (finely diced) to the pan and fry with the pork until slightly softened.
    frying onions with meat for mabo tofu
  • Next, add ½ tsp sake, ½ tsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu) and ½ tbsp yellow miso paste (awase) and mix until evenly distributed through the pork.
    adding sake, soy sauce and miso paste to the pork
  • Push the pork to one side of the pan and on the empty side, add 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil, ½ tbsp chili bean sauce (toban djan) and 1 tsp grated garlic. Mix them together for about 30 seconds - 1 minute. Once fragrant, mix into the pork.
    Pushing meat to one side and adding tobanjan and garlic paste
  • Pour 200 ml chicken bouillon into the pan, then mix and add 300 g firm tofu (cubed). Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower to a simmer.
    adding chicken stock and tofu
  • Add 1 tbsp sake, ½ tsp Japanese soy sauce (koikuchi shoyu), ½ tbsp oyster sauce and ¼ tsp ground black pepper to flavor the sauce. Mix or shake the pan gently to evenly distribute the ingredients.
    lowering to simmer and adding sake, soy sauce, oyster sauce and black pepper
  • Simmer until the sauce is reduced to about half, mixing occasionally.
    Mix and simmer
  • Mix 2 tbsp cold water with 2 tsp cornstarch together in a small bowl. Once smooth, pour it into the pan and mix.
    Add slurry to thicken mapo tofu
  • Once the sauce is slightly thickened and glossy, drizzle 2 tsp chili oil (rayu), mix and turn off the heat.
    Turn off heat and drizzle mapo tofu with chili oil
  • Sprinkle with chopped finely chopped green onions and chili threads (optional). Enjoy!
    Dish up and sprinkle with spring onions and dried chili

Notes

Plant-Based Variation: Swap the ground meat for minced soy meat, use vegetable bouillon instead of chicken, and replace oyster sauce with mushroom sauce.
Optional Tofu Treatment: For a better sauce cling, wrap tofu in paper towels and microwave for 2 minutes (or parboil in salted water) before cutting to expel internal moisture.
Bouillon powder varies by brand, so always follow your package's water-to-powder ratio so the broth doesn't turn too salty or too flat.
Storage & Reheating: Keep refrigerated for 2-3 days and reheat gently on the stovetop with a splash of water to loosen the thickened sauce. Freezing is not recommended as it destroys the tofu's texture.
Serving ideas: Japanese Cucumber Salad, Cucumber Tsukemono, Japanese Egg Drop Soup, Authentic Gyoza