Possibly the most famous dish to come out of Sichuan, mapo tofu is one of those 'final meal' dishes we don’t think we could ever get sick of. A bowl of this over warm steamed rice is the ultimate comfort food. This vegan mapo tofu recipe, made with shiitake mushroom instead of the usual pork or beef, is actually one of the deepest, most flavorful we’ve ever had.
The secret is of course, is in the mapo sauce. To retain the umami in this vegan mapo tofu, you'll need a good doubanjiang (fermented fava bean paste - this is important!), Sichuan Chili Crisp, fermented black beans and Sichuan pepper (our Tribute Pepper is the finest available on the market anywhere). We recommend using our premium three year aged doubanjiang but mixing with a regular one like this, as un-aged doubanjiang has a brighter, redder color while the aged has much deeper flavor. So if the recipe calls for 2 tbsp of doubanjiang, use 1 tbsp of aged, and 1 tbsp of regular.
Read more about the magical ingredient of Doubanjiang here
RECIPE
300g tofu cut into cubes (I prefer the texture of softer tofu but regular works as well)
1 ounce dried shiitake mushrooms (dried is important as it has much more concentrated umami flavor than fresh)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp minced ginger
2 tbsp Doubanjiang (fermented fava (broad) bean paste)
2 tbsp Sichuan Chili Crisp
3 tbsp chili oil (*super easy recipe for this below, but you can substitute with regular oil for less heat if you'd like)
1 tbsp fermented black beans
1/2 cup stock or bone broth (you can also substitute the water used for soaking shiitakes)
1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp whole Sichuan pepper
1 pinch ground roasted Sichuan pepper (roasting right before grinding releases maximum flavor)
3 scallions, whites cut in 1 inch pieces, greens thinly sliced
1. Soak dried shiitake mushrooms in hot water until rehydrated and soft enough to pulse in a food processor or chop into very small pieces, set aside. I sometimes add a splash of soy sauce in the water at this point to give the mushrooms extra flavor)
2. Boil tofu briefly in salted water, use a colander if you’d like to keep it from breaking, set aside. This is so that the cubes have a better texture and retain their shape more during cooking.
3. Heat up a basic chili oil* in a hot wok, add minced garlic and ginger and fry until fragrant. You can also use regular oil if you want it less spicy. Add mushroom, doubanjiang, Sichuan Chili Crisp, fermented black beans and whole Sichuan pepper, and fry quickly to avoid burning
4. Add stock and bring to boil, add scallion whites, slide tofu into wok and stir gently with a rubber spatula to prevent it from breaking, let the stock reduce for about five minutes. Then, add cornstarch mixture and stir in gently until sauce thickens.
5. Transfer to serving bowl, sprinkle liberally with scallion greens and a generous pinch of ground roasted Sichuan pepper. Serve while hot with rice. Vegan Mapo tofu doesn't store well because of the binding starch in the sauce, so try to eat it all right away, which shouldn't be a problem!
SICHUAN CHILI OIL RECIPE:
Use chili flakes or grind up your own dried chili of choice to a medium grind, where you still see bits of the skin and seed. Use Erjingtiao for a fruity, mild heat, or chili de arbol or thai birds eye if you want to dial up the heat in your dishes.
Heat up your choice of oil to 325F, rapeseed is commonly used in Sichuan for its warm nuttiness and numerous health benefits, (but I have not seen actual rapeseed oil in the West- it is not the same as canola oil!), but peanut, soybean or grapseed all work fine.
When the oil reaches temperature, pour it over your chili and stir with a rubber spatula. The rule of thumb is to use about 4:1 oil vs chili bits in volume. So if you’re using 1 cup of chili flakes, pour about 4 cups of oil on top. Some people like to add cassia bark, star anise, cardamom and ginger in the mix as well for added fragrance, and that’s up to you, just strain it out before you use the oil.
Once cool, the oil will develop its flavor over the next few days, so it will be best used after a short wait. Use in preparation of the vegan mapo tofu and drizzle the rest over everything you eat.