Mapo tofu

Name: Mapo tofu
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 3 people
Cuisine: sichuan
Ingredients: 400 g Tofu, soft or medium, cubed, briefly soaked in salted water; 120 g Pork, minced; 2 tbsp Doubanjiang; 1 tsp Sichuan pepper, toasted and ground, plus a few whole for oil; 3 clove Garlic, minced; 10 g Ginger, minced; 3 piece Spring onion; 1 tsp Soy sauce; 1 tsp Fresh chilli, chilli flakes or extra oil, optional; 200 ml Water; 300 g Rice, uncooked, to serve

麻婆豆腐

Sichuan tofu in a chilli-bean sauce with minced pork, Sichuan pepper, and enough oil to carry the mala.

Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: 麻婆豆腐.

1 person cooked this in the public kitchen. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.

Start cooking

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 35 min
Difficulty: Medium
Spice: Hot
Cost: Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price

Know it before you cook it

Source photograph of Mapo tofu. Not official I Want Some Food pixel artwork.

About

Mapo tofu should tingle. Doubanjiang is fried until the oil turns red; Sichuan pepper is toasted; tofu stays wobbly; a little starch makes the sauce cling. It is Chengdu home cooking that restaurants made famous. If it is only 'spicy mince with cubes', you skipped the mala.

Ingredients

Servings

Tofu, soft or medium, cubed, briefly soaked in salted water400 g
Pork, minced120 g
Doubanjiang30 ml
Sichuan pepper, toasted and ground, plus a few whole for oil4.9 ml
Garlic, minced3 clove
Ginger, minced10 g
Spring onion3
Soy sauce4.9 ml
Fresh chilli, chilli flakes or extra oil, optional4.9 ml
Water200 ml
Rice, uncooked, to serve300 g

Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.

Steps

Step 1
Toast Sichuan pepper in a dry pan until fragrant, 1 minute. Grind. Cube tofu and sit it in warm salted water.
5 min
Step 2
Heat oil in a wok. Fry minced pork until it renders and browns. Add doubanjiang and fry until the oil is red and smells cooked, 2 minutes.
6 min
Watch: Raw doubanjiang tastes harsh. Cook it.
Step 3
Add garlic, ginger and a pinch of chilli. Splash in water and soy. Slide in tofu. Simmer gently 4–5 minutes. Do not stir like scrambled eggs — nudge.
6 min
Step 4
If you want a clinging sauce, mix 1 tsp cornflour with 1 tbsp water and drizzle in while nudging. Add ground Sichuan pepper and spring onion.
3 min
Step 5
Serve over rice. There should be red oil on top. That is not a mistake.

Adapt this recipe

The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.

Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 24 August.

Substitutions

Pork → Finely chopped shiitake
Brown hard for savoury depth.
Doubanjiang → Gochujang plus extra chilli
Korean-adjacent, not Sichuan. Different fermented base.

Tips

Pixian doubanjiang is worth ordering once. Generic chilli bean paste is saltier and less complex.
Vegetarian: skip pork, fry mushrooms, and use a little extra doubanjiang oil.

History & culture

Named, in the usual story, for a pockmarked woman who cooked it in Chengdu. Versions exist without pork (vegetarian mapo) and with beef. The numbing-heat pairing is the Sichuan part that does not translate to 'add more chilli flakes'.

Chilli is a New World crop Sichuan adopted completely. Mapo tofu as a named dish is Qing-era Chengdu food that global Chinese restaurants exported, sometimes without Sichuan pepper — which is how it became 'spicy tofu' instead of mapo.

Traditional — Soft tofu, Pixian-style doubanjiang, whole Sichuan pepper. Fermented black beans are welcome if you have them.

Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food.

Questions about this recipe

Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.

How long does Mapo tofu take?

35 min all in — 15 min prep, 20 min cook. That is the time on this recipe, not a guess.

How many does it serve?

The recipe is written for 3 people. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.

How hard is it?

Medium.

How spicy is it?

Hot.

What allergens should I watch?

This recipe is labelled for Soy, Wheat. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.

Does it fit a diet?

The published recipe is labelled Dairy-free.

What does it cost to cook?

Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.

What equipment do I need?

Wok, Saucepan.

How much salt do I put in?

This recipe does not list salt as its own ingredient. Saltiness comes from Soy sauce — 1 tsp. Taste at the end rather than adding a number we did not write.

How much soy sauce?

1 tsp of Soy sauce.

What can I use instead?

Pork → Finely chopped shiitake. Brown hard for savoury depth. Doubanjiang → Gochujang plus extra chilli. Korean-adjacent, not Sichuan. Different fermented base.

What should I watch for?

Raw doubanjiang tastes harsh. Cook it.

Any tips from this recipe?

Pixian doubanjiang is worth ordering once. Generic chilli bean paste is saltier and less complex. Vegetarian: skip pork, fry mushrooms, and use a little extra doubanjiang oil.

Can I use an air fryer?

This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.