Place a wok over high heat and heat vegetable oil in the wok until it's smoking hot.ģ. Place cubed tofu into a deep mixing bowl, cover with hot water and let sit for 10 minutes.Ģ. Things moved quickly as we added even more ingredients to the wok.ġ. The mirepoix of ginger, garlic and scallion softens quickly in this recipe.Īfter mixing the chili bean paste and meat, add the ginger, garlic and scallion whites and heat until the mirepoix is softened – about two minutes. Once the meat is browned, add the chili bean paste and cook until the meat turns fully red. Chili bean paste adds both flavor and color to Mapo Tofu. We recommend shaking the pan a bit until any flames subside. That’s the wok-hei and it’s what you want!Īs illustrated in the above photo, we may have generated too much flame in our wok. If you’re cooking over a high BTU wok burner, you may see occasional flames jump from the wok. Don’t worry – we didn’t burn ourselves when this flame flared. Once the oil is smoking, gently add the ground meat. Over high heat, pour a tablespoon of oil in the wok. You’ll want everything ready to go since things will move quickly once you start cooking. Organization is key in this and other Asian-inspired recipes.Īssemble your ingredients so that they’re in close proximity to your stove. Every minute counts once you start cooking in the wok. Make sure you strain the tofu before you start cooking. This step will eliminate the tofu’s raw flavor. Let the tofu sit in the water for at least 10 minutes or until your ready to cook. Condiments/Sauces: Soy Sauce, Shaoxing Wine and Chinkiang Vinegar We pulled these bottles of Soy Sauce, Shaoxing Wine and Chinkiang Vinegar out of our Asian pantry.īoil hot water in a kettle or on your stove and gently pour it over the tofu. Mirepoix Minced ginger, minced garlic and the white part of a scallion form our Mapo Tofu mirepoix.įor this recipe, we use a mirepoix of minced ginger and garlic along with the white part of a scallion to provide a base of flavor to the dish. As you make this dish, you can experiment with fresh hot chilies or you can make a chili powder of your own. Since chili heat tolerance varies from person to person, we recommend starting with about a quarter teaspoon of chili powder and go from there. If you only have super hot cayenne pepper powder, that should work in this recipe. In our view, capsaicin heat is fairly consistent in flavor across a wide spectrum of red chili varietals. We’ve found that making chili powder at home using a combination of dried Chinese chilies gives us maximum heat. Instead, we saw a plethora of locals shopping for food. The Pockmarked Grandmother We didn’t encounter the original pockmarked grandmother when we shopped at this Chengdu market. And, while the Chinese have recently attempted to rectify the situation, the art of Chinese to English translation has become a worldwide curiosity. We’ve traveled within China twice and have noticed the crazy (to us) translations. Phrases like “Beware – Slippery when wet” become “Slip and fall down carefully” in Chinese. If you attempt to literally translate Chinese to English the differences in culture become obviously apparent. Language is a product of culture and reasoning and, in that sense, Chinese and English suffer from 180° of separation. The Chinglish History of Mapo Tofu We spotted this curious sign in China during our 2009 visit. The dish’s ingredients are far from western but Mapo Tofu is remarkably quick and easy to prepare in any kitchen. It’s a dish that’s moved from the street to the restaurant and now to the home. It’s a singular dish that defies comparison. Soft tofu provides a pillowy mouthfeel while, at the same time, absorbs one of the most full-flavored sauces ever created. Mapo Tofu and rice are a match made in Chinese heaven.Īuthentic Mapo Tofu stands on its own but tastes even better with rice. Piquant and numbing flavors play against an umami-rich sauce that’s filled with fermented beans, chili and ground protein (usually pork or beef). It’s also a luscious dish where tofu magically absorbs a host of Sichuan flavors to become something better than the individual ingredients. However, in a strange culinary twist, Mapo Tofu is far from vegetarian. But what is it?įor starters, it’s a dish that’s built around soybean curd. Mapo Tofu is one of the most famous dishes in China.
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