Mapo Tofu
麻婆豆腐
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Mapo tofu began as a fiery Sichuan dish, but in Japan it has become a gentler, family-style favorite that shows up on home tables and school lunch trays alike. This version keeps the heat low and builds flavor from well-cooked carrot and long onion, miso and a savory ground pork sauce, so even small children tuck in happily. Because the doubanjiang is added at the very end, you can scoop out a mild portion for toddlers and then spice up the rest for older children and adults, all from one pan. It is made without egg or dairy and thickened with potato starch rather than wheat flour.
Toddlers to adults. Portion out the children's share before the final seasoning, then season the rest for adults.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce and miso (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow them, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 21 gcarrot
- 30 gJapanese long onion (naga-negi)A long, thick scallion with a mild, sweet flavor when cooked, used in Japanese soups and stir-fries. Substitute: Leek (white and light green parts) or thick scallions.
- 1.5 gvegetable oil
- 0.4 gginger paste (tube)Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 0.5 ggarlic paste (tube)Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 0.6 gdoubanjiang (Chinese chili bean paste)A salty, spicy Sichuan paste of fermented broad beans and chilies; use a very small amount for children. Substitute: Gochujang, or a little miso mixed with a few drops of chili sauce. Many gochujang brands contain wheat, and some doubanjiang and miso do too, so check the labels if you avoid wheat.
- 39 gground pork
- 120 mlwater
- 135 gfirm tofu
- 3 gpotato starchJapanese katakuriko, a fine potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating food before frying. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
- 6 mlwater (for the potato starch)
- 0.9 gsesame oil
Sauce Mixture (A)
- 4.2 gsugar
- 8.1 gmisoFermented soybean paste. Salty and savory, it is Japan's everyday seasoning for miso soup and many simmered dishes. Substitute: Any light (white or awase) miso. Misos differ in saltiness, so start with a little less and taste. Some misos are made with barley or wheat, so check the label if you avoid them.
- 7.8 gsoy sauce
- 0.2 gsalt
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- Japanese long onion (naga-negi) (長ねぎ)
- A long, thick scallion with a mild, sweet flavor when cooked, used in Japanese soups and stir-fries. Substitute: Leek (white and light green parts) or thick scallions.
- ginger paste (tube) (しょうがチューブ)
- Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- garlic paste (tube) (にんにくチューブ)
- Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- doubanjiang (Chinese chili bean paste) (豆板醤)
- A salty, spicy Sichuan paste of fermented broad beans and chilies; use a very small amount for children. Substitute: Gochujang, or a little miso mixed with a few drops of chili sauce. Many gochujang brands contain wheat, and some doubanjiang and miso do too, so check the labels if you avoid wheat.
- miso (みそ)
- Fermented soybean paste. Salty and savory, it is Japan's everyday seasoning for miso soup and many simmered dishes. Substitute: Any light (white or awase) miso. Misos differ in saltiness, so start with a little less and taste. Some misos are made with barley or wheat, so check the label if you avoid them.
- potato starch (片栗粉)
- Japanese katakuriko, a fine potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating food before frying. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
Directions
Video is in Japanese — the steps below are synced to it, so tap ▶ on a step to jump to that moment.
- 1
Finely chop the carrot and Japanese long onion.
- 2
Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan, add the chopped vegetables from step 1, the ginger paste, garlic paste and doubanjiang, and stir-fry over medium heat for about 2 minutes until fragrant. Add the ground pork and cook until it changes color. (If you are also making a toddler version, leave the doubanjiang out at this stage.) (Cooking the vegetables well brings out their sweetness and makes the dish easier for children to eat.)
- 3
Add the water and sauce mixture (A) and simmer over low heat for about 3 minutes. (For the toddler version, add only about 70% of A.)
- 4
Cut the tofu into 1.5 cm cubes. Put it into hot water, and just before it comes to a boil, turn off the heat and drain in a colander. (Parboiling draws some of the moisture out of the tofu so it takes on the flavor better and is less likely to fall apart.)
- 5
Add the tofu to the pan from step 3 and simmer briefly. Turn off the heat, stir in the potato starch slurry, then cook over low heat until thickened. Finish by stirring in the sesame oil. (Set aside the toddler portion at this point. For elementary-school age and up, mix the doubanjiang into the remaining A, add it to taste, and bring to a boil once more.)
In school kitchens we use firm tofu because it is less likely to fall apart while cooking. Using red miso gives the dish a richer, deeper flavor.
Adding the potato starch slurry after turning off the heat makes it much less likely to go lumpy. Letting the dish cool once lets the flavors settle in and brings it even closer to the taste of school lunch.
It is also delicious made with silken tofu.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 268.5 kcal | 537 kcal | 268.5 kcal |
| Protein | 18.6 g | 37.2 g | 18.6 g |
| Fat | 16.4 g | 32.7 g | 16.4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 15.8 g | 31.5 g | 15.8 g |
| Fiber | 3.3 g | 6.6 g | 3.3 g |
| Salt equivalent | 2.6 g | 5.1 g | 2.6 g |
| Calcium | 156 mg | 312 mg | 156 mg |
| Iron | 3 mg | 6 mg | 3 mg |
| Potassium | 451.5 mg | 903 mg | 451.5 mg |
| Phosphorus | 207 mg | 414 mg | 207 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | Phosphorus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 268.5 kcal | 18.6 g | 16.4 g | 15.8 g | 3.3 g | 2.6 g | 156 mg | 3 mg | 451.5 mg | 207 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 537 kcal | 37.2 g | 32.7 g | 31.5 g | 6.6 g | 5.1 g | 312 mg | 6 mg | 903 mg | 414 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
