gluten free
The most important ingredients in Tofu soup
- One block of tofu
- 200g of marinated pork ( leftover from step8 )
- Marinade for 200g of pork (1T cooking wine, 1/2T Korean soy sauce, 1t banana syrup, 1/2t ginger power)
- Using sliced pork instead of minced pork enhances the texture and makes the dish taste even better.
- A handful of cabbage (Tofu soup tastes better with cabbage.)
- Carrots (a bit)
- Mushroom (A little bit)
- Red bell pepper (a bit) (instead of onions)
- Jalapeno
- Red jalapeno
- Mince 4 clovess of garlic finely.
- Finely chop 3 stalks of scallions (green onions)
- I am happy today because I have all the vegetables I want.
- Olive oil
- Korean soy sauce
- Sesame oil
- Korean powdered red pepper 2-3T
- Starch water (1T starch + 3T water)
- Pour enough olive oil and saute the garlic first.
- Using homemade chili oil instead of olive oil enhances the aroma and gives the dish a deeper, richer flavor.
- When the garlic sizzles in the oil, add the meat and cook it while turning it back and forth until evenly done.
- It's best to fully cook the meat before adding the vegetables.
- I tend to add a generous amount of meat to my mapo tofu.
- I tend to add a lot of meat for my husband, who loves it, and thanks to that , the broth has a richer flavor.
- When stir- frying the meat, adding 1 tablespoon of cooking wine helps remove any gamey smell. ( But since I already used wine for the marinade, I'll skip it today.)
- When the meat is almost done cooking.
- Add the vegetables, sprinkle 2-3 pinches of salt, and stir-fry.
- I always season with both salt and soy sauce because I like the taste of soy sauce but don't like it to be too strong.
- Add 1 tablespoon of chili power and stir-fry together.
- Add 1 tablespoon of Korean soy sauce and stir-fry again.
- Pour just enough water to submerge the ingredients, then add the sliced tofu.
- Add 1 more tablespoon of chili power.
- Add 1 more tablespoon of Korean soy sauce.
- Then, cover the lid, and let it simmer over medium-low heat for at least 5 minutes to infuse the broth with flavor.
- After simmering for more than 5 minutes, open the lid and stir gently to submerge the tofu in the broth.
- Taste the broth and adjust the seasoning as needed
- Pour in the starch water to thicken the broth, then turn off the heat.
- After turning off the heat , drizzle 1 tablespoon of sesame oil.
- Before serving, sprinkle the chopped green onions over the hot Mapo Tofu broth.
- This amount is enough for 3 servings.
- Today, I cooked at home and packed it in a glass container as a lunchbox. I heated it in the microwave for 2 minutes at the store before eating.
- Mapo Tofu is spicy, but it really makes you crave some kimchi.
- My husband, who loves meat, had a lot of meat, while I served myself more tofu. I took multiple servings to eat while it was still warm.
- I have experimented with various Mapo Tofu recipes for quite a long time, trying everything from commonly used Doubanjiang sauce to premium ingredients. I have also tried adding doenjang (fermented soybean paste) and gochujang (Korean red pepper paste). The recipe I made today is the most delicious to me and suits my taste best. It's a clean-tasting tofu stew without any Doubanjing sauce or artificial seasonings. That's why, to be honest,I prefer calling it "Tofu soup" rather than "Mapo Tofu".
English 
Korean