You can make this Korean-style mapo tofu recipe with a few basic ingredients in less than 30 minutes. Enjoy soft tofu infused with intense savory and spicy Korean flavors.
Mapo tofu is a popular Chinese dish in which small tofu cubes are braised in a spicy chili bean paste-based sauce. It originated from the Sichuan province that’s known to have cuisine with bold flavors — pungency and spiciness. Mapo tofu is also a popular menu item at Chinese restaurants in Korea. It’s called mapa dubu (마파 두부) in Korean.
The authentic Chinese mapo tofu typically calls for doubanjiang (dubanjang, 두반장, in Korean), which is a spicy, salty fermented bean paste and Sichuan peppercorns (aka Chinese coriander). However, these ingredients are not staples in Korean kitchens.
To recreate this dish at home, Koreans often use a combination of Korean fermented soybean paste (doenjang, 된장), red chili pepper flakes (gochugaru, 고추가루), and red chili pepper paste (gochujang, 고추장). It works deliciously!
This certainly is not the dish you get from your local Sichuan restaurant, but it has all the elements of the dish – soft tofu infused with intense savory and spicy flavors!
How to make Korean-style mapo tofu
Start with stir-frying the aromatic vegetables and some gochugaru in hot oil. By adding the gochugaru at this stage, you’ll create the effect of using chili oil. You can still use chili oil, if available. To give the sauce more heat, you can add some dried hot peppers to the oil, use more gochugaru, or throw in some fresh hot chili peppers instead of the bell peppers I used in this recipe.
Pork is the classic meat for this dish, but you can use beef if you’d like, or omit the meat to make a vegetarian dish.
I prefer to use soft tofu, (not extra soft/silken) which is labeled as 찌게용 (for jjigae) if you buy Korean tofu packages, but the firm one, 부침용 (for pan frying) is okay too if you’d like a firmer texture.
If you like Korean flavors and tofu, you will love this dish! I bet you can whip this up in less than 30 minutes, making it suitable for a weeknight meal.
For more Korean cooking inspirations, follow along on YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Ingredients
- 1 package tofu 14 to 16 ounces
- 4 ounces ground pork or beef
- 1/2 medium onion finely diced
- 2 scallions finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/4 green bell pepper or 1 green chili pepper, finely diced
- 1/4 red bell pepper or 1 red chili pepper, finely diced
Seasoning
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil or chili oil
- 1 tablespoon gochugaru 고추가루, Korean red chili pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon doenjang 된장, Korean fermented soybean paste
- 1/2 tablespoon gochujang 고추장, Korean red chili pepper paste
- 1 teaspoon sugar or add one more teaspoon for a sweeter taste
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon starch mixed with 2 tablespoons water to make starch slurry
Instructions
- Prepare the vegetables as specified.
- Cut the tofu into about 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick cubes.
- Heat a large pan with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat. Add the onion, 1/2 of the chopped scallion, garlic, and gochugaru, and stir-fry until fragrant, 2 - 3 minutes.
- Add the meat, and cook until the meat is no longer pink, breaking up with a wooden spoon, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the soy sauce, doenjang, gochujang, and sugar and stir to blend with the meat. Add the bell peppers and cook briefly until slightly softened.
- Add 1-1/2 cups of water to the pan, and bring it to a boil.
- Then, slide the tofu into the pan, gently stirring to spread into a single layer. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, gently stirring 2 to 3 times to make sure the tofu doesn’t stick to the pan.
- Gently stir in the starch slurry to thicken the sauce, and then the sesame oil. Cook for another minute or so to bring everything together. Garnish with the remaining scallion, and serve hot with steamed rice.
Pamela says
this was super tasty! I will be looking at more recipes from your collection. I used chilli and Capsicum and it worked really well. I don’t eat meat so omitted mince meat but next time I will try with added mushroom. will definitely be making again 👌
Daisy Johnson says
Do I use Korean soy sauce or Kikkoman?
Hyosun says
Either is fine, although I use Korean soy sauce for Korean cooking.
Nancy says
Hi! What kind of starches you use in mapo tofu? Is it potato or corn starch or other things?
Thank you
Hyosun says
I generally use potato starch, but either one is fine.
Bryan S. says
This dish was delicious. I used Impossible Burger for the beef and it turned out great. Served it with a shiitake mushroom banchan I’d made previously: tasted even better together. I recommend adding some mushrooms!
Karen Middleton says
Hi Hyosun
Do you use silken or firm tofu?
Kate from Sydney says
Hi Hyosun,
Thank you for this recipe! I have been trying difference mapo tofu recipes and this is the best! I omitted gochugaru and gochujang because of my 3 year old son and it was a hit! Will add this on to my favourites!
Lili says
I’ve made several versions of Mapo Tofu at home before (including Chinese and Japanese versions) and this is by far the nicest! I was afraid it would be too hot for me, but it was just right. No other recipes added capsicum, which I always did. I’m glad to see it’s not just me who adds them! Thank you for another great recipe.
Hyosun says
Great! Thanks for letting me know.
Jane says
Thanks! I substituted the meat with minced quorn, and added some Si Chuan pepper. Really helped elevate the dish!
Lydia says
So delicious!! Thanks for the delicious recipe!!
Jon says
This was killer!
Used the same measurements of gochujang to donejang but mine was definitely not as beautifully red in color..still delish nevertheless!
virgie santiso says
Yummy! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Begum Rubinstein says
I found this site and was happy to read all of your story’s along with your recipes. I love Korean Food been eating it for twenty or more years in NYC. Never cooked Korean at home because I had great restaurant to eat and choose from. Now I am in Florida in the PanHandle area. I love kalbi tang and a cold kimchi soup that the restaurant serves summertime in NYC. Would you be so kind to give me a recipe for this delicious delectable cold soup. I love your site wish I wad near you to teach me all the cooking style of your great foods I so love. Thank you so much for sharing you foods.
Evangeline says
What are the banchan that goes well with this dish?
Hyosun says
any vegetable side dishes will be great! Preferably not spicy to balance the spiciness of this dish.
April says
Hello! I’ve tried out two of your recipes this week and Mapo Tofu is next on the list. Can you explain what starch slurry in step 8 is?
Zoe says
We made your mapo tofu but veganized it by subbing the meat with mushrooms. We also served it on top of zucchini bites to make it small appetizers! It was absolutely delicious!
This was how ours turned out: https://sprinkleofvanillasugar.wordpress.com/2016/05/17/east-meets-west-bruschetta-2-ways-gf-paleo-vegetarian/
Thank you so much for the recipe! It was easy and absolutely delicious!
Fiona says
Hello, Hyosun-shi 😀
I am actually living in China, so I can get mabo/mala doufu just about anywhere, but I really miss my dad’s style mapodubu. Which is basically the Chinese Mapo Tofu Sauce packets from House Foods. You know, the kind where all you have to do is add the tofu and ground meat. Would you say your recipe is very similar to the taste of the House Food mapo tofu?
Julia says
I made this last night substituting silken tofu for soft tofu because that’s what I had at home and I also used a vegan minced meat substitute as I don’t eat meat. It was absolutely delicious! 🙂
Hyosun says
So nice to hear that! And thanks for the vegan meat substitute idea. I’m sure it’s very helpful to my vegan readers.
Devon says
I made this tonight it was great! Thanks!
Hyosun says
Awesome! Thanks for the feedback.
Cath says
If I don’t want to put soy bean paste in, can I put in more gochujang instead?
Hyosun says
You can, but it will taste different from the recipe. I am sure it will still be good. Let me know how it turns out.
Oge says
lovely and easy to prepare
Having difficulty getting the ingredients
Thanks Alot!
Rosa says
How can I do non-spicy version for my kids?? Do I just sub soy sauce for gochujang??
Hyosun says
Omit gochugaru, which is the main source of spiciness. You won’t need soy sauce for that. If they can take a little heat, you can leave gochujang in. If gochujang has to be omitted too, you can use a little more soy sauce or doenjang. Hope this helps.
Latha says
I made a vegetarian version of this for dinner last night and it was delicious. I had Pulmuone brand silken tofu in the tub (not the tube) and it worked well. I would have run out to buy soft tofu if we weren’t snowed-in but I am glad I tried it with what I had on hand. The custardy cubes kept their shape and contrasted well with other chewy bits in the sauce.
In place of the meat, I crumbled up defrosted and squeezed out tofu and added a little mushroom powder to make up for any lost flavor.
Thanks again Hyosun!
Hyosun says
Great, Latha! Sometimes we have to work with what we got, and you seem to know how to do that well. What a nice idea to add mushroom powder! Thanks for trying the recipe and giving me and the readers feedback! It really helps.
Tim says
Delicious 🙂 Thank you for the recipe!
Hyosun says
My pleasure! Glad you like it.
Arto Rohde says
Just made this and It’s so good! The beautiful picture caught my eye immediately. I’m already a big fan of your website for its well-balanced, healthy and easy to follow Korean recipes. Thank you so much for sharing all those amazing recipes with us.
Kind regards,
Arto
Hyosun says
I am happy to hear you liked it! Thanks for trying the recipe and for being a big fan!