Mince pork and tofu in spicy bean sauce (麻婆豆腐)

One of the most popular dishes originated from the Szechuan region of China, this dish mainly consists of tofu, mince pork or mince beef, chillies and Szechuan pepper. In this recipe, we have replaced chillies and Szechuan peppers with spicy bean paste, which is available in most Oriental supermarkets, but feel free to experiment! Szechuan peppers, if you haven’t had them before, are spicy and they numb the tongue slightly, giving that distinct Szechuan taste.

The Chinese name, pronounced as mapo tofu, refers to the inventor of this dish. Mazi means someone who’s body is disfigured by pockmarks. Po refers to an old woman. It is believed that the woman who invented the dish had pocks marks all over her face and people referred to her as mapo.

Ingredients:

350 – 400g of mince pork

800g of Chinese tofu

2 cloves of garlic

8 tbsp of spicy bean paste

Light soy sauce

Dark soy sauce

Chinese XianHsing wine

Preparation time: 10 min

Cooking time: 20 min

Total time: 30 min

Procedure:

1. Marinade the pork in sugar, light soy sauce and dark soy sauce for at least 10 min.
   
2. Brown the mince in a heated wok and drain the mince pork of oil.
   
3. Cut up the tofu in cubes.
   
4. In a clean wok, heat two tablespoons of oil. Brown the garlic and add the mince.
   
5. Add a splash of Chinese XiaoHsing wine, light soy sauce and sugar. Stir in to mix. Cook for a couple of minutes.
   
6. Add 8 tablespoons of spicy bean paste.
   
7. Add the cubed tofu and then cook until the tofu is hot.
   

Tips:

• To mix tofu scoop from the bottom of the mince, almost like folding the tofu in, so that the tofu is not broken into small bits.
  
• Add less spicy bean paste for a less spicy dish.
  
• Chinese XiaoHsing wine can be bought in most Chinese supermarkets.
  

Mince pork with vermicelli and Korean kimchi (韓式螞蟻上樹)

This dish originates in the Szechuan and Chongqing region of China. The name “螞蟻上樹” (phonetically: Mang Ngai Seung Su) literally means “Ants climbing up tree”. The completed dish, it was said, resembles lines on ants (the mince pork) marching on a tree branch (the vermicelli). Frankly we never saw the resemblance. It is nevertheless a fantastic dish, and could not be easier to prepare. If you are a fan of Chinese vermicelli, you must have this dish in your repertoire. If you have never had Chinese vermicelli before, you really should – it is like a sponge, soaking up all the flavour of the dish.

The dish we are describing here has Korean Kimchi (preserved spicy cabbage) added. All good Oriental stores will stock it. The idea came from a popular Japanese animation – Atashin’chi. It works very well and reduces the heat of this dish (traditionally, chilies were used).

Ingredients:

350 – 400g of mince pork

150g of Kimchi

100g of vermicelli

2 cloves of garlic

Light soy sauce

Dark soy sauce

Preparation time: 10 min

Cooking time: 20 min

Total time: 30 min

Procedure:

1. Marinade the mince pork with light and dark soy sauce and sugar.
   
2. Soak vermicelli in cold water.
   
3. Brown the mince pork in a little oil.
   
4. Drain the browned mince pork of oil.
   
5. In a clean wok, heat up 2 tablespoons of oil. Lightly brown the garlic.
   
6. Add mince pork and kimchi. Stir fry for a couple of minutes.
   
7. Add a splash of light and dark soy sauce to the side of the wok. Stir the sauce in.
   
8. Add half a teaspoonful of sugar.
   
9. Add the soften vermicelli.
   
10. Add a small splash of water slowly until the vermicelli is cooked.
    

Tips:

• Soak the vermicelli in cold water so that it doesn’t get too soft and disintegrate.
  
• Drain the browned mince pork of oil so that the resulting dish is not too greasy.
  
• Add the soy sauce to the side of the wok so that the soy sauce gets heated up as it infuses into the food and that it can be mixed in evenly.
  

Pork with kimchi and vermicelli. Enjoy!