This spicy garlic tofu is quick and easy to throw together, taking just 10 minutes to cook. It’s and really tasty over rice, with a side of stir-fried greens.
It’s sort of a variation on mapo tofu, a popular Sichuan dish. Garlic is the star in this version, however, and it’s also on the milder side. (We use sweet hoisin sauce in addition to spicy bean sauce, and don’t use Sichuan peppercorns.) It’s also easier to make!
While we originally published this recipe in June 2013, we decided to bring it up to 2021 standards! We’ve re-tested and rephotographed it, and added metric measurements. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Be sure to cut the tofu into ¾” cubes. Cut them too big, and there’s less surface area for the sauce to cling to, rendering the tofu a bit bland. Cut them too small, and the delicate cubes may break up too easily.
- If you don’t eat pork, substitute ground chicken. For a vegetarian substitute, try finely chopped king oyster mushrooms or oyster mushrooms.
- Have all your ingredients ready to go before you turn off the stove. This dish comes together quickly!
Spicy Garlic Tofu: Recipe Instructions
Heat the oil in your wok over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, and cook for about 30 seconds, or until the garlic begins to turn golden at the edges.
Add the ground pork, and stir-fry until browned, about 1-2 minutes.
Increase the heat to high, and add the shallots.
Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the shallots begin to turn translucent. Stir in the Shaoxing wine, hoisin sauce and spicy bean paste, and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
Add the chicken stock, white pepper, sugar, and sesame oil.
Bring the sauce to a simmer. Mix the cornstarch slurry, and pour into the sauce. Simmer for 30 seconds, until the sauce has thickened.
Add the tofu cubes…
And gently stir them into the sauce. Allow it to simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
Stir in the scallions.
And serve with steamed rice!
Spicy Garlic Tofu Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil (any neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola)
- 10 cloves garlic (thinly sliced)
- 4 oz. ground pork
- 2 medium shallots (thinly sliced)
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon spicy bean sauce (doubanjiang)
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (mixed into a slurry with 1 tablespoon water)
- 1 pound firm tofu (cut into 3/4-inch/2 cm cubes)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in your wok over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, and cook for about 30 seconds, or until the garlic begins to turn golden at the edges.
- Add the ground pork, and stir-fry until browned, about 1-2 minutes. Increase the heat to high, and add the shallots. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the shallots begin to turn translucent.
- Stir in the Shaoxing wine, hoisin sauce and spicy bean paste, and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken stock, white pepper, sugar, and sesame oil. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Mix the cornstarch slurry, and pour into the sauce. Simmer for 30 seconds, until the sauce has thickened.
- Gently stir in the tofu cubes, and allow it to simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring often. Stir in the scallions, and serve.
I’ll admit, I didn’t have high hopes for such a simple dish, but WOW, it was FANTASTIC. I guess that’s the beauty of many asian dishes – the simplicity and the powerful combination of those flavors. This one goes in to Paprika! :)
Thank you Frank!
Another winner. I did the usual veg substitutions (veggie broth and vegan crumbles) and used green onion whites for the shallots, and it came out well. As I don’t have a wok or great stove, so it was a bit saucier than your (which, I personally like). Am I in the minority for liking more sauce, LOL?
Hahaha, nah, I like sauce too, Ryan!
Love this recipe as much as all the others i’ve tried. I used “spicy bean sauce” (as in mapo tofu recipe) and it wasn’t really spicy. It seems that spicy bean sauce is not what you use… Lee kum kee called doubanjiang chilli bean sauce… Spicy bean sauce appeard to be something else (mapo sauce) …. Am i right ? Because my meal was not so réd and not so spicy…. Like my mapo tofu..
Spicy bean sauce is doubanjiang, but I wouldn’t recommend Lee Kum Kee for that particular ingredient. Lee Kum Kee is a Cantonese-oriented company, and doubanjiang is a Sichuan ingredient. Look for Sichuan pixian doubanjiang next time you’re at the Chinese market!
Thanks for your answer ! I hope there is pixian here in belgium !
Love your site! it is THE. BEST! I know it will change the recipe significantly but all I have is medium tofu so going to try it with that tonight and king oyster mushrooms…. wish me luck : 0!
Good luck, Tori!
Is a wok needed for this recipe or can any pan or skillet do?
You can make this recipe in a regular pan or skillet, Alanna! I would recommend a seasoned carbon steel pan or cast iron skillet as the next best thing.
Did tauschen today with:
– soft tofu: no,no,no, do not do that
– with hand ground chicken: Delirium
This also goes into the portfolio :-D
Replace tauschen with this and delirium with delicious…deeply sorry for my autocorrection.
Haha no worries, Gerda! So glad you liked it!
We live in an area with zero decent Chinese restaurants, so I’ve been struggling with learning to cook in that style. So grateful for this site, the clear instructions and the photos (which told me today that my “medium” shallots were probably too large.) I made this recipe for myself and my wife, but it could easily have served four – and so good we ate every bit ! I wish it incorporated vegetables somehow. I also halved the amount of doubanjiang, which was just right for the person who loves spicy food and also worked for the other, who can’t tolerate a huge amount of heat. Absolutely delicious. The only two things I’d change about the recipe? A note leading to the pages somewhere that tell you how to work with tofu; I froze mine before, after draining it, but next time I’m going to try salt water instead. And although I used “firm tofu”, I think it would have been even better with extra firm. Regardless, it was wonderful.
Freezing tofu does change its texture significantly. Not sure what the salt water would be for…
There’s really no need to “work” the tofu anymore than the recipe describes.
This was awesome! Thank you! I used lean ground turkey, and my homemade chili oil for the oil. I did also add in some Sichuan Peppercorns because I was feeling like I wanted something spcicy. I love you blog so much! Thank you for always bringing awesome recipes and stories!
You’re welcome, Jess! There’s also our mapo tofu to try if you like things spicy! Here’s the link: https://thewoksoflife.com/ma-po-tofu-real-deal/
Can you freeze the cubed tofu for later use, before cooking this.
Hi KT, freezing the tofu will change its texture significantly! That said, after freezing, it’s good for hot pots and soups. Read more about it here: https://thewoksoflife.com/how-to-make-frozen-tofu/.
another excellent recipe from you guys. keep them coming.
also, a nice change from the standard mapo tofu
Thanks so much, Jack!