Mabo / Mapo Tofu

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mabo tofu mapo tofu Japanese style
Winter is chili season: hot, spicy, and comforting food makes spirits warm in spite of the bleak weather! Mapo tofu is a Chinese dish well loved in Japan, both in Chinese restaurants and at home. It’s easy to prepare with common ingredients: tofu, pork, toban jiang, and green onions.

Mapo tofu is a dish from China adapted by the Japanese to their own tastes.

It is the texture of this dish which is interesting in the mouth: the tofu is soft and the pork is chewy. It’s an odd combination that: pork and tofu, neither vegetarian nor meat centered.

In this variation of the recipe I experimented with making the meat soft and the tofu chewy.

Ebi Chili, Ebi Chirri, Shrimp in Chili Sauce


What’s better than chilli in winter? Japanese-style Szechuan Shrimp in Chili sauce!
Ahhhh…
Though the winter here has not been especially chilly, a nice spicy dinner is most welcome!

This recipe can be made quickly, and with only a little planning, it’s a pantry meal. We often have shrimp in the freezer, and the main seasonings are ginger, garlic, and toban jan.

Miso-Marinated Beef in an Egg-White Jacket

Miso Marinated Steak in Egg-White JacketsThis picture does not look elegant, but the meal was excellent! Mr. Tess came home later than usual and I was waiting to cook until he got home. I was beginning to worry, when he came in with an knee brace, saying the crutches were in the truck and no, he did not need them. He’d injured his knee! He got “comfortable” with his leg propped up. It was my turn to be the nurse (two years ago he took fabulous care of me when I broke my ankle)—but he kept getting up to put beer in the freezer, to get ice for his knee… Anyway, I brought him a glass of water, and pulled out a little table to put it on. He was trying not to limp as he left for work this morning…