Vegan Mapo Tofu

The easiest Vegan Mapo Tofu recipe made in just 20 minutes – packed with flavour from fresh spices, sauces and protein from silken tofu and textured vegetable protein!

Mapo Tofu is a popular Chinese dish from Sichuan province & is traditionally made with minced meat, like beef. I first tried this dish at a Sichuan Restaurant and instantly fell in love. But obviously, I had to make it vegan and also gut friendly so everyone can enjoy this beautiful dish!

It’s best paired with a steaming bowl of hot rice. You can also use the sauce base for other dishes like Mala Xiang Guo or use other vegetables like eggplants. But first, let’s dig into the ingredients that went into this spicy, flavourful tofu recipe.

Ingredients You Need

• Type of Tofu – soft, silken tofu is best for this dish. I used the brand below.
• Plant-based Mince – I used a mix of textured vegetable protein and shitake mushrooms. You can also use any plant-based mince of your choice or minced tempeh if you prefer.
• Sauce Base – hot broad bean paste is the crucial ingredient for the flavour.
• Spices – Ground sichuan peppercorns, minced ginger, and garlic for a strong flavour (hing if you don’t consume onions or garlic)

Tips to perfect this Vegan Mapo Tofu

I find that grinding my sichuan peppercorns to a coarse texture gives the dish a fresh, sharp flavour. Using good quality peppercorns are super important!

For the minced meat substitute, I personally perfect using either shitake mushrooms or textured vegetable protein for the best texture and taste. However, you can use any plant-based mince of your choice.

This recipe is also entirely gluten free (use gluten free soy sauce). For an alliums free recipe, substitute 2 cloves of garlic for a pinch of hing (check if gluten free) and omit spring onions (substitute with chopped cilantro).