Vegetarian Mapo Tofu

I love mapo tofu from a small child and my mother always cooked this at home with her self-made red oil doubanjiang (chili bean paste). This is a vegetarian version developed from the traditional mapo tofu recipe.

This year, when she visits me, I told her my keen love for the mother style spicy tofu dish. So I get a grift—a large jar of homemade red oil chili bean paste! If you want to know more about this homemade chili bean paste, please kindly check my post—doubangjiang (broad bean paste).

Am I talking about Mapo tofu, then why I go this far to doubanjiang? In fact, doubanjiang is the essential seasoning for making mapo tofu at home. You can find packages on amazon or your local stores. And the most famous brand is Pi Xian doubanjiang.