Silken Tofu & Minced Pork Sauce
肉末蒸豆腐
English: Silken Tofu & Minced Pork Sauce
Chinese: 肉末蒸豆腐
Pinyin： roumo zheng doufu
Literal: Minced meat steamed tofu
The wobble of silken tofu on a spoon is one of life’s small pleasures; it is, I suppose, the grown up version of jelly. In this dish it hides beneath a blanket of rich minced pork, the sauce glossy and savoury, sticky with soy and just a touch sweet. Tofu is often a vehicle for bigger flavours, and they don’t come much bigger than this one - a punchy northern-style sauce, not unlike the bold seasoning used for rou si dishes.
It’s the kind of thing home cooks rustle up for a mid-week dinner. From start to finish it takes little more than fifteen minutes if you’re quick. Served with a simple vegetable, a crisp shaobing pancake, or just a bowl of rice, it’s a comforting sort of meal I’d happily choose over most.
This is food that’s fast, rather than fast food - comforting but indulgent, the tofu as soft as custard beneath its glossy topping. Dig your spoon in and the sauce seeps down into the tofu, turning each bite rich and savoury.
You’ll find dishes like this all across northern Chinese home kitchens: simple ingredients, bold seasoning, and a deep respect for tofu’s delicate texture. It’s everyday cooking at its best - quick to make, deeply satisfying, and proof that a humble block of tofu can carry an entire meal.
Serves 2-3
Ingredients
1 block (400-450g) silken tofu
For the Meat Topping
150g ground pork
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp ginger, finely chopped
2 tbsp spring onions, finely chopped, white part only
For the Sauce
1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
½ tsp sugar
1 tsp soybean paste (huang dou jiang)
100-120ml water
1 tsp cornstarch
To finish
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp spring onions, roughly chopped, green part only
Pinch white pepper
Method
Mix all the sauce ingredients together, except the cornstarch, and mix to dissolve the sugar. In a separate bowl, add the cornstarch with a tablespoon of water and mix to make a slurry. Set both bowls aside.
Carefully remove the silken tofu from it’s packaging. It breaks very easily. Gently slide it onto a shallow bowl that is both heatproof and can hold some liquid. Slice it into 1-inch thick slabs and arrange them on the plate (or steam it whole if you prefer).
Place the plate into your steamer, cover and steam over for 8 minutes. After steaming, pour off any excess water that has sacculated in the bowl.
While the tofu is steaming, heat a tablespoon of oil in a wok over a medium-high heat. Add the garlic, ginger and spring onions. Stir-fry for about 20 seconds or until fragrant.
Add the ground pork, breaking it up with a spatula. Cook until it's no longer pink and starts to brown slightly.
Add the sauce and stir to coat the meat. Drizzle over the cornstarch slurry and stir the meat sauce constantly until the sauce thickens and coats the pork, about 1-2 minutes. The consistency should be like a thick gravy. If it gets too thick, add a tablespoon of water.
Spoon the thickened meat sauce directly over the steamed tofu. Drizzle the top with the sesame oil and sprinkle with the reserved green scallions.
