Chinese · Authentic-ish Chinese
Mapo Tofu
314 kcal a serving, against 436 for the traditional version. That is 122 kcal off, or 28%, with 30.1g of protein. Serves 4. 25 minutes.
What the traditional version is
Firm tofu and minced fatty pork swimming in a volcanic pool of chilli oil, fermented beans, soy and chicken broth. It's unapologetically heavy and covered in a thick layer of bright red fat.
What changed, and what each change costs
150g of fatty pork shoulder down to 100g of lean pork mince
The fatty pork dumps a massive amount of oil into the sauce. Lean mince gives you the meaty background note for a fraction of the cost.
What it costs you. You lose that rich, mouth-coating feel the rendered pork fat gives the sauce.
60g of peanut oil down to 15g
The oil is the first thing to go. Dropping it cuts a massive amount of fat while letting the chilli heat stay sharp.
What it costs you. It looks less impressive. You don't get that iconic pool of red oil separating from the sauce at the table.
400g of firm tofu up to 500g
Tofu is brilliant for bulking a dish out. More of it fills the gap left by the missing pork and oil.
What it costs you. Tofu isn't meat. The texture of the dish becomes softer overall, and you have to chew less.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 436 | 314 |
| Protein | 26.9g | 30.1g |
| Fat | 31.8g | 17g |
| Saturated fat | 6.4g | 2.9g |
| Carbohydrate | 13.2g | 14g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 6.2g | 9.6g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Chinese prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, peanuts, soybeans, sulphites.
The method is in the book
This is a sharper, punchier dish. Nobody is going to mistake it for a greasy, oily bowl of comfort. Make no mistake, you miss the heavy fat layer, I won't lie to you. But the chilli heat and the savoury fermented beans still hit like a freight train, and you won't feel like you need a nap after eating it.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Chinese, along with 55 more. Buy the paperback