Mala soup base 麻辣湯底

A couple of weeks ago, I was teaching a course on Chinese history, culture, and business and in the last class, I talked about Chinese cuisine. As I went through the Eight Culinary Traditions and explained the different flavours and textures, I was hit with a serious craving for Sichuan mala spices that demanded to be satisfied. So after class, I promptly visited Asia Market and got the necessary ingredients to make my version of mala tofu hot pot (麻辣豆腐鍋).

Mala tofu hot pot with mung bean sheets

Pan fried tofu

One of my favourite foods is tofu, particularly the firm variety. The easiest way to cook tofu is to throw it in stew or soup, which I do sometimes when I cook gimchi jjigae. But when I have a bit more time, I often opt to pan fry it.