spicy szechuan tofu

How to make spicy szechuan tofu recipe

Serves 4

Total cooking time 20 minutes

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 spring onions, finely sliced
2 red chillies, deseeded and thinly sliced
2.5 cm (1 in) piece of fresh root ginger, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 teaspoon crushed Szechuan peppercorns
pinch of salt
250 g (8 oz) firm tofu, cut into 2.5 cm (1 in) cubes
200 g (7 oz) mangetout, halved
150 g (5 oz) baby sweetcorn, halved lengthways
250 g (8 oz) pak choi, chopped
300 g (10 oz) beansprouts
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
2 tablespoons Shaohsing rice wine
sesame oil, for drizzling
steamed rice, to serve

Method:
Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok or deep frying pan and add the spring onions, chillies, ginger, garlic, peppercorns and a pinch of salt. Fry for 1 minute, add the tofu and stir-fry for another 2 minutes, then transfer to a plate.

Add the remaining oil to the wok or pan and stir-fry the mangetout, sweetcorn, pak choi and beansprouts for a few minutes, until starting to wilt, then add the soy sauce and rice wine.

Return the tofu mixture to the wok or pan and toss everything together.

Drizzle with sesame oil and serve with rice.

For speedy Szechuan stir-fry, cube 500 g (1 lb) firm tofu and grill under a preheated medium grill for 2–3 minutes until golden brown. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a wok or deep frying pan.

Add 2 x 300 g (10 oz) packs stir-fry vegetables and stir-fry for 3–4 minutes. Stir in a 150 g (5 oz) sachet ready-made Szechuan stir-fry sauce and stir-fry for a further 1–2 minutes. Add the tofu to the pan, toss to mix and serve. Total cooking time 10 minutes.

spicy szechuan tofu