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Ma Po Tofu Recipe

Ma po tofu, sometimes translated as "pockmarked-face lady's tofu," is a spicy tofu dish slathered with a rich, savory sauce of chiles, minced meat, and spices...

By chow · From Open Recipes · 22 ingredients
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Ma Po Tofu Recipe

Why it works: Star anise and cardamom match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 103 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Ma Po Tofu Recipe

6 to 8 servings (about 3 quarts of sauce)

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

733Calories
49 gProtein
34 gFat
57 gCarbs

Counts 17 of 19 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 17 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Pork100g cooked242
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Bean1/2 cup canned (120g) drained114
Tofu100g firm76
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Mushroom1/2 cup sliced (35g)15
Soy Sauce1 tbsp (15ml)9
Cardamom1 tsp ground (2g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Cilantro1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Star Anisenot in our table0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By chow. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Star anise + cardamomtop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together103 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  2. Cardamom + gingertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,114 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  3. Star anise + gingertop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together229 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  4. Garlic + gingertop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,402 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Cardamom + garlictop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together753 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, wine, vinegar, star anise, sugar, cardamom, ginger):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Clovefits better
  3. Fennelfits better
  4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pork, wine, vinegar, star anise, sugar, cardamom, ginger. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.