Sichuan Three-Pepper Tofu

Ingredients

• 1 block firm tofu, pressed and cut into small cubes
• 2.5 tbsp oil
• 4 long hot green peppers, de-seeded and cut into 1/2" sections
• 3 dried red chilli peppers, whole or cut into thirds
• 1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns
• 2 tbsp garlic, chopped
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp spicy bean paste

Method

Press the tofu under a weighted plate for 30 minutes minimum — you're driving out moisture so the surface can crisp rather than steam. Cut into 1.5 cm cubes. The dish turns on three things: a hard sear on the tofu, a char on the peppers that preserves their snap, and a slow bloom of the aromatics in oil before they hit the heat. Do these in sequence and don't skip ahead.

Whisk the sauce ingredients — soy, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, cornstarch, bean paste, white pepper — into a coherent slurry. Set aside. The cornstarch will thicken on the tofu's surface during the final toss; the bean paste carries the umami weight that soy alone can't provide.

Heat 40 ml of oil in a wok-cooking until it shimmers with a faint haze. Add the tofu cubes in a single layer — crowding the wok drops the temperature and you'll poach instead of sear. Leave them alone for 2–3 minutes per side until you see a golden crust form, then turn methodically. You want all six faces coloured, not raw-looking edges. Remove to a plate.

Wipe the wok clean, add another 20 ml oil on high heat, then tumble in the green peppers. They need hard, dry contact with the wok — let them sit for 30 seconds between stirs. You're after blistered skin and a slight char at the tips, not disintegration. This takes 3–4 minutes. They should still have resistance when you bite one. Scatter a small pinch of salt and remove.

Lower the heat to medium. Add the remaining 20 ml oil with the dried chillies, Sichuan peppercorns, and garlic all at once. Stir constantly — this is aromatic-infusion, not browning. You want the smell to bloom after about 90 seconds, a sweet-hot perfume rising from the oil. If it turns dark or acrid, you've overshot. Pour in the sauce, return the tofu and peppers to the wok, and toss to coat. The cornstarch will gel the liquid into a glossy glaze within 30 seconds. Serve over jasmine rice with any pooled sauce spooned on top.