I can’t recall the first time I had this - it feels almost inappropriate to pair tofu with pork for someone who used to cook vegan food for a living! However, I LOVE the idea of adjusting how much of each you want and adding in tons of vegetables. If you want it healthier and lighter, do way more tofu and only use the pork (or beef) to ‘season’ the dish. Can you go fully vegan? Absolutely, simply omit the meat!
I hope you love this savory, spicy bowl with browned pork, plenty of mushrooms, tender tofu and a thick, glossy gochujang sauce. Serve it over sushi rice with red cabbage and bell peppers seared until they have a little char. This makes four servings, with ¾ cup cooked rice per person. I typically do ½ cup for me and ¾ for my husband, and I’ve included the nutrition for both below!
PS: Yes - I always use a scale to cook an to portion!
Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
Sushi rice
1¼ cups uncooked short-grain sushi rice
1⅔ cups water
Pork, mushrooms and tofu
200 g ground pork
400 g firm tofu, cut into cubes
500 g mushrooms, finely chopped
6–8 green onions, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon neutral oil
optional 3-5 szechuan chilis (dried)
Sauce
400 ml chicken or vegetable stock
1½ tablespoons gochujang, or more to taste
1/2-1 tsp Chili crisp (if you like spice)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons cold water
Charred vegetables
About 300 g red cabbage, thinly sliced
1 large bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon neutral oil
Salt, to taste
Instructions
Rinse and cook the rice. Rinse the rice until the water runs mostly clear, then drain it well. Combine with the water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
Mix the sauce. Whisk together the stock, gochujang, soy sauce, rice vinegar and sugar. In a separate small bowl, stir the cornstarch and cold water until smooth.
Char the cabbage and peppers. Heat the oil in a large pan over high heat. Cook the vegetables in batches, letting them sit against the hot pan long enough to brown and pick up a little char. Season lightly with salt and set aside.
Brown the pork. Heat the tablespoon of neutral oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Optional if you’re using the szechuan chilies - toast them now 30-60 seconds. Remove if you like medium spice, leave in if you like it HOT. Add the pork and cook, breaking it into small pieces, until browned.
Cook the mushrooms. Add the mushrooms and cook until softened and most of their liquid has evaporated. Stir in the white parts of the green onions, garlic and ginger; cook for about a minute.
Simmer with the tofu. Pour in the sauce and bring it to a gentle simmer. Add the tofu and cook for 5–7 minutes, stirring gently so the cubes stay intact.
Thicken the sauce. Stir the cornstarch mixture again, then gradually add it to the pan, stirring gently. The sauce should become thick and glossy. Add a little stock or water if you’d prefer it looser.
Serve. Divide the rice, pork-tofu mixture and charred vegetables among four bowls. Finish with the green parts of the green onions.
Ingredient notes
I made my batch with chili crisp, miso, soy sauce and pepper paste because I didn’t have gochujang here on Lesvos (Greece). If using that combination instead, add the pepper paste gradually and taste before adding extra soy sauce; miso and soy can make the sauce quite salty.
You can adjust the mushroom-to-tofu ratio to suit your taste. This version uses 500 g mushrooms and 400 g tofu; broccoli also works in place of the cabbage and peppers.
Estimated nutrition per person (serving of rice varies)
Smaller serving: ½ cup Calories: 550 • Protein 34g • Carbs 46g • Fat 27g
Main recipe: ¾ cup : Calories 600 • Protein 35g • Carbs 57g • Fat 27g
