Cozy and comforting! This ground pork and tofu dish is easy to make and comes together in just 15 minutes. Top with cilantro and enjoy with rice ^_^
My friend Steph and I text a lot about food and cooking, and I have Steph and her aunty to thank for this recipe. Thank you!
We're both always looking for easy weeknight dinner ideas. Recipes that can feed a family. Bonus points if there are leftovers for lunch the next day!
We grew up together and I feel like we ate a lot of similar / overlapping food at home. So when Steph tells me something is tasty, I believe it ^_^
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need:
Ground pork - Pork is the default meat for this recipe, but you can also use ground turkey or a mix of ground pork and beef.
Firm tofu - If you're in Hawaii, Aloha Tofu Factory makes great local tofu and you can find their tofu at most local supermarkets (or go straight to their factory). House is another popular brand that you can also get on the mainland.
Oyster sauce - LLK is the main brand and you can get the big bottles from Costco Hawaii or Sam's Club. We use oyster sauce in many recipes so the big bottle a definite deal worth getting.
Soy sauce - Kikkoman and Aloha are the two popular brands in Hawaii. They both work well for this recipe! Kikkoman is a little more salty and Aloha is a little less salty. You can also use low sodium versions. The exact taste will vary depending on the brand and type of soy sauce used, but it's all good.
Sesame oil - This is a great everyday brand. I like to buy the big jar from Sam's Club (I used to see it at Costco Hawaii but not lately). You can get smaller bottles at most supermarkets here and definitely at Asian markets.
Cilantro - We use half a bunch of cilantro, but feel free to use more!
Instructions
Let's get cooking!
Prepare the tofu.
Drain the tofu and then gently crumble it into small pieces.
Cook the ground pork.
In a pan over medium-high heat, brown the ground pork for 2-3 minutes.
Note: You don't need the pork to be fully cooked at this point (since we're going to be cooking it for a few more minutes). Just get it browned and mostly cooked.
Add the tofu.
Add the crumbled tofu. Cook for another 2 minutes.
Season the dish.
Add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Cook for 1 more minute until everything is evenly combined.
Plate, finish, and serve!
Remove to a shallow bowl. Top with the chopped cilantro. Eat and enjoy! Best with a big bowl of rice ^_^
Substitutions and Variations
Use a different type of meat!
This is also great with ground turkey or a 50/50 mix of ground pork and beef.
Make it spicy.
Drizzle a spoonful (or two!) of chili crisp or chili oil right before serving.
Add aromatics.
Add minced garlic and/or ginger before you brown the pork. Just cook it for 1-2 minutes until fragrant and then add the ground pork.
FAQ
Leftovers will keep 2-3 days in the refrigerator, in a sealed container.
You can reheat in the microwave in 30 second increments. I like to add a little fresh chopped cilantro on top after reheating leftovers of this dish. Makes it feel "fresh" again ^_^
Try making miso pork and tofu - a super tasty miso pork stir fry poured over cold tofu. We also have an easy, local-style mapo tofu!
We use firm tofu, but you can also use medium tofu if you want tofu pieces to be smaller / more broken up.
Note: firm tofu can differ greatly between brands. The House brand firm is pretty firm, but Whole Foods 365 firm tofu is super firm. Maika'i (the Foodland in-house) firm tofu is more of a medium firm. There is no right or wrong, it's all just different.
If you want the tofu pieces to be more separate, then get a firmer tofu. If you want the tofu to be more mixed into the pork, then get a less firm tofu.
Ground Pork Tofu Recipe
Ground Pork and Tofu
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 block firm tofu about 1 pound
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- ½ bunch cilantro finely chopped
Instructions
- Drain the tofu and then gently crumble it into small pieces.
- In a pan over medium-high heat, brown the ground pork for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the crumbled tofu. Cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Cook for 1 more minute until everything is evenly combined.
- Remove to a shallow bowl. Top with the chopped cilantro. Eat and enjoy! Best with a big bowl of rice ^_^
Mahalo for Reading!