Mapo Tofu Scramble

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
• 250g ground pork or beef
• ½ teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorns or freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 (1-inch) piece ginger, finely chopped or grated
• 3 scallions, sliced thinly, whites and light green parts separated from dark green
• 2 tablespoons black bean garlic sauce
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 450g silken tofu, drained, cut into ¾-inch pieces
• 5 eggs, beaten and seasoned with salt
• Buttered toast, for serving (optional)

Directions

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a 10- or 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high. When hot, add the pork and use a wooden spoon to mash it up into pieces as small as possible. Cook, stirring frequently, until browned all over, about 3 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low.
2. Stir in the peppercorns, red pepper, ginger, white and light green parts of the scallion, black bean sauce, tomato paste, soy sauce, sugar and ¼ cup water. Stir very well to break down tomato paste and black bean sauce, then gently stir in the tofu. Turn off heat, transfer the tofu mixture to a bowl and wipe the skillet clean.
3. In the same skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. When hot, add the eggs and cook, pushing and folding with a spatula until cooked just a little less than you’d like them done. Turn off heat and push the scrambled eggs to one side of the pan to make room for the tofu mixture.
4. While eggs and the skillet are still warm, return the tofu mixture to the skillet and gently fold into the scrambled eggs, combining the two, doing your best to keep the tofu from breaking up too much. Transfer to serving plates or a platter, sprinkle with the sliced dark green parts of scallion and serve with the buttered toast on the side, if desired.