I recently enjoyed a fantastic Chinese tofu dish at a local restaurant and couldn’t wait to share the recipe. This dish combines silken tofu, Chinese mushrooms, minced meat, spinach, and Zha Cai, a Chinese preserved vegetable. It pairs wonderfully with steamed rice, or you can make it less salty as a stand-alone dish. This healthy Chinese tofu recipe is delicious, offers balanced nutrition, and is relatively easy to prepare at home.
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Primary Ingredients for Steamed Tofu with Minced Meat
- Tofu: I am using pressed tofu, but you can also opt for soft tofu in this Chinese recipe.
- Spinach: I never thought of serving tofu with spinach until I tried this dish at a local restaurant. The combination of flavor and color is ideal for pairing with tofu.
- Minced Meat: Many Chinese recipes prefer ground pork because it has a bit of fat that enhances the flavor. However, I am using ground chicken breast meat in this recipe for those who do not eat pork and prefer a healthier alternative. The choice is yours.
- Mushrooms: I use shimeji mushrooms for this recipe, but you can substitute them with other types. Button, portobello, king oyster, or shiitake mushrooms are all suitable options.
How to Prepare the Steamed Tofu with Minced Meat
Steam the tofu
- Steam the tofu over high heat for five minutes. Then, place it on the serving plate for a few minutes before serving. The tofu will release some water. Discard the excess water to avoid diluting the mushroom and meat sauce that spreads onto it.
Cook the spinach
- Clean the spinach thoroughly, as it may contain mud and sand. Use only the leaves and drain them using a strainer before proceeding.
- Heat oil in a wok. Add the garlic cloves and sauté until aromatic. Use low to medium heat, as garlic tends to burn quickly.
- Next, add the washed spinach and continue to sauté with the garlic. Season with salt and sugar. Sugar helps counter the slight bitterness of the spinach.
- Keep sautéing until the spinach begins to wilt, which should take a few minutes. Add a tablespoon of water if the mixture appears too dry before the spinach is fully wilted. Once the spinach starts to wilt, it will release its water. At this point, stop adding water and reduce the heat, continuing to sauté until the spinach is dry and soft.
Make the mushroom and meat sauce.
- In a wok, sauté some coarsely chopped garlic until it becomes aromatic. Then, add the minced meat and fry it over low heat for a few minutes, flipping and stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking to the wok. Season the meat with a pinch of salt.
- Add two tablespoons of finely diced carrots. The carrots may not add much flavor, but they will enhance the color of the final dish.
- When the meat turns slightly brown, add the mushrooms and fry until they become soft. If desired, you can add zha cai (Chinese preserved vegetable) at this stage.
- Season the meat and mushroom mixture with oyster sauce, light soy sauce, ground white pepper, and a little water.
- Prepare a cornstarch slurry and gradually add it to the meat sauce until it reaches your preferred consistency.
- Place the tofu and surround it with spinach on the serving plate. Pour the meat sauce over the tofu and garnish with thinly sliced scallion (spring onion) and red chilies before serving.

Chinese tofu recipe (with mushroom and meat sauce)
This recipe is inspired by a fantastic tofu dish which I ordered at a local Chinese restaurant recently. It is a combination of tofu, mushrooms, minced meat, and spinach.
Ingredients
- 250g tofu
For the sauce
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 100g chicken breast meat (or pork)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (15g) diced Zha Cai
- 50g shimeiji mushroom (after removing stem)
- 1 tsp cornflour (mix with 1 tbsp water)
- 1.5 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 1/8 tsp ground white pepper
For the spinach
- 80g spinach (leaves only, weight after washed and drained)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp cooking oil
Garnish
- Red chili and scallion
Instructions
Tofu:
- Steam the tofu over boiling water for about five minutes. Place the tofu on the serving plate for a few minutes. Discard the water release from the tofu.
Spinach:
- Add a few cloves of garlic and saute until aromatic. Add the washed spinach and saute together with the garlic. Season with some salt and sugar.
- Keep sauteing until the spinach starts to wilt, which will take a few minutes.
- Now remove the spinach and place it around the tofu on the serving plate.
Meat and mushroom sauce:
- Saute some coarsely chopped garlic in the wok.
- Add the mincemeat and season with some salt.
- When the meat starts to turn slightly brown, add the mushrooms, diced carrot, zha cai, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, ground white pepper, and some additional water.
- Thicken with cornstarch slurry.
To serve:
- Place the tofu on a plate and surrounded with the spinach.
- Pour the meat sauce on top of the tofu.
- Garnish with some chopped scallion and red chilies. Serve.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 668Total Fat: 44gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 30gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 2481mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 4gSugar: 6gProtein: 48g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 7/7/2019
Variations for the Steamed Tofu with Mushroom and Minced Meat
- There are several ways to prepare tofu. I steamed the tofu in this recipe, but I’ve also seen it served cold directly from the refrigerator in some restaurants.
- Another popular method is deep-frying the tofu until the surface becomes firm and forms a crispy layer. It has a different texture compared with the steamed tofu. The tofu will look golden, as seen in some Chinese restaurants.
About Zha Cai
Zha Cai is a preserved vegetable prepared from mustard cabbage (Brassica juncea). It is popular in the Szechuan province of China. The mustard cabbage stems are salted, rubbed with chili paste, and allowed to ferment, similar to kimchi in Korea.
It has various translations in English, including Zha Cai, Tsa Tsai, Jar Choy, or other similar phonetic pronunciations.
It is cut into strips or dice to cook with various dishes. Its strong umami flavor is ideal for this Chinese tofu recipe. Since the amount of salt is relatively high, remember to adjust the overall saltiness of your dish accordingly.
Other tofu recipes for you:
Here are some popular Asian tofu recipes that you might be interested in:
- Mapo Tofu – A spicy Szechuan-style tofu dish with minced meat.
- Braised Tofu with Vegetables– A healthy vegetarian meal that is easy to prepare.
- Tofu with Minced Pork– A similar recipe but featuring deep-fried tofu.

y8
Thursday 18th of March 2021
Look so yummy and tasty. I will try doing tommorrow. Thanks for your nice recipe...
Scarlett Stephens
Friday 17th of July 2020
A Keeper! Absolutely delicious I like to eat healthy but flavorful food and this dish definitely hit all the marks.
KP Kwan
Saturday 18th of July 2020
Hi Scarlet, Thank you and I am glad that you enjoy it. KP Kwan
happy wheels
Tuesday 1st of October 2019
Your chinese tofu looks so delish! I love tofu dishes of any kind and this is really making me hungry!
KP Kwan
Wednesday 2nd of October 2019
So glad to know that you like this recipe. Enjoy!
KP Kwan
Sunday 7th of July 2019
Hi, this is KP Kwan. I am happy to see you in this comment area, as you have read through my recipe. I am pleased to reply to any questions and comments as soon as possible.