#88 – CHEF’S MAU PO TOFU at SZECHUAN GOURMET

Once again Time Out New York released their Top 100 Dishes of the year and once again, I’m going to eat my way through every one. And no price point or subway delay will stop me. In no particular order, here’s my take on their Top 100.

I wouldn’t exactly call myself a spice fiend, but I do like the occasional hot, spicy dish. It’s fun and exciting and if prepared properly, can be full of flavor rather than just fire. And like most people, I do like to know what I’m getting myself into before taking the spice plunge. And I imagine that’s why those little chili pepper ratings on Chinese menus were invented. Just in case the visible bright red and green chiles in a sauce weren’t warning enough.

Most everything on the menu at Midtown favorite Szechuan Gourmet had at least one red chili pepper next to its name. After all, this is a restaurant that serves Szechuan cuisine, which is known for its aggressive heat and even has a pepper named in its honor (the Szechuan pepper, of course). But I’m not sure who decided on these ratings and I’m not completely sold on its accuracy. For instance, the Chef’s Mau Po Tofu, which was Time Out’s list item that brought us here, is awarded four chili peppers on its dinner menu, but its lunch menu outside only lists three chili peppers. Is it a different, less spicy recipe during the day?

Or perhaps they’re playing to their audience. I imagine most of their lunch customers are business men, many of whom are used to American Chinese food with a more milder approach. And could it be we were also given a less spicy version of this dish (perhaps the lunch one)? Because it wasn’t nearly as tongue singeing as I was expecting.

It was a hot day and I was willing to go for the heat, but I also wanted something cold and refreshing to start with. The salads are probably not the thing to get here, so I was hoping one of their spicy (or dan dan) noodle appetizers might have been cold. I think I confused the waiter when I asked him about the temperature because he kept iterating that they were spicy and if we wanted something not spicy, to order something different. I wanted spicy. Maybe there was a language issue here and we confused him since the word “hot” can have two different meanings.

I thought I made it clear that we wanted spicy. And there were definitely peppers and spices to the dishes, but not as spicy as I had anticipated. The spicy noodles were quite nice and the little bit of heat was tempered with some sweetness. While they weren’t completely cold, they started the meal off nicely on such a hot summer evening.

The tea smoked duck and the baby bok choy were the two dishes we ordered that did not have any chili pepper warnings. The duck was quite smoky, not unlike American barbecue. I couldn’t taste any of the delicate tea notes that I love in Grand Sichuan’s version of this dish, but the meat was tender and flavorful. The bok choy was on the greasy side, but well-seasoned and worked as a cooling side dish

I really liked the Chef’s Mau Po Tofu, which is a dish I’ve become more and more fond of, but I was expecting lots more heat. Don’t get me wrong, it was plenty spicy – I just don’t know if this warranted four chili peppers (or even three). The tofu itself was incredibly creamy and soft, like a block of light, airy cheese. I wouldn’t be surprised if these were made in house. They were submerged in an intimidating pool of bright red chili oil, which was loaded with leeks, lots of peppers, and crunchy, toothsome pieces of minced pork. In many ways, the spice was just right and this dish ended up being a success. I only take issue with the warning ahead of time and the fear that maybe the heat was curbed for our American palettes.

Either way, the food at Szechuan Gourmet was quite good and its very affordable. I know where I can get my spice fix and I’m glad to know it won’t set my mouth on fire.

Would Szechuan Gourmet’s Chef’s Mau Po Tofu make my Top 100 of the Year? The dish gets an 8 out of 10 thanks to the silky tofu, the intensely flavored sauce, and the well-rounded composition.