The eight-character formula for Mapo Tofu doesn't have a single redundant word.
Chinese cuisine emphasizes color, aroma, and taste. If the tofu is too mushy, it affects appearance, and poor appearance affects appetite. So it must be "bound," meaning kept intact.
The spiciness, heat, freshness, and aroma of the dish rely on the addition of "heat." Once the dish cools down, even if the great master himself made it, it would not taste good.
Eating scalding tofu, puffing out hot steam with a "sizzle," the numbing sensation in your mouth feels electrifying. That exhilarating thrill is the essence of this dish.
The bowl for rice isn't big; the rice is level with the lip of the bowl, seeing a slight hump in the middle with lower sides, providing the perfect shape for putting food on top to eat together.
When the rice is brought close to the nose, you can distinctly smell the fresh fragrance of the rice, immediately indicating it's new crop rice from this year.
