Soeos Sichuan Broad Bean Paste with Chili Oil 28.22oz (800g), Hongyou Doubanjiang, Pixian Doubanjiang Chili Paste, Ingredient for Sichuan Cuisine, Fermented Bean Paste, Red Bean Paste, Chili Paste.

Really the best I have found. This is the perfect for Mapo Tofu. After living in Manhattan and having access to some incredible restaurants. I’m pretty sure some of the restaurants use this. I have made perfect restaurant quality mapo tofu with this. It stores well after opening and even if you leave in the plastic a month later it’s still good.

This is my favorite sichuan chili flake / powder. It doesn't just add heat; it adds a huge amount of flavor. My dishes would not be as satisfying without this ingredient.

This is an enormous jar with an extra bag inside for protection, so full marks for value and packaging. The flavor is rich, not simply salty (despite what other reviewers say). I do agree with others that it is not terribly hot, but that is fine: one can always add some pan-heated peppers. In fact, when making Szechuan food, one really should. So high marks here, as well. I just can't get over the presence in this paste of so many bean skins (or perhaps pepper skins). Even after cooking they remain prominent and though one can eat them, I just do not enjoy their tough texture. Perhaps others don't care about this, as I find no other reviews with my complaint, but it's enough for me to look for another brand.

After finishing this bin, I have to say I am IN LOVE. Makes THE BEST mapo tofu. I’ve never had authentic mapo tofu (the stuff I’ve tried in restaurants suck) but I use all original ingredients, such as this paste, Shaoxing wine, Sichuan peppercorns, and wow, best I’ve had. I highly recommend it. And yes, it's a bit salty for some, but not for many others. Use a bit less if salt sensitive. Also, if you don’t care for strong fragrant ad flavorful dishes, maybe Chinese cooking isn’t for you. Nor Indian cooking, or any of the other great food countries. Try English? Norwegian? Those are nice and bland.

The flavor is good. Some spice, but at a good level. I am only giving it a one-star rating, however, as I bought it on April 18, 2025 and when I received it a couple of days later I noticed the “Best Before” date on the jar is April 12, 2025. I cannot return it as the product site says it cannot be returned for “food safety reasons.” Seems like a scam: clear out old inventory by selling old products that cannot be returned. BTW, the label states it has a shelf life of 18 months, so this likely was at the seller’s warehouse for some time.

I really like this stuff. I’m a white boy who doesn’t know anything about Chinese food, but this flavor is extraordinarily good and it’s relatively inexpensive. You can make any dish interesting with this paste.

Thought i had to go to China to get this but nope! Amazon cane in clutch with this paste, and my mapo tofu has never tasted better!

It is salty, as others have written. In fact it's so salty it's impossible to use any other seasoning with salt in it, such as soy sauce, with it. It's so salty I can only use about two teaspoons in a recipe, making this jar basically a lifetime supply. Beneath the salt, the underlying flavor is good!