Doubanjiang (chilli bean paste)

A salty, savoury red paste that gives mapo tofu its flavour.

A glass jar of dark red chilli bean paste (doubanjiang), thick and chunky — Lee Kum Kee chilli bean sauce (toban djan). Photo: Judgefloro, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

A small plate of Pixian doubanjiang, a dark red-brown paste with visible pieces of bean and chilli — Pixian doubanjiang. Photo: Badagnani, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

At a glance

Chinese: 豆瓣醬 (traditional), 豆瓣酱 (simplified)
Cantonese (Jyutping): dau6 baan6 zoeng3
Mandarin (pinyin): dòubànjiàng
Also written on labels: broad bean paste, chilli bean sauce, toban djan, "Pixian douban" (郫縣豆瓣)

What it is

A thick, dark red paste made from fermented broad beans, chilli peppers, salt and usually wheat flour. Some also have a little soybean. The longer it ferments, the deeper the taste. It is more salty and savoury than hot.

How we use it

Fry a spoonful in a little oil first until the oil turns red and smells toasty, then add the other ingredients. It needs heat and oil. It is not a dipping sauce. It is salty, so taste before you add more salt.

Where to find it in Hong Kong

Lee Kum Kee Chilli Bean Sauce (Toban Djan), 辣豆瓣醬. It is a Hong Kong brand and is sold at city'super's online shop and the Lee Kum Kee Hong Kong online shop.
Juan Cheng (鵑城) Pixian douban, 郫縣豆瓣醬. This is the Sichuan style that cooks look for. We saw it for sale in a Hong Kong online shop, but we have not checked which shops stock it on the shelf.
Keep it in the fridge after opening.

Check the label

Contains soy and wheat. Some brands have extra sugar or flavour enhancers, so read it if you have a preference.

Substitutes

Gochujang plus a little miso or soy sauce. Skip any added sugar. Gochujang is sweeter and smoother, so the dish will be less salty and less deep.
A mix of miso and a little chilli paste or chilli garlic sauce, if you have no gochujang.
For a milder dish, use less and add chilli on the side.
Our mapo tofu already uses doubanjiang with a spoon of miso.

Doubanjiang vs gochujang

	Doubanjiang	Gochujang
From	China (Sichuan)	Korea
Made from	Fermented broad beans, chilli, salt, flour	Red pepper powder, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans
Taste	Salty, savoury, a little funky	Sweeter, thicker, gently spicy
Texture	Chunky	Smooth, sticky
Use	Fried in oil at the start	Can go in sauces and dips raw

Swapping one for the other changes the dish. Gochujang in mapo tofu is sweeter and gummier. Doubanjiang in a Korean dish is saltier.

Dishes here that use it

Mapo tofu (102)

The only dish that uses it today. We will link more as they are added.

Sources

Facts on this page come from these pages. We have summarised them in our own words.

Get the weekly plan by email

One short email each week with the new meal plan and shopping list. Nothing else.

Get the weekly plan