Spicy Dried Pot Recipe (Ma La Xiang Guo)

Spicy Dried Pot, also known as Ma La Xiang Guo, is a beloved Sichuan dry stir-fry bursting with bold, fiery flavors and a medley of textures. Spicy Dried Pot brings the heat and umami straight to your dinner table with its fragrant spices, numbing peppercorns, and customizable ingredients. Perfect for spice lovers looking to beat takeout, Spicy Dried Pot is easier to make at home than you think. Follow this step-by-step recipe to recreate restaurant-quality flavor in your own kitchen!

Spicy Dried Pot Recipe 

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

For the spicy oil base:
1 piece cinnamon
1 black cardamom (cao guo)
1 star anise
1 slice Chinese licorice root (gan cao)
2 cloves
2 bay leaves
1/4 piece dried orange peel
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns
1 cup dried red chili peppers, divided
1/4 cup paprika powder
4 tablespoons rice wine
1 cup extra light olive oil
5 garlic cloves
1/4 thumb ginger
1 tablespoon black bean sauce (douchijiang)
2 tablespoons Sichuan Pixian doubanjiang
1/6 teaspoon salt

For the ingredients:
8 oz lotus root, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
6 pieces fish tofu
6 pieces beef balls
6 pieces fish balls
6 pieces puff tofu
8 oz spam, sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
3 oz breech mushrooms (bunashimeji)
4 pieces Shanghai bok choy, halved lengthwise
8 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 handful cilantro, minced
1 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds

Others:
2 tablespoons cooking oil

Spicy Dried Pot Instructions

1. Make the spicy oil base:

• In a grinder or food processor, add cinnamon, black cardamom, star anise, licorice root, cloves, bay leaves, orange peel, fennel seeds, Sichuan peppercorns, and half the dried chili peppers. Grind into a coarse spice mix.
• Transfer to a bowl and add paprika and rice wine. Mix and set aside.
• In the grinder, coarsely grind garlic and ginger. Add black bean sauce and doubanjiang and blend into a paste. Set aside.
• In a wok over high heat, heat the oil until smoking. Turn to low heat, add the spice mix and paste. Stir for 3 minutes.
• Add remaining dried chili peppers and salt. Cook for another 2 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside.

2. Boil the ingredients:

• In a separate pot of boiling water, cook fish tofu, beef balls, fish balls, and puff tofu for 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Boil lotus root for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Blanch spam, breech mushrooms, and bok choy for 10 seconds. Drain and set aside.

3. Cook the shrimp:

• In a well-seasoned wok over high heat, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Once smoking, add shrimp and stir-fry until pink, about 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.

4. Stir-fry everything together:

• Return the spicy oil base to high heat until smoking. Add the boiled ingredients and shrimp. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.
• Add bok choy, cilantro, and sesame seeds. Toss everything together and serve hot.

Tips & notes

• Paprika isn’t traditional, but it gives the dish a beautiful red color without overwhelming heat.
• Rice wine in the oil base protects the spices from burning during cooking.
• Cook ingredients in batches to maintain texture and avoid overcrowding the wok.
• Customize the mix-ins with any protein or vegetables you have on hand — this dish is flexible!