Mapo Tofu was founded in the first year of Tongzhi in Qing Dynasty (1862), and there was a storefront named "Chen Xingsheng Restaurant" beside Wanfuqiao in Chengdu. The owner Chen Chunfu (Chen Senfu) died long ago, and the small restaurant was run by the proprietress, whose face was slightly numb and she was called "Chen Mapo". At that time, Wanfuqiao was a river crossing the Fuhe River, where coolies often stopped and pointed. The people who patronize the restaurant are mainly oil-picking porters. Chen has a set of unique cooking skills for cooking tofu. The cooked tofu is delicious, outstanding and deeply loved by people. The cooked tofu she created is called "Chen Mapo Tofu", and her food shop is later named after "Chen Mapo Tofu Shop".

The history of Chen Mapo's creation of Mapo tofu is recorded in books such as "Poems on Bamboo Branches in Jincheng" and "Records of Old Stories about Furong". "Poems on Bamboo Branches in Jincheng" says: "Mapo Chen is still famous, tofu is the best to bake, and the curtain on Wanfuqiao is moving, and Mr. Gu Chun is drunk." A Survey of Chengdu records that Chen Mapo tofu was listed as a famous food in Chengdu at the end of Qing Dynasty.

Chen Mapo: Mrs. Ma's family name is Wen, and she is the seventh girl of the big shopkeeper in Wan Feng Sauce Garden of the North Gate Fire Temple. She has a pair of watery eyes and exquisite figure, but God is partial to her, and she sprinkles some white pockmarked seeds on her pink face, but she is so charming.

At the age of seventeen, I married Chen Zhihao, the fourth shopkeeper of Shunji Timber Company. After the wedding, the young couple showed unusual love. Because of this, the eldest sister-in-law and the second sister-in-law spread some gossip intentionally or unintentionally in jealousy. Her mother-in-law, who had been very fond of her, gradually scolded her for being left out.

After getting a small amount of cash and three street houses, the husband and wife left the Chen family's old nest.

one of the three street houses was occupied by myself, and the other two were still leased to the original mutton shop and tofu shop. Four manned people went to Majia Mill, 2 miles away, to take charge of a press room.

In the spring of the following year, her sister-in-law Shuhua left her parents in anger and took refuge in her fourth sister-in-law because of a quarrel with her second sister-in-law. The area around Majia Mill is full of oil mills. People in the triangle near Chengdu are mostly engaged in the cultivation and oil extraction of rapeseed, which is called rapeseed, and most of these rapeseed are concentrated in Majia for oil extraction. The shopkeeper is kind and sincere. After one or two years, he has been promoted from the steward of weighing and distributing oil to the clerk of purchasing, selling and collecting money. As long as he handles the incident, he is extremely compassionate and kind to those poor porters, and will never make the coolies pay for their blood and sweat for nothing.

The place where her family lives is the only way for Ma's family to run into the city. Most of the porters regard this place as a relay station. They often give something of their own in return for their kindness to the four shopkeepers. Although they refused again and again, the poor people paid less attention to courtesy than benevolence, so after receiving it, Qiaoqiao always bought some mutton from the store on the left, bought some tofu from the store on the right and cooked a plate with two small dishes in return.

Just after ten years of such a happy life, the unfortunate fate fell on her. On July 15th, the 27th year of Guangxu, four shopkeepers capsized at Majiadu in Jintang, and since then she lost her beloved husband, and since then she has lost her dream of life.

Shuhua saw that she was lonely, and with ten years of dependent feelings, although she was nineteen years old, she was reluctant to leave her fourth sister-in-law who was in trouble and loved her very much and get married. Auntie and sister-in-law opened their doors to make a living and worked hard for their livelihood. Fortunately, people are still coming and going in this relay station every day. Those "vegetables" who plant and extract oil and "porters" who sell oil as coolies, whether they know each other well or just met each other, all appreciate the kindness of the four shopkeepers in the past and watch them open their shops and still come to rest every day. Some bring some rice, some take a la carte, and those who are empty-handed are in two stores next door. Buy some mutton and tofu, wash them and cook them, and then you can have a full meal. Everyone deliberately saves a bite, which is enough for the aunt to have two meals in the morning and evening.

During this period, Qiaoqiao developed a special skill of cooking tofu, and Qiaoqiao's reputation of tofu with minced meat (mutton) spread all over more than ten counties in a government in western Sichuan.

at that time, it was the 3th year of Guangxu, and the social atmosphere was conservative. Women were exposed in public, and others could not help criticizing them. Wen Chen's two relatives and friends thought it was a great shame, and they went to the door one after another to dissuade them, but they were determined, and the shop was open every day, and tofu was still burned every day. Later, she simply announced to the two companies that she would close the store as long as she paid 5.2 thousand silver to "live". When it comes to asking for money, the brother-in-law has to keep his mouth shut and wrap his feet.

From then on, my aunt cheered up and greeted the business wholeheartedly. My sister-in-law chopped meat and cooked vegetables, and my sister-in-law cleaned the table and washed dishes.

In this way, year after year, the store has expanded and the business is booming, but their youth has slowly passed away in a "pair of small golden lotus". In order to avoid gossiping, the store is a "five-foot child who has no answer." Tofu and mutton should be bought by the guests themselves, and the amount of fire and meals paid by the guests is indisputable. They were overworked. In the 23rd year of the Republic of China (1934), Shuhua fell ill first, so she had to find a distant grandchild to help. As a result, one year later, my aunt passed away.

Before her death, some people called her Qiao Girl and Si Shaonai. Some people call her Mrs. Chen Sisao and the shopkeeper Niang. Mapo is the signboard she earned after her death: hemp is the memory of others for her beauty and delicacy; Grandma, is a respectful name for her young Gao Deshao.