What is tofu?

[Guest guest]

Hi,

 

What exactly is tofu? Vegetable? Fruit? Grain? And what does it taste like?

 

thanks

 

kas

[Guest guest]

Emaillists wrote:

> Hi,

 

What exactly is tofu? Vegetable? Fruit? Grain? And what does it

taste like?

 

And the answer is d) none of the above. Tofu is the soy

equivalent of fresh cheese. Instead of using dairy milk, adding a

coagulating agent like rennet, and pressing the dairy whey out of

the firm curds like you would to make farmer cheese, to make

tofu you start with soy milk (liquid made from grinding soaked

soy beans with water, then straining out the solids), add a

coagulating agent like nigari (from seaweed) or a calcium salt,

or something like that, then press the liquid out of the curds for

regular tofu or leave it all together and pour it into a mold for

silken tofu.

 

Regular tofu has a texture like paneer (fresh Indian cheese) if

you're familiar with that. Silken tofu has a more custard-like

consistency. The flavor of all tofu is fairly bland, but it absorbs

the flavor of whatever it's cooked or mixed with. If a recipe

doesn't specifiy which type to use, it usually means use " regular "

(also called Chinese-style) tofu, not silken.

 

Regular tofu usually comes (in US supermarkets, anyway) in

sealed plastic tubs filled with water. Silken tofu is sometimes

packaged in similar tubs, but the tofu fills the entire container - it

isn't floating in water. Most of the time, though, silken tofu is sold

in aeseptic packages that don't have to be kept cold. One of the

most popular brands of this type is Mori-Nu tofu. Mori-Nu has

just come out recently with an organic version of their product

and it ROCKS!

 

For a newcomer to tofu, I wouldn't recommend tasting the tofu

straight out of the package. It has about as much flavor as a

plain boiled egg white. It is delicious marinated in soy sauce

and toasted sesame oil with fresh garlic and ginger. Drain it,

then stir fry or bake it til it's brown and crusty around the edges.

 

Hope this helps - Lisa (ltbennett)

Lisa T. Bennett

The Organic Goddess Bakery and Catering

Atlanta GA USA

[Guest guest]

ltbennett: Your description of tofu--how it's made, its flavor, etc.--was

really the best I've ever seen! Comparing the flavor to boiled egg white was

just right. Just as the white would taste " eggy, " tofu tastes like soy, but

both are milder versions of the whole food. I'm going to use your

description from now on with folks who ask, and I promise I'll verbally

footnote you!

 

Emaillists: I might add here that seitan ( " kofu " ) is the wheat equivalent in

flavor to the above foods. If you're unfamiliar with tofu, you're probably

unfamiliar with seitan. It's solely the protein part of wheat flour--the

gluten--with the carbohydrate washed out.

 

When people are new to vegetarianism, or ethnic foods, they tend to think of

these foods as meat substitutes. However, as time goes on, they realize that

these are foods in their own right--not substitutes for anything else.

 

If either seitan or tofu is unavailable to you locally, you can make both

yourself. Initially, it seems to be somewhat arduous, but once you have the

routine down, it can be fun. It's still a little amazing to me to turn flour

into an entree! " Rumpelstiltskin is my name. "

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