Silken tofu.

Lewisburg.



Today, for the first time, I made tofu. It's quite good. Good enough that not only am I planning on doing so again, but I've got my eyes on the 25 lb. bulk soybeans from our buying club distributor.

I already purchase King Arthur flour in 50 lb. bags, so this isn't all that much of a leap.

Pictured above is silken tofu, with an avocado-lemon puree, a ginger-soy-hoisin-chilli sauce, and scallions. (Dinner had other stuff, too. Just not so photogenic.) As soon as I get around to building a tofu press - easier than it sounds - I'll be making blocks of tofu, too.

The process is not all that far from making cheese. Soak soybeans overnight, then run through the blender with water. Heat, then strain through a cheesecloth.¹ Cook the resulting milk, then cool thoroughly. Add coagulant - in this case, gypsum² - and steam in molds until set. Cool before unmolding and slicing.³

As tofu goes, it's delicious stuff. I realize that may be damning with faint praise, but as someone who loves the stuff - ahem, a thorough omnivore who loves tofu - that's something. I'm already wondering what else I can do to modify the process for newer, different flavors and textures, but that'll come down the road. Until then, I've got some experimenting to do.

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¹I.e., a square of unbleached muslin. That lacy garbage for sale in the grocery store might be good for something, but not for this. Or for cheese, either.

²Readily available at the homebrew shop, which I'm finding useful for more than just brewing these days. But I am brewing more than I have been, and that's exciting.

³For more specific details, check Andrea Nguyen's Asian Tofu. She sure steered me right.