 As one of the staples of East Asian cuisine, tofu (豆腐 dòufu) is a food you will definitely encounter on a trip to China. But how is tofu made? So, here’s a very rough explanation of how tofu is made. 1. Soak the beans Usually when you buy soybeans from the local market/supermarket they’re dried. You need to soak them in water overnight to re-hydrate them. Rinse them first. 2. Raw soy milkshake Once the beans are fully rehydrated you need to mix them with even more water, this time in a blender. Blend them as smooth as you can (the more powerful the blender they smoother this will be) to make a kind of milkshake like liquid. 3. Sieve out the pulp The curd is made from liquid parts only, so using a sieve and cheesecloth (this catches the really fine pulpy bits), separate the pure soy milk and pulp bits. This part can get a little messy. Don’t throw away the pulp/tofu dregs, known in Chinese as 豆腐渣doufuzha. This can make a really delicious veggie burger patty or ‘meat’ ball. 4. Cook the soy milk Heat your raw soy milk up on a medium to low heat, stirring so it doesn’t boil over. Now you have soy milk ready to drink! If you have a sweet tooth, you can add sugar. 5. Magically turn the milk into tofu This is a bit like the yoghurt-making process; you have the milk and you need to make it clump together. Add spoonfuls of vinegar to do this, which acts as a coagulant to turn the soy milk, like magic, into tofu. Add them carefully, one at a time to make sure you don’t break up the curds. Though there are several other things you can use as a coagulant, for example: lemon juice, epsom salts, gypsum, nigari are all quite commonly used. 6. Press your bean curds Once your soy milk has turned into a tofu-like substance you can spoon it into a wooden basket, place a cloth and something heavy (like a bowl of water) on top. This presses your tofu together and the excess water will leak out of the bottom of the basket. And voila, you have a basket of fresh bean curd.
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