Tofu is the cheese of vegans! They love it! Widely used in the cuisine of those who follow this philosophy, tofu is a cheese made from soy. It has a high content of proteins and all the essential amino acids for our body, in addition to good fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals such as iron, magnesium, copper, phosphorus, calcium, potassium, vitamin C, thiamine, riboflavin and vitamin B6.
General nutritional table:
100g
Calories: 267KJ
Carbohydrates: 3.4g
Proteins: 6.6g
Total Fat: 4g
Dietary fiber: 0.8g
Sodium: 1mg
* the values may vary depending on the coagulant used.
It can also have some antinutrients as is common to find in foods of plant origin, but it is possible to reduce these antinutrients by making the appropriate preparation as shown below.
How to prepare your tofu:
Ingredients:
700g of soy beans
Filtered water
150ml apple cider vinegar (can use nigari, magnesium chloride, lemon)
1 teaspoon salt
Utensils:
Voal cloth (that little bag suitable for straining vegetable milks, juices …)
Large pot
Meter
Cheese press (can be used a bowl with little holes)
Leave the soy beans to soak overnight. If possible, change the water every 4 hours. Drain this water and blend 1 measure of tofu to 2 filtered water in a blender. Strain this liquid from the cloth and place in a pan. Put it on the stove until it starts to boil, stirring a few times to avoid sticking to the bottom of the pan. Throw the vinegar and mix. Wait 30s to 1 minute and turn off the heat. Wait for it to cool and place it on the cheese press with a weight on top (if you don’t have the tofu press, you can use the pasta colander with the voal cloth inside and a weight on top). Wait about 6h to 12h. Store in a refrigerator immersed in filtered water with a teaspoon of salt. This recipe yields a tofu of about 500g.
Because it has a neutral flavor, tofu can be used in various recipes. You can make it grilled to accompany salads, roasted with vegetables, smoked and fried for dishes that require a crispness, stirred to accompany bread and tapioca and even as a base for sweet creams in pies, cakes and pavés! Enjoy your tofu 🙂
