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Tofu
Apr 13, 2008 8:29:36 GMT -5
Post by Granny Smith on Apr 13, 2008 8:29:36 GMT -5
Tofu
In the tofu process, soybeans are soaked overnight, then ground, usually with more water. A blender does an ideal job.
When this mash is boiled, it separates int a white 'milk' and a fibrous substance called 'okara'. American health food stores carry frozen okara patties and various forms of soy milk.
In standard tofu-making, the okara is strained out of the milk.
Then, just as rennet or other curdling agents are added to mammal milk in cheese-making to cause the curds to coagulate out of the whey, the tofu cook stirs a salt of an acid into soy milk.
For the most part, gypsum (calcium sulfate) or Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) are the solidifiers in modern use.
The solidifiers cause tofu curds to precipitate out of hot soy milk. The curds float like little white flecks in a sea of clear yellow whey.
To make standard tofu, you then strain out the whey and let the curds drain in a colander or perforated mold until they settle into a delicate white cake, which can be stored in water. It contains 73.5 percent of the original protein in the soybeans.
Tofu tastes best in dishes that combine it with vigorously flavored ingredients. By itself, it tastes bland.
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