Japan Navigator

“Tofu (”bean curd”) is one of the most protean of all foods,” says Donald Richie (in A Taste of Japan). You can do more things with it than with any other food and its delicate taste serves as a base for thousands of other flavors. Soy protein is of the highest quality, equal to that of meat and dairy products, but without the cholesterol and saturated fat.

On top of that, it is the perfect health food. It is incredibly easy for the body to metabolize this light food. Soy isoflavones possess a myriad of biological properties that can benefit the body. It helps against fatigue and a weak stomach and encourages a clear skin and healthy complexion. People in east Asia believe it also helps them live longer lives. It is not only nutritious (like the soy beans from which it is made), it is also cheap. Tofu is low in calories and rich in protein, calcium, iron and phosphorus.

Tofu originated in China and came to Japan in the 8th century – perhaps brought back by priests for whom it formed a valuable protein-rich addition to the vegetarian diet. There is a record that in 1183 it was offered to the Kasuga Shrine in Nara.

Tofu is made in the following way:

• Soak soybeans overnight in water
• Grind them, add water and then boil the mixture (this mixture is called go, soybean puree)
• Strain it to remove the bean pulp (called okara) – what is left is soy milk
• Add a coagulating agent, bittern (made from crude salt, contains both magnesium chloride and calcium chloride) or calcium sulfate. This will transform the soymilk into curds and whey. The curds are finally poured into a mold and left to settle.

Depending on the finishing process there are three types of tofu:

1. Momen(-goshi). “Cotton tofu.” The soy milk curd is put into a mold lined with cotton cloth. The mold has holes in the sides and bottom so that the liquid can be pressed out. This leave a firm block of tofu into which the cotton weave has been impressed. This firm type of tofu is used in yudofu and hotpots. Also eaten by itself.
2. Kinu(-goshi). “Silk tofu.” The name is given not because a silk cloth is used instead of a cotton one, but because this type of tofu looks “silky smooth.”  It is in fact not drained, so that a larger amount of coagulant remains; it is very soft and breaks easily. Used in soups as miso-shiru.
3. Yakidofu. Lightly broiled tofu. There is a light brown mottling on the skin. It is firmer than momen and kinu tofu and most often used in hotpots – it is especially popular in sukiyaki.

All three types of tofu are fresh and must be kept under water (also the packs you buy in the supermarket contain water!) and refrigerated, otherwise it will not keep for more than a day. Under water and refrigerated, it should be used within 5 to 7 days of manufacturing.

When tofu is deep-fried in oil, another variety is created, which comes in four forms (this type is of course never kept under water, but just in the refrigerator; will keep fresh there for one week):

1. Atsu-age. Thick-sliced (2.5 cm) tofu broiled briefly in hot oil. The inside remains soft and white, while the outside is golden brown. Another name for this type of tofu is nama-age. Difference with aburage: aburage is thinner and fried through. Can be eaten as such in izakaya etc. with flavoring of soy sauce and ginger, used in oden, miso soup, etc. Pour hot water over the cake and lightly press in paper towels before using it to remove excess oil.
   
2. Aburage. Deep-fried, thinly sliced tofu. An ingredient of udon dishes called kitsune (fox) udon, because legend tells that foxes are fond of deep fried tofu!  In small stripes, an ingredient of miso soup, and soups of mizuna, komatsuna etc. Also an ingredient in stir fries. Can also be sliced open and used as a wrapper (”tofu pouch”) and filled with vinegared rice to make inarizushi – inari is a name for the fox deity. Also here, remove excess oil before using it.
3. Agedashi-dofu. Deep-fried tofu breaded with potato starch. Eaten with a sauce of soy sauce, sake, dashi, sugar and salt en dressed with chopped green onions, grated daikon radish and red pepper.
4. Ganmodoki or “mixed tofu balls.” Tofu is mixed with crushed yam and chopped vegetables as carrot, burdock, shiitake mushrooms, as well as sesame seed. This mixture is kneaded into 4-cm balls and deep-fried. Used in oden and simmered dishes. “Ganmodoki” means “like a wild goose,” the name was presumably given by a Buddhist priest who ate this instead of the real goose.

Two more varieties of tofu are:

1. Flavored tofu includes the pale golden “egg tofu” (tamago tofu),  tofu flavored with green tea, pumpkin or sesame seed (gomadofu).
2. Koya-dofu. Freeze-dried tofu, originating with the monks of Mt Koya. They reputedly discovered the process accidentally by leaving tofu outside on a winter night. Grayish. Soak in water to reconstitute it before eating. Solves the problem that tofu can’t be kept for long.

Already during the production process of tofu, various other foodstuffs come into being:

• Okara or soy pulp. A white pulp left over when soy milk is extracted from ground soaked soybeans. It looks a bit like sawdust. Although tasteless, okara contains fiber, protein, iron, calcium and riboflavin and is very nutritious. It is in the first place used as livestock feed, but also finds many applications in the Japanese kitchen. Recently, it has been discovered by vegetarians and is for example used as ingredient for vegetarian burgers, also in the West. Okara is also called poetically “unohana,” “deutzia flowers.” As Okara – like tofu – can’t be kept long, it is often sold in dried form.
• Tonyu or soy milk is a healthy replacement for cow milk. There is also soy milk based ice cream and soy yogurt.
• Yuba or soy milk skin, a delicacy of Kyoto. Yuba forms on the surface when soy milk is heated. Can be eaten fresh or added to soups. Important ingredient in shojin-ryori (Buddhist vegetarian cuisine).

Enjoy tofu in the following ways:

• As-it-is: Hiyayakko or chilled tofu. Cold blocks of “cotton tofu” with soy sauce, grated ginger and finely sliced spring onions. Typical izakaya food. Summer dish.
• As-it-is: Yudofu or “Tofu in warm water.” Blocks of “cotton tofu” are put in a pot with water and kombu right on the table. After gently warming (never boiling!) the tofu is dipped in a sauce of soy, spring onions, grated ginger and bonito shavings before eating. Typical Kyoto dish. When cooking at home, you can vary it by adding shungiku, shiitake, Chinese cabbage and enokidake to the broth.
• As-it-is: Shira-ae or vegetables dressed with tofu. Lit. “Salad with white dressing.” Carrot, burdock root, green beans etc. are cooked, cooled off and then mixed with a dressing made from drained tofu and dashi, salt, sugar and soy sauce.
• Grilled: Dengaku. Lightly grilled tofu flavored with various types of miso mixed with sugar and sake.
• Sauteed: Iridofu. Tofu sauteed with shiitake mushrooms, carrots and snow peas and seasoned with sake, soy sauce, sugar and egg. Even without the addition of egg, this tofu dish reminds one of scrambled eggs!
• Japanese-Chinese: Mabo tofu. Originally from Sichuan, but domesticated in the Japanese Chuka kitchen. Small squares of tofu in a soupy mixture containing ground pork, seasoned with leeks, ginger, sesame seed oil and soy sauce. Eaten over rice on a plate. Can be spicy, although less so in Japan than in Sichuan!

Traditionally, Kyoto is famous for its tofu, thanks to its excellent water and emphasis on vegetarian cuisine.