豆腐 (Tofu)

2nd June – 水無月

Nowadays, 豆腐 (Tofu) has become well-known all over the world. Tofu is made by going through the following process:

Soaking soy beans into the water and then crack the soy

Boil the soup from it and squeeze the water, divide into 豆乳(Tounyu＝soy milk) and おから(okara, the crumb part)

Harden 豆乳 by mixing with coagulant called にがり (Nigari=bittern).

When you see 豆腐 in Kanji, respective letter means 豆 (Mame) = bean, 腐 (Kusa-ru) = rot. However, Tofu has to be very fresh to eat and its expiry dates are very short. There are some thought for origin of word – it might came from 納豆 (Natto) which is fermented soy beans, in the old time people might have mixed the naming!

In the supermarket in Japan, you will probably see there are 2 different types of Tofu, 絹ごし (Kinugoshi) and 木綿 (Momen). Some people might confuse them from the looks but those have different texture and way of usage.

Kinugoshi has smooth texture and often used for raw tofu food.

On the other hand, Momen has harder and firm so it is used for stir, grilled, boiled food.

Moreover, many people think the making process of those are different due to the cloths it is used (Kinu means silk, Momen means cotton). However, it is actually wrong and the real difference of the process for those two are:

Kinugoshi: Same as it was explained on the Tofu making process – adding bittern in soy milk and harden it

Momen: After going through the Kinugoshi process, breaking the shape of Tofu and putting them into the other mold. Then press hard to get rid of the wetness.

For Momen, as a result of getting rid of water, some nutrition runs down. Therefore it can be said that Kinugoshi has just a little bit more nutrition. Still, Tofu has a lot beneficial nutrition and even additive-free food. But remember, Tofu is made from soy, meaning it has a lot protein so eating it too much will affect your body badly. Thus, as always, moderation is a key for being healthy!