Experimenting with our plain, smoked or marinated tofu can help you to create a wonderful variety of impressive and delicious dishes.

History

It is known that tofu was first used in China over 2,000 years ago and became so popular that there that an “Ode to Tofu” was composed about it by the poet Su Ping! The soya bean, from which it is made, is known in China as “ta-tou” or “the greater bean”. Quite appropriate really, when you consider its nutritional importance as a wonderfood.

Chinese scholars attribute the development of tofu to the Taoist Prince Hainan of the fabled Han dynasty, who lived in the second century BC. They believe Prince Hainan accidentally made the first batch of tofu during his pursuit of longevity.

It was introduced to Japan, via Manchuria and Korea, a thousand years later. It was originally part of the vegetarian diet for priests and used as an altar offering, before being adopted by the nobility and samurai class.

In the Orient tofu is revered for its protein content and its adaptability in cooking, because it can both absorb and enhance the flavour of the ingredients that it’s mixed with. Considered a leading staple in the Asian diet, it’s often dished up with exotic mixes of rice noodles, vegetable, spices, sauces, or added to soups and stir-fries.

Tofu is now consumed and produced all around the globe, particularly in countries like America and Australia, where it has been fully integrated into all types of food preparation and dishes.

How it’s made

In many ways, making tofu is like making cheese. Tofu is made from soya milk in a simple, natural process:

• First, we take soya beans and rinse them to remove impurities.
• Then we grind them into a paste and cook them in water to make soya milk.
• We remove the bean fibre from the soya milk, and boil the milk for ten minutes.
• After that we add calcium sulphate, a natural mineral, to coagulate the milk into curds.
• We press the curds and drain off the whey to leave an enormous block of firm tofu.
• Then we cut it into small blocks, ready for packing, smoking or marinating.

Benefits of Tofu

Many people choose to eat tofu for its natural qualities, its versatility in cooking and the way it absorbs flavours so readily, but there are some other reasons why it’s so popular around the world…

An excellent meat-alternative

• Tofu is an excellent meat alternative because it’s protein-rich, and contains all eight essential amino acids.
• It’s ideal for low fat, low calorie diets as it’s low in saturated fats and low in carbohydrates -
• It’s good for a healthy diet because it contains linoleic acid and lecithin, plus other vitamins and minerals.

Healthier heart and bones

• Lowering blood cholesterol levels can help to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. Tofu is cholesterol-free, so it can really help with this.
• Tofu is a dairy-free alternative, which makes it great for vegans and vegetarians. It helps to build teeth and bones and prevent osteoporosis because it is rich in calcium.
• It’s also useful in keeping blood pressure under control because it’s low in sodium/salt.

Reducing the symptoms of menopause

• Tofu can reduce menopause symptoms and act as a natural alternative to HRT, because it’s rich in oestrogen-like isoflavones.