Tofu is great in so many recipes and easy to make. Along the way you will also make soy milk and have some okara left over. Okara is basically just bean pulp but it is great in breads, burgers, or cookies.
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Signing UpStep 1: What you will need.
Ingredients:
You'll need water, 3 cups of dry soy beans and 2 TBSP of Epsom Salt. As an alternative to the Epsom Salt, you may use 75ml of lemon juice. Most of the nicer grocery stores will have the soy beans and you can find Epsom Salt at the pharmacy.
Equipment:
Food processor or blender, 2 large pots, 1 colander, 1 strainer, and a mesh bag. Instead of the mesh bag you could also use a few layers of cheesecloth.
*Also note this recipe works doubled.
You'll need water, 3 cups of dry soy beans and 2 TBSP of Epsom Salt. As an alternative to the Epsom Salt, you may use 75ml of lemon juice. Most of the nicer grocery stores will have the soy beans and you can find Epsom Salt at the pharmacy.
Equipment:
Food processor or blender, 2 large pots, 1 colander, 1 strainer, and a mesh bag. Instead of the mesh bag you could also use a few layers of cheesecloth.
*Also note this recipe works doubled.
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I don't think any of those are the cause actually. It is best to refrigerate the beans when they soak but mainly to keep them fresh. The more blended the better. And When you are bringing the blended beans and water to a simmer, reaching a boil is common and not a problem.
I would suggest to double check that your soy milk was heated back up to 180 degrees when you added your coagulant. This was a huge problem we had at the beginning. Also you may want to try a little more coagulant if it is still not working.
Good luck.
What kind of texture of tofu do you get from this? From looking at it, it looks quite firm and solid, which is what I want. I'm new to tofu, and the stuff I get in the supermarket tends to be way too crumbly for my liking.
#1: Calcium Chloride as Coagulant - Works:
I had an old one-time-use chemical dehumidifier that I purchased at the dollar store. The granules are made up of Calcium Chloride and absorb moisture. In the process, other stuff gets absorbed as well, so I dissolved the remaining salt in water and boiled it to get more pure calcium chloride. Afterwards, I used this to make tofu.
#2: Nigari - How it's Made:
Nigari is the traditional coagulant used to make tofu, other than Gypsum. It's made by letting seawater evaporate to the point that salt crystals start forming. These leftover liquid is nigari. You can find a more thorough overview of it here:
http://nigarin.wordpress.com/2007/10/25/how-nigari-is-made/
Set mold into a pan to catch the drainage, line the sides and bottom with strips of muslin, pour in the curds, place small block of wood on top (cut to fit inside the mold frame) and a couple of cans of food from the pantry on top of the wood block.
I just store my molds, muslin strips, home made straining bag all in my large canning pot in the garage. Everything is all together when I'm ready to make tofu.
It would be great for people with soy bean allergies.
If any of you are concerned about using EPSOM Salt (MgSo) in tofu for a coagulant, don’t be unless you have an allergy to such a thing…. It is safe to add to food, and is chemically very similar to the Japanese tofu coagulant NIGARI (MgCl2), but is cheaper and easier found in the United States…..
EPSOM Salt has been used in this country for generations, and is still today a Doctor’s recommended home-remedy that can be used SAFELY both internally and externally for several things …. Did you catch the “Doctor Recommended” ….. EPSOM Salt is after all a salt, and as with any salt, it is never recommended to be taken internally in large amounts, so do your research (google), and don’t go over-board, you don’t need much.
As for the final product, and if my knowledge of basic chemistry serves, my guess is most of the salt and magnesium would be left behind in the by-product liquid solution discarded after straining out all the tofu curds, but some would remain in the final product as a supplement. I know the Chinese culture uses a coagulant that contains Calcium, and therefore does contain more calcium than other versions.
Nigari, not Nigiri (which is stuffed rice triangles) and EPSOM Salt are chemically similar, but not exactly the same, and therefore you cannot substitute one for the other in the same ratios….. the amount needed for using NIGARI (MgCl2) is much less then what this recipe calls for.
Both are considered “Bitters”, so experimenting with the LEAST of either coagulant resulting in best product is key to avoiding a bitter taste.
I too took out about half (6 Cups) for other uses, and left the remaining 8 Cups for tofu.
Knowing I needed less of the NIGARI, my husband and I determined 2 tsp dissolved in ½ cup water might do the trick.
I also saw the YouTube video where the women making the tofu used a separate container (larger then the other) to quickly drop-pour the hot Soy Milk into the other pot containing the dissolved coagulant (I placed my receiving pot on a clean towel on my clean kitchen floor). I gave it a swirl put the lid on, and left it for 10 – 15 min….. it worked great, and made 18.2 oz of tofu.
In this recipe it was not clarified if you need 2T of Epsom Salt for a full batch or just the half of the batch of soymilk he made into tofu…. I assume it was for a full bach, and you can nock the Epsom Salts down to 1T for a half bach, but I suppose that’s another experiment…..
As far as Costs:
4lb bag of dried Soy Beans ($5.95) found at my local Asian market works out to $1.49/pound for comparison shoppers. 4lbs of beans measure approx 10 Cups equaling $0.60/cup. 3 Cups/Batch = $1.80 plus Nigari, Epsom salt, or lemon…. Throw in $0.25/batch for an estimated total of $2.05/batch.
Each ($2.05) batch produces:
(A) Approx 3 pounds of OKARA to add to recipes, plus (B) 14 Cups of Soy Milk = 3 Quarts plus 1 Pint …. Almost shy a gallon
Or
(A) Approx 3 pounds of OKARA, plus (B) 6 Cups of Soy Milk = 1 Quarts plus 1 Pint, and (C) using 8cups of Soy Milk = 18.2 oz or just over 1 lb of tofu
Or
(A) Approx 3 pounds of OKARA, plus (B) using 14 cups of Soy Milk = approx 32 oz 2lbs of tofu.
**** Most bricks in the store come in 8oz, this recipe if used only for making tofu would equal 4 regular size tofu bricks (and with the additional bonus of 3 pounds of Okara, which I may use 1:1 with beef in tacos or meat loaf to stretch a meat/protein dollar) for only $2.00 is worth the work in my book.
Part 1: Making Soy Milk
http://www.justhungry.com/2006/03/milking_the_soy.html
Part 2: Making Tofu
http://www.justhungry.com/2006/03/milking_the_soy_1.html
Part 3: Using Akara
http://www.justhungry.com/2006/04/milking_the_soy.html
1. I use about 1 lb of dried beans and get at least 1 1/2 lbs of extra firm tofu.
2. I strain my okara before heating. I picked that up from a youtube video and it makes it less likely to over flow the pot
3. Please pay close attention once the temperature gets above ~160F. Stir a lot to keep it from rolling over the pot.
4. I dissolve my nigari in another pot and pour the cooked milk in all at once from about 2 feet high. May seem odd, but this caused a very even mixture and I get a very consistent curd when it sets. No uncurdled spots.
5. I sewed my own straining bags and pressing bags from muslin, to fit the containers better.
6. I use the okara to make omlettes that even my kids love.
7. I clean the bags by boiling in water for a couple minutes once everything is done.
8. I have a pressing box (got it as a gift) and use 3 paver bricks as weight. They are wrapped in plastic wrap, and taped shut. I use one brick that was cut short (during my driveway project) first, as it fits in the pressing block
Thanks!
My only suggestion would be to err on the side of too much water/not enough soy flour. The access water will drain out.
Good luck.
thanks
I want to hear anyone succeeded using ready made soy milk from supermarket.
It is art of tofu making. Good things takes time, so I soak soy beans tonight !