mizchef

Posts Tagged ‘homemade soy milk’

We had a soy demo in class last night and I have to say, I was pretty amazed at how easy it is to make homemade soy milk and tofu. Our instructor made both fresh, right in front of us. Both processes took no more than 15 to 20 minutes (after the initial overnight soaking of the soybeans). The resulting products were far superior to store-bought. But, then, isn’t everything homemade better than store-bought?

We had several different tofu and tempeh dishes, including Tofu Teriyaki, Tofu Sour Cream, Poblanos Stuffed with Tempeh and Quinoa, Miso-Glazed Salmon, and Pan-Fried Tempeh (which I dipped in the teriyaki sauce—yum!). Saturday, we get to do more soy and tempeh cooking. Woohoo!

Anyway, if you want to try your hand at making your own tofu, here’s the recipe from the Natural Gourmet Institute.

Homemade Tofu

Equipment
Fine Chinois
Cheesecloth
Wooden tofu mold (or a colander)

Ingredients
2 cups white soybeans, soaked overnight, drained and rinsed
2 tsp nigari* or 1/2 cup lemon juice or 1/2 vinegar

1. Line tofu mold with 2 layers cheesecloth. Set aside. Heat 7 1/2 cups water in 2-gallon pot over medium-high heat.

2. Puree soybeans in batches with 6 cups [total] cold water in blender. add puree to heating water. Stirring constantly, bring pot to a boil.

3. Strain soymilk through fine chinois (or strainer lined with cheesecloth) into a second large pot, pressing out all excess liquid. Discard soy pulp or reserve for later use.

4. Cover strained soymilk, bring back again to boil, and gently simmer uncovered 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat.

5. Dissolve nigari or other solidifier in 1 cup cold water. Add 1/3 of solidifier mixture slowly to hot soymilk, while gently stirring. Cover pot and allow to stand 3 minutes or until milk has separated into soft white curds.

6. Add remaining solidifier in two more batches, stirring each time and covering for 3 minutes. Soymilk should be c0mpletely separated into curds and whey.

7. Ladle bean curd into tofu mold [or colander lined with cheesecloth]; press with 2- or 3-pound weight for 25 to 30 minutes until firm and solid.

*Nigari — Magnesium chloride. Can be purchased at health food stores or specialty food stores.