Tofu #3

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

cups washed soybeans, preferably a large, low oil variety such as
Vintons (Pinetree Seeds), but any will do. 6 quarts boiling water
Cover beans with water and let soak for a few hours--until the beans,
when split, have flat surfaces and break easily. The will have a pale
color throughout--if there are sunken yellow spots, soak them longer.
This is one of the most important steps! Do not undersoak the beans,
and do not let them ferment (Bubbles rising to the top) or the  results
will not be as good.  Drain the beans.  Bring 6 quart of water to a
boil in one pan or  kettle, and another 16 quarts to boil in a large
deep pan. Turn off  heat. Blend one cup of beans with 1 1/2 cups
boiling water from the  smaller pan until well blended. The resulting
mix will look kind of  like wet cream of wheat. Continue to blend the
beans 1 cup at a time  and add the mix to the water in the large pan.
Stir.  Now you need a "tofu bag."  Old flour sacks work very well. So
do 2  non terrycloth kitchen towels sewn together into a sack. A large
piece of cloth will suffice. Do not use cheesecloth--you need a
tighter weave--something that the point of a straight pin can go
through without piercing a thread, but no looser...  Line a large
colander with the sack (moistened with water) or the  cloth, and place
it on a rack over yet another large pan. (Canners  work great.) Pour
the stuff from the large pan into the sack and  drain, pressing it to
squeeze out all of the soymilk.  You now have soymilk and okara  (the
stuff in the bag). Set the okara  aside or freeze it for later.  Put
the soymilk back on the stove and over med-low heat bring it to a
simmer. This takes awhile, but you don't want to burn it. If you
religiously stir it you can heat it up faster. It will cling to the
pan, and skim over on top just like milk does. Bring it to a  simmering
boil and boil for 7 minutes.  If it gets a good "skim" on  the top,
remove it in one piece with a chopstick. This is called  "Yuba" and is
used in the Orient as a meat substitute.  Fried up in a  little butter
or oil it tastes like chicken skin...  While the soymilk cooks, make up
the coagulant:  2 teaspoons epsom  salts in 1 cup warm water, or 2
tablespoons of nigari (and if you  know of a source for it tell me!) in
1 cup warm water, or 2  tablespoons of lemon juice in 1 cup warm
water... Take the soymilk  off the heat and sprinkle about 1/2 the
coagulant solution gently  over the soymilk. Cut through--do not
stir--the soymilk to distribute  the coagulant.  Let stand for a few
minutes. The curds should begin  to form. Sprinkle 1/2 the remaining
coagulant in the same manner.  Repeat as needed (you may need to mix up
more solution) until you  have white curds in pale yellow whey--no
creaminess left. Now you  need a pressing box (a 6"x8" wooden box with
holes on each surface,  and a removable top and bottom, or a colander
will do ). Place the  box on a rack over a large pan, and line it with
a moistened cloth.  Drain off as much whey as you can from the curds
without disturbing  them too much. Then gently ladle the curds into the
pressing box.  Cover the tofu (that's what you've got in the box!) with
the cloth,  put a board or plate on top and weight it down with a 3-5
pound  weight for 20 minutes. Submerge the cloth wrapped tofu in cool
water,  remove the cloth. Store tofu in water in the refrigerator,
changing  water daily, or freeze it for an interesting texture change.
It takes  awhile, but you will end up with a couple of pounds of the
best tofu  you ever ate, a gallon or more of okara, and a couple
gallons of  whey--all for the cost of 2 cups of soybeans! Whey, btw, is
great  stuff. It's good for your skin, gentle enough to wash babies in
(natural detergent+lecithin), makes a good liquid for bread baking,  is
a natural wood polish, and wonderful fertilizer. If you're still  with
me, I'd suggest you go out and buy "The Book of Tofu," some  beans, and
get cookin! I've got my tofu and okara made. I'm gonna  make soysage
right now--dontcha wish you were here?  FROM: Cissy Bowman  From
Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini

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