You must have heard about tofu from your vegan or health conscious friends and you must have sometime or other wondered what this food is all about. Well, tofu is plain and simple processed soybean. Tofu is normally of two types, i.e. (i) silken tofu and (ii) normal tofu. The process of making this food is very much similar to the processing of cheese. First soymilk is extracted, then it curdled and lastly the curds are pressed to remove the water out of it; the result is tofu.

The Harder the Tofu, the Better It Is for Cooking

Between the two types of tofu, the harder version is better for cooking because it has less water content. This hard variety is often considered better because it is easy to cut, mix and fry while the silken one would crumble if handled too much. The soft tofu is also useful for soups, desserts and the like where its softness is an advantage.

When you cook the hard type, you should always try to remove as much water from it as possible. This is because the more water removed the more absorbent it will become and hence, more tastier when cooked in any gravy. When you are working with the hard type, keep in mind that each brand may have a different type and texture. It is a good idea to research a little before settling down to a particular brand. The research will help you identify which brand is good for what type of food.

Some tofu is excellent for hard fry, some for blending and yet some strictly for desserts. This is why you will need some time to orient yourself and learn the properties of some of the varieties available. Once you know which is what, it will be extremely easy to cook this unusual, yet highly healthy food.

This food is often called the meat of the vegans because it is indeed full of protein and other good things that human beings who do not eat meat should have. Normally, the standard size of 8 oz tofu has about 465mg calcium, 36g protein, 330 calories and 20g fat. As you can see, you can get all that you need from this wonder of nature. However, it take time to like it genuinely. You can consume this type of food at least once in a week for any real health benefit.