Tofu in Japanese cuisine

Cheap, versatile, delicious!

Tofu is an extremely versatile ingredient, much appreciated by the Japanese and often used in their culinary specialties. Not only does it come in many different forms, but it also lends itself well to all sorts of flavors. It is, of course, also a common substitute for meat. During a visit to Japan it's likely that you'll see tofu served in a variety of ways.

Cold tofu, fried tofu

Tofu-based specialties can come in surprising forms for those new to Japanese cuisine: it's often served cold, for example, as in hiyayakko, a dish where silken tofu is enjoyed in its simplest form, a cube seasoned only with a little soy sauce, wasabi or green onion.

Related : Wasabi

For another type of tofu, try iburidofu, a tofu that tastes a bit like cheese! It's a firmer tofu, with a stronger taste since it is pressed and more importantly, smoked.

Hiyayakko

Hiyayakko, chilled tofu usually served with soy sauce, bonito fish flakes and green onion

edsel little cc

Among the uses of fried tofu, there is aburaage, made by cutting very thin slices of tofu and frying them. These sheets of tofu are used in inari-zushi or the famous kitsune udon.

Related: Udon

A last example of fried tofu is agedashidofu. This dish is very popular in izakaya in Japan, or served as a snack or starter in restaurants: it's crispy fried tofu cubes, served in a tsuyu (dashi and soy-based) sauce and topped with grated radish, green onions and dried bonito flakes. Sort of like a hot, deep fried version of hiyayakko.

Bowl of udon with a slice of lightly sweetened fried tofu on top.

OiMax

Going vegetarian: with tofu, it's easy!

Tofu appears regularly at the table of Buddhist monks, who follow a strictly vegetarian diet and as a result have developed their own cuisine called shojin ryori. Tofu provides protein and energy that would have otherwise come from meat. The monks of Mount Koya developed their own tofu recipe, koyadofu, which consists of frozen fried tofu, then thawed, which gives it an absorbent spongy texture. It can then be used as desired in broths, or in sauce with vegetables. This is a good example of tofu used as a meat substitute.

Shojin Ryori dinner served in a Buddhist temple

Shojin Ryori

Shojin ryori is often served in round containers

Masahiko Satoh

Another traditional vegetarian recipe is yuba or "tofu skin". This is the skin that forms after boiling soy milk, which is then dried. Even if yuba isn't actually tofu (it doesn't use the same manufacturing process), it's often called tofu because it can have similar texture and taste characteristics. Yuba is popular in the Nikko region and found in all kinds of sauces.


To read : Being vegetarian in Japan

A roll of yuba

A roll of yuba

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