What Exactly Does Tofu Consist Of?

Tofu is the Japanese term for bean curd. It is a byproduct of soybeans, but it isn’t made from the whole bean in the way traditional soy sauce is made.

Tofu is made from soy milk, and you can think of tofu as the soy equivalent of cheese. Just as cheese is made from coagulated animal milk, tofu is made from coagulated soy milk.

Making tofu starts with soaking dried soybeans overnight until they absorb enough water to double in size. The beans are then mashed and boiled briefly.

The soy milk is then separated from the bean pulp by pressing. Once separated, a coagulant is added to the milk to solidify it — by changing its pH level.

The coagulated soy milk curds are then pressed into their final, solid form. The longer the tofu is pressed, the dryer and firmer it becomes.