Chinese taufu fa or tofu pudding is a sweet, irresistible dessert that hits the spot anytime and anywhere.
Walk down any street or market, and one can always find soy milk hawkers or street vendors selling both freshly made soy milk and taufu fa.
In this recipe, you will learn how to make the soft, silken pudding at home, but first, here are some notes.
Use homemade soy milk instead of store-bought soy milk. Homemade soy milk tends to be richer. If you’re using use store-bought soy milk, boil it longer and reduce it so it becomes richer and thicker.
To minimise the bubbles that form on the surface of the tofu pudding, skim off the foam and bubbles at the top and pour the soy milk gently into the diluted coagulant.
Last but not least, remember to scrape off the top layer of the tofu pudding before serving.
Ingredients:
- 5 cups homemade rich soy milk
- 1 tablespoon gypsum
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch
- 1/3 cup water
For the ginger syrup:
- 1 piece (5 cm) fresh ginger knob, peeled and pounded
- 226 g rock sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 screwpine, pandan leaf, knotted, optional
Method:
- Make the syrup by boiling the ingredients until the syrup reduces to a thicker consistency. If you make both syrups, reduce the amount by half. Set aside but keep warm.
- In a bowl, mix together the gypsum, starch and water. Stir to combine well.
- Bring the soy milk to a boil. As soon as it boils, skim off the foam and bubbles. Turn off the heat.
- Stir the gypsum mixture and add to a wide and low-rise pot. Pour the soy milk into the pot, at about one foot above the pot. This will make sure that the gypsum mixture distributes well in the soy milk. Do not stir.
- Cover the pot with a kitchen towel and then with the lid. Let the tofu pudding set, for about an hour.
- To serve, use a shallow metal ladle to scrape off the very top layer of the tofu pudding. Discard.
- Transfer the smooth and silken tofu pudding into a serving bowl. Add some warm syrup into the bowl and serve immediately.
This recipe first appeared in Rasa Malaysia.
Low Bee Yinn is a food blogger and cookbook author.