Bean Curd (豆腐 Doufu)

Bean curd may be justifiably called a great invention in old China.

An ancient work on medicinal herbs mentioned bean curd in these words: “The method of making doufu dates back to Liu An (179-122 B.C.) was a grandson of Liu Bang, founding emperor of the Han Dynasty.

Legend has it that the prince, in his search for a panacea to help him achieve immortality, experimented with soya beans and bittern and, through the chemical reaction, stumbled on the earliest bean curd. That was more than 2,100 years ago.

An analysis of 100grams of bean curd shows that it contains water (85 grams), protein (7.4 grams), fat (3.5 grams ), calcium (277 mg), phosphorus (57 mg) and iron(2.1 mg). As a food of high nutritive value, it has met with widespread acclaim.

Many products can be made with soya beans as the principal material. They include, in addition to bean curd of various styles, dried bean cure, bean milk and its skin, jellied bean curd, bean curd sheets and noodles, and bean milk powder.