Shiyang Vinegar Water Tofu

Shiyang Vinegar Water Tofu

　　Shiyang Town is located 24 kilometers south of Xintian County, bordering Jiahe and Ningyuan counties, and is known as the “Southern Gateway of Xintian.” It is not only a major tobacco-growing town in Xintian County but also the birthplace of vinegar water tofu.

　　Making vinegar water tofu involves seven key processes: selecting ingredients, soaking, grinding, filtering out residue, boiling the soy milk, pressing into shape, and deep-frying.

　　A wooden frame is placed over a large pot, and a piece of gauze is used to squeeze soy milk from finely ground soybean dregs into the pot. Then, vinegar water is added in proportion and carefully stirred each time. Under the high temperature of 85 degrees Celsius, the acid in the vinegar causes the protein in the soy milk to slowly coagulate, gradually forming the early shape of vinegar water tofu. At this stage, the tofu curd can already be eaten. Next, the tofu goes through further processing to take shape. The curd is poured into a shaping mold to remove moisture. This process takes about half an hour and is called “pressing the tofu.”

　　After half an hour of heavy pressing, the tofu curd in the mold has turned into a large, square block of tofu. Then comes the final step in making vinegar water tofu: deep-frying the tofu. Hard work pays off. Golden, fragrant slices of vinegar water tofu are now complete.

　　Although the production process of vinegar water tofu—made using vinegar water as a coagulant—is largely similar to that of regular tofu, its taste is completely different. Its advantage lies in the absence of any sour or astringent aftertaste, and it is firmer than traditional tofu, able to be tossed a foot in the air without breaking. Today, vinegar water tofu is not only a delicious dish served to guests by the people of Shiyang, but also a unique highlight on the dining table.