Any Legume Tofu (Zero Waste)
This is an exciting zero-waste update to the Any Legume Tofu I posted around one year ago. Ever since starting to make tofu out of different legumes (for instance, chickpeas, green peas or red lentils), I’ve been bothered by the amount of pulp that was leftover after straining.
Ingredients
- 100 g dried legumes* chickpeas, lentils or peas
- 250 ml water
Instructions
- Soak the legumes in plenty of water overnight or for at least 8 hours.
- The next day, drain the legumes and add them to the jug of a high-speed blender (I use my Vitamix E310) together with 250 ml of water. Then blend for 1 minute on high speed until smooth.
- Pour the mixture into a non-stick frying pan and stir in 1/2 tsp of salt. Bring it to a simmer, then reduce the heat and cook it for 2 to 5 minutes, stirring it constantly with a spatula. The starches will sink to the bottom and stick, so it’s important that you keep stirring to avoid it from burning. Continue cooking until it has formed into a thick paste that doesn’t level out in the pan anymore and holds on to the spatula. If it’s still runny, just cook it a little longer. Once ready, transfer the mixture to a mould and let it set for an hour (ideally in the fridge) before using.
Notes
IMPORTANT: Some raw legumes, especially certain beans, are not safe to consume, because they contain natural toxins as a defense mechanism against wild predators. For most beans, the cooking time in this recipe is NOT enough to break down the toxins. So far, I tested the method in this recipe with chickpeas, red lentils, green peas and olive green lentils, so ideally stick to any of those to be on the safe side. If you’d like to use beans, I’d recommend either adding more water and cooking the paste for at least 20 minutes or following THIS recipe and strain the beans to remove any larger particles that might not cook in time. Always make sure that your tofu has set properly, otherwise, start over instead of eating it anyway.
Storage: Keep refrigerated for 2-3 days.