Terrific Tofu (Cauldron Organic Tofu)

Member Name: flodombey

Product:	Cauldron Organic Tofu
Date:	12/10/09 (51 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Healthy, great for absorbing flavours, cheap

Disadvantages: Bland on its own

Having just returned from a wonderful trip to Thailand with my veggie husband, tofu is now a product I am vastly more familiar with than I was a couple of weeks ago. I eat a lot of meat free products anyway and so the pair of us encountered tofu quite frequently during our trip.

We found, much to our surprise, that we really enjoyed it - we were under the impression it was a very bland and unappetizing foodstuff, however, it would seem we had just been cooking it the wrong way all along!

On our return I looked in my local ASDA for some tofu and this was the only variety that they stocked. A 250g packet is currently on special offer in my local store priced at £1. I belive when it is not on offer it retails for around £1.50 so either way its quite a cheap foodstuff and ideal for filling out a vegetarian meal.

Basically, tofu is made from the curd of soy beans, basically the milk that comes out of them when crushed is compacted and formed into these milky coloured, wobbly textured slabs. You can get firm or silken tofu (according to thai cooking websites) and in general the firm stuff is better for stir fry and pad thai dishes - which is the form we ate it in while out there.

It seems like it is difficult to find the firm stuff over here, I have now checked 3 of the big 4 supermarkets here and can only find this Cauldron version which I believe to be the silken variety (it doesnt actually say anywhere on the packet!) because it is nowhere near as firm as the tofu we ate in Thailand.

So, I have now spent a few weeks tinkering with the tofu (!) and trying to recreate some of our favourite dishes. I have made pad thai and green curry so far with this version and it has performed well in both, absorbing the flavours of the dishes and providing a nice, chunky textured filler in them. I think this is the key - it really does not taste of anything on its own and is intended to be used to fill out a meal as a blank canvas which can be flavoured any which way you choose.

In this Cauldron packet you get a sturdy, plastic bag sealed around a slab of the tofu which is surrounded by milky fluid (much like you would get around a mozzerella ball). The cooking instructions suggest that you pat the tofu dry with kitchen towel once it is removed from the packet and I have found that a lot of fluid comes off the slab but it is well worth doing.

The slab is about an inch thick and is a healthy portion for two people. I cut it into small cubes for the dishes I have made which is very easy given the shape of the block.

We have been very pleased with the results while using this tofu, in both the dishes we have made it has been very nice to eat and we will certainly be buying it again. I have a feeling tofu is going to remain a part of our diet now, half a packet contains only 131 calories and 1.3g of sat fat, so it is a healthy choice too.

Summary: A great veggie option and very flexible to cook with