Food Trivia Question
TRIVIA QUESTION: A popular food in Chinese and Japanese cooking, I have gained a reputation for being extremely nutritious, and rich in proteins. There is some dispute about my origins. It's possible Mongols introduced the technique for making me - similar to making cheese - to northern China during the Han dynasty (206 BC to 220 AD). However, there is no doubt that the Chinese, from Emperors to peasants, were enjoying me by the 10th century AD. Despite being invented in China, it is my Japanese name for which I am known worldwide. Although I didn't become popular in the west until this century, early visitors to China were quick to see my possibilities. What am I?
TRIVIA ANSWER: Tofu. Now called dou fu in China, tofu is the Japanese
adaptation of its original Chinese name, tou-fu. It's hard to exagerate the importance of
tofu in Asian cooking. It is available in a variety of forms - fresh, dried, fermented or
pickled - with several basic kinds, from silken to soft, as well as dried bean curd
sheets. Benjamin Franklin learned of the making of tofu from soybeans - which he describes
in a letter as a type of cheese made from "Chinese caravances" - and was
interested enough to send a sample of soybeans home to a friend in America. However, the
first mention of tofu from the Western world comes from Friar Domingo Navarette, who wrote
about it in 1665, after spending several years in China.
Recipe
Mapo Dofu
Feature: Terrific
Tofu
Feature: Bean Curd Bounty
