How to Keep Tofu Fresh

How to Keep Tofu Fresh

Have you bought or made tofu to cook and don't know what to do with the leftovers? Do you want to take advantage of having made a larger amount but don't know how to keep it fresh? Tofu is a food consisting of soybeans, water and a curdling agent, it is considered the perfect meat substitute due to its properties and benefits, therefore, we have to keep it fresh so that it doesn't spoil in a few days and lose its attributes. At OneHowTo we give you some tips on how to keep tofu fresh.

In the fridge

To keep tofu fresh in the fridge is the most widely-used method and is advisable if you want to eat it in a week or two at most. The first step to take depends on whether we have done the tofu ourselves or, on the other hand, if we have bought it already packaged. In the latter case, what we need to do is open the packaging, remove it and get rid of the water. Whether it is homemade or shop-bought, the next step is to put all of the tofu or just a few pieces into a bowl, cover the tofu with water and put it in the fridge straightaway.

To keep tofu moist and fresh we have to change the water every 1 or 2 days; we do this because tofu is very absorbent and moisture prevents the flavor of other foods from affecting it.

In the freezer

Frozen tofu can last up to 3 months. This time, what we are going to do is cut the tofu into cubes or slices and wrap them up depending on the portion sizes that we will need. When we need to thaw them, we will take them out of the refrigerator before cooking and get rid of the excess water. By freezing tofu, though its properties remain intact its texture changes, it is more porous and spongy, similar to that of meat.

Some see this property as an inconvenience and there are those who take advantage of this new characteristic to make, for example, scrambled tofu. When frozen, tofu also turns a brown color, not to be mistaken with the color of spoilt tofu, we will see that the brown color fades when thawing and it will turn back to its usual shade.

Dehydrated

Once the tofu has been thawed, if we want it to last us a few more months, we can dehydrate it. Mould and bacteria that break down food that need water to live, with this drying method, the pathogens can't survive and we can ensure that the tofu will keep. If you have a food dehydrator, you should set it to 60ºC (140ºF) or the minimum possible temperature and if you don't have one, no problem, your oven will do the same thing. Place the tofu on a tray and dry it over a low heat for hours, until it has a leather-like texture. Finally, we store it in a plastic food bag and when we want to eat it, we just have to rehydrate it by covering it with cold water or cooking it in water or broth until it gains the desired texture.

Marinated

Marinating is a method that's very similar to storing it in the fridge except that we replace water with a marinade. Although we can make our marinade however we wish, if it contains acids such as vinegar or lemon, it can keep our tofu fresher for longer and give it a delicious aroma.

For the marinade to absorb it better, drain the tofu as much as possible. We can remove the excess moisture by wrapping the tofu in clean paper napkins and even put a towel round it and a weight on top.

For a good marinade that will keep tofu fresh, we can pour citrus juice, wine or vinegar over it until it is covered. Then, add ½ cup of olive oil or another vegetable oil and last of all, some condiments or spices. Stir it well, cover and put it in the fridge.

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