Comments on: DIY Hemp Tofu

By: WSmart

WSmart — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 20:08:00 +0000

Wonder
if that tofu press is made out of poly carbonate. They say it’s made
with a theromoplastic, which according to wiki poly carbonate is a
thermoplastic. You have to be careful what you buy today in our
alcohol loving cultures of denial. From what I’ve read, poly
carbonate should be called poly estrogen. Prolly that vitamix is
made with it too. Some would say it doesn’t leach, but I wonder
how popular it would be if it were poly testosterone? Enjoy
ladies.

Bet
that hempfu would make great linked sausage. Italian seasoning on
pizza? I once added hemp nut butter to some tomato soup and the
proteins coagulated into little cheese like bits. Very tasty.

Be real, be sober.

By: Vi Zahajszky

Vi Zahajszky — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 17:05:00 +0000

I am so glad you liked it!! I am sure you could drink the liquid if there is no nigari in it and it’s just hemp and water. I don’t see why not. I didn’t because I just didn’t think to. I have a vitamix, so when I make homemade milks I just blend the seeds or nuts with the water and there is no need to strain – that also makes it much richer and creamier. I have had hemp milk and ice cream bought from a store and I really like it because it’s more neutral tasting and creamier than almond or soy milk. It doesn’t have that beany or nutty taste. So I agree that it can remind one of cow’s milk, since it’s just slightly sweet and creamy. I liked eating the hempfu simply with some sweet soy sauce, like in my recipe, or other sauces. But a veggie burger sounds like a great idea! I am definitely going to try that next. I may also try to add some chives, herbs, or garlic before pressing it too!

By: sehnzen

sehnzen — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 08:23:00 +0000

I followed your receipe without nigari and it worked great. Thank you for your excellent article. I used the hempfu to make mushroom+tofu burgers and it tasted delicious. One question is : do you drink the liquid remaining after straining ? I was surprised how the taste was reminding me cow milk. As the only ingredients are hemp and water I suppose their is nothing unhealthy. But what do you think and did? How did you eat the hempfu?

By: vegimator

vegimator — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:55:58 +0000

I meant to specify, I wonder if straining the milk *before* boiling would reduce fiber. But I’m not sure that would work because from my own experience, everything gets pretty dissolved easily after blending. Anyway, I’m going to try a batch in the next few days with the coagulant and see how it goes.

Let me know if you have success with peanuts! I tried once using the defatted peanut flour from TJ’s but it did not work out well. Maybe with coagulant though.

By: Vi Zahajszky

Vi Zahajszky — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:47:21 +0000

@vegimator I did strain through a cheesecloth on the first try, after boiling (which, as you know, already starts to coagulate the mixture), following a soy tofu recipe but with hemp as the replacement. I am wondering if a more hemp-than-water ration would yield enough solids in the water and still result in coagulation even after straining through cheesecloth. Because my vitamix blends the hemp milk to a smooth milk, with no grit at all, I did the second attempt without straining the coagulated bits out, and instead used the coagulated solid milk as is. And that worked much better. I also used Nutiva – the best price for sure. I will definitely have to try your suggestion and do a pumpkin version! I’d love to try other non-soy beans as well. Perhaps peanuts too!

By: vegimator

vegimator — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:36:38 +0000

I use a TofuXpress and get better results from that then I did with the improvised press I had before. It is definitely still fairly crumbly though. But that is surprising that you were getting hardly any curds before. I have read that protein and fat content is pretty variable among the different hemp varieties which might also be a factor. I buy Nutiva through Amazon which I’ve found to be the best deal. And I have found pumpkin seed to work slightly better than hemp, but then you miss out on the omega 3s.

I wonder if straining the milk through cheesecloth or something would eliminate some of the fiber. It might also strain out less dissolved bits of protein and fat too though. Hmm.

By: Vi Zahajszky

Vi Zahajszky — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:21:19 +0000

@vegimator: It is more crumbly than soy tofu (but not dry), and I think it’s because the fiber is left in. But, as I mentioned, my homemade hemp milk just didn’t have enough solids to coagulate. Was your version that you posted on PPK crumbly too? I am also wondering if perhaps the strength of the press matters. I can only get so much pressure on the block of tofu with cans. A TofuXpress may be the way to go, where I can get a lot more pressure, and so perhaps a firmer block? I’ve also heard that depending on where in the world the hemp was grown, it reacts differently to coagulants – not sure how accurate that it though. Once I try the new press, I will come back to these comments and update!

By: vegimator

vegimator — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 23:31:18 +0000

Woah! This looks great! I’m definitely going to give it a try with some nigari. How close does it come to soy tofu in terms of firmness/crumbliness?

By: Rachel

Rachel — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:01:20 +0000

Cool! I’ve never made my own tofu before but making a non-soy-based version sounds like the perfect excuse to give it a try!