Comment on Ah, Beans
taiyang@lemmy.world 6 hours agoI can’t think of any that mimic the process of tofu, given it requires coagulation. The closest is cheese, specifically paneer. Maybe imitations, like with gelatin, but not in the same way as tofu.
So why not? I’m not sure, as you can make a paste from chickpeas (hummus), beans, or lentils. But you kind of need to make a milk out of it, coagulate that liquid, mold and press the mixture. Do those mixtures create milky liquid if cooked? Do they react to chemicals to coagulate into a curd?
Given I never see bean or lentil milk, I think that’s the bottleneck. Nor almond or oat milk tofu, although I bet that’s a safer bet. I think soy just fulfills certain requirements and it’s kind of genius that people even figured out how to make tofu in the first place!
Murse@slrpnk.net 6 hours ago
I fuckin love paneer! I literally have some on the smoker as we speak (bite sized blocks of paneer + pretty much any sauce you’re in the mood for + lowish temp smoke for 90 minutes or so = insanely delicious).
Today’s sauce is a sesame based marinade I found in our local Asian market - was a really good dipper for meats and veggies, so I have high hopes for this batch of paneer!
taiyang@lemmy.world 6 hours ago
Oh that does sound so good! I only ever have it as saag paneer or tikka masala, but smoked and as a snack sounds great in an Asian sauce.
Murse@slrpnk.net 5 hours ago
Can’t go wrong with those! Indian food is some of the best on the planet. I think paneer tikka masala was the first time I had paneer - didn’t have a clue what it was, just know I really liked the chicken version and there was an unfamiliar word next to one of my favorite dishes. Ordered it just out of curiosity. First thought was “oh, it’s tofu” and was a bit disappointed cuz I didn’t care for that squishy texture (it’s grown on me since though… noms…). Took a bite – second thought was “this is the best fucking tofu I’ve ever had!”. Did some digging online and quickly discovered I was wrong on both counts: it’s cheese! …that doesn’t melt… hmmm…
I’ve since experimented a good bit with it and different rubs and marinades on the smoker. Garlic herb and pepper rub is probably my favorite so far. Today’s batch was “Kewpie Deep Roasted Sesame” mixed with some balsamic, and I’d say ranks #2. Terryaki + soy sauce came out decent. BBQ was meh. Pesto was (surprisingly) meh. …and by ‘meh’ I mean “still delicious, but nowhere near its potential, so not gonna bother with that one again”.