Knowledge Base > Eric Wynkoop - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)
Eric Wynkoop - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)
This event was on
Tuesday, June 18, 2024 at 2:00 pm Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern
Join Chef Eric Wynkoop in his virtual office as he welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to Ask Anything – from cooking techniques to co… Read More.
Question:
What is the process of freezing tofu? How does it change the final texture? Do you cut the tofu before freezing or after?
— Lilly Boulianne
Answer:
So the process is gonna be to drain the tofu, and the tofu is typically gonna be pressed. And so this is where a firmer style of tofu is gonna be used. So probably a, a medium to a something firmer versus something softer than that. Um, uh, you can, uh, you can sort of manipulate the tofu more easily without having it crumble in your fingers, okay? With these firmer styles of tofu and, um, you wanna expel as much water as you can. Um, now, how does the final, uh, you know, texture change? Uh, as water freezes, it expands, okay? So the water in the tofu is gonna expand and start to push apart, um, the, the structure, okay. Of the tofu. And, um, so, uh, you're typically, I mean, at home, gonna end up with something that's a little more delicate, you know, when you thaw it, um, because of the, the work of the, uh, the water through its freeze thaw cycle. Okay? Um, you can, you can minimize some of that, um, uh, uh, I'll say damage, or maybe I shouldn't say damage, but that, that adverse change to the texture by eliminating as much water as you can, okay? Because that, that is the culprit here. Um, and then do you cut it before or after? You can go either way and just, it depends on what you wanna do and, and what you prefer. Um, and, uh, as I like to say, give it a try and see how you like it. Um, in a process like this, uh, there's gonna be some experimentation required on your part, um, to find the type of tofu, that style of tofu that you like, like to use, and whether you want to cut it before or after sliced or diced, and, uh, just what it is, um, you know, that you're gonna use it in, uh, in the end will be part of that, um, decision making process as well.