What does push tofu mean?

Pushing tofu is the Tujia word for grinding tofu.

Twenty-five push tofu, this is a line in the children's song when I was a child. Pushing tofu is Tujia language, which means grinding tofu. Even on the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, every household has to grind (grind) tofu. The beans of the Tujia people are all homegrown. Maybe because of the Chinese New Year, they will choose round and large beans as the source material.

The process of Tujia homemade tofu is very particular. First, grind the bean grains on a soil filter into watercress, then soak the watercress in water, and finally grind it finely with a grater to make soy milk. The tofu made in this way is tender, white and especially delicious.

How to make stone-ground handmade tofu:

Step 1: Peel and grind the soybeans. Bring the soybeans grown at home and grind them with a stone mill so that they are easy to peel and at the same time The soybeans will also be broken into several pieces. When grinding the tofu later, it will be slightly tender and white. The key is that the tofu will be easier to grind.

Step 2: Sweep and grind. After grinding the soybeans, use a sorghum broom to sweep them all clean and install them with a dustpan.

Step 3: Peel the soybeans, grind the soybeans, and use a sieve to remove the soybean skins. The skin is used to feed pigs, and the soybean mince and powder are used to make tofu. Then soak it in a bucket. It takes 5 kilograms of soybeans to make a table of tofu in Xiao Wu's family. Put 5 kilograms of soybeans in a bucket and soak them in the same water. Generally, it is soaked overnight, and the tofu is soaked at night first, and then the tofu is ground the next morning.

Step 4: Grind the beans. The soybeans have been soaked in curd overnight and are now being ground into soy milk. First use a container to place under the stone grinder. Two people operate it, one scoops the soybeans and the other pushes the stone grinder. This is a laborious task. The two keep pushing, and it takes about 25-30 minutes to grind a table of tofu.

Step 5: Clean up the soy milk. After grinding the soy milk, use a spoon to put the soy milk into the wooden barrel, and then pour some boiling water to rinse it from above.

Step 6: Boil water. The Xiao Wu family starts boiling water when a table of tofu is about halfway ground. To boil a bucket of water for a table of tofu, use this white bucket.

Step 7: Boil the soy milk in boiling water. Use a ladle to open the water and pour it into the wooden barrel containing the soy milk. Then close the lid and scald the soy milk for about 10 minutes. Use a spoon to stir it.

Step 8. Filter the tofu residue. After blanching the soy milk for about 10 minutes, now it is time to filter the tofu residue. Use a bamboo rack, hang it on the beam where the pot is, and connect a slightly thinner cloth (we call it a baggage) underneath. Once connected, it will resemble the shape of a bag. Some people also use a bag directly to filter. of.

Step 9. Boil the soy milk, then turn the heat back on and bring the soy milk to a boil. At this time, you need to watch carefully and remove the lid as soon as it is fully opened, otherwise it will escape and be wasted. This is based on experience. If there is steam around the pot, it will open.

Step 10. Prepare plaster. You can use raw or cooked plaster. In the past, my mother always cooked it raw with a leiba, but the amount was hard to control, sometimes too much and sometimes too little. Nowadays, they are all cooked and prepared for each table. Just one pack per table. When you buy it, it says how many kilograms of soybeans can be weighed in one pack.

Step 11. Beat the soy milk. After the soy milk is boiled, beat it out with a bucket and put it in it. Usually there are two large buckets of soy milk on one table. The white soy milk is so delicious.

Step 12, solidification, prepare a clean earthen jar, pour the prepared gypsum water into the jar, lift the jar, shake until the gypsum can pass around the jar, and then two people Each person carries a bucket, lifts it up and pours it into the jar together, uses chopsticks to make a cross in the middle, closes the lid, and observes the water condition.

Step 13. Put it in the box. After the water becomes clear and the tofu solidifies into blocks, you can put it in the tofu box.

Step 14, cover the wooden board to press the water, then cover it with a wooden board of the tofu box, press it with your hands to let some water flow out, and then slowly add weight to the wooden board. Press out the water. Stone or wood will do.