Stinky tofu facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Stinky tofu

Place of origin	China
Region or state	East Asia
Main ingredients	fermented tofu

Stinky tofu (Chinese: 臭豆腐; pinyin: chòu dòufu) is a special Chinese food. It is a type of fermented tofu that has a very strong smell. People usually buy it at night markets or from street food stands. It can be a snack or a side dish.

Traditionally, stinky tofu is made by letting it soak in a special liquid called a brine. This brine contains vegetables and meat. It can ferment, or change, for many months. Today, factories make stinky tofu faster. They marinate fresh tofu in brine for just a day or two. This gives it its unique smell.

How Stinky Tofu Is Made

Making stinky tofu is a bit like making cheese. But there isn't one exact recipe for the tiny living things, called bacteria, that help it ferment. Different places and people have their own ways to make it.

Traditional Ways to Make It

The old way to make stinky tofu uses a special liquid called a brine. This brine is made from fermented milk, vegetables, and meat. Sometimes, people add dried shrimp, green leafy vegetables like amaranth or mustard greens, bamboo shoots, and even Chinese herbs. The tofu soaks in this brine. The fermentation process can take several months.

Modern Factory Methods

Modern factories often make stinky tofu much faster. They use methods to make a lot of it at once. Fresh tofu is soaked in a prepared brine for only one or two days. This quick process mostly adds the smell to the tofu. It doesn't let it ferment completely. This method is often used for tofu that will be fried or boiled.

How Stinky Tofu Is Eaten

Blackened, Hunan-style stinky tofu

Stinky tofu can be eaten in many ways. You can eat it cold, steamed, or stewed. Most often, it is deep-fried until crispy. People usually serve it with chili sauce or soy sauce. The color of stinky tofu can be golden, like the fried kind from Zhejiang. Or it can be black, which is common for Hunan-style stinky tofu.

From far away, the smell of stinky tofu might remind some people of rotten garbage or smelly feet. Some say it tastes like blue cheese. Others compare it to rotten meat. But many people believe that the stronger it smells, the better it tastes!

The History of Stinky Tofu

Stinky tofu in Beijing

There's a cool story about how stinky tofu was invented. A smart person named Wang Zhihe lived during the Qing dynasty in China. He was from Huang Shan in Anhui Province. Wang wanted to pass a big test to get a job in the government. But he didn't pass. So, he stayed in Beijing and sold tofu to make money.

One day, he had a lot of tofu left over that he couldn't sell. He cut the tofu into small squares and put them in a clay jar. After a few days, he opened the jar. The tofu had turned greenish and smelled very, very strong! At first, he thought it tasted awful. But then he tried it again and found it was surprisingly delicious! So, he started selling it in his shop.

Wang Zhihe's stinky tofu became very popular. It was even served in the palace of the Qing Dynasty emperors! Today, this dish is super popular, especially in Taiwan.

Stinky Tofu Around the World

A stinky tofu stall in Keelung, Taiwan

A vendor preparing stinky tofu at Xincheng Night Market, Hualien

Stinky Tofu in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, stinky tofu is a popular street food. You can find it freshly deep-fried at street stalls and outdoor food stands called dai pai dongs. It's often sold in a bag and eaten with hoisin sauce.

Stinky Tofu in China

Stinky tofu is made and eaten in different ways across China. For example, the dried stinky tofu made in Changsha and Shaoxing are made differently. They also taste very different.

• In Changsha, a shop called Huo Gong Dian makes tofu using yellow soybeans soaked in special seasonings.
• The stinky tofu sold in Tianjin is often made in the Nanjing style, which has a milder smell.
• In Shanghai, stinky tofu is fried and sold on the street. It's usually served with a spicy or sweet sauce. It can also be eaten with congee, a type of rice porridge, for breakfast.
• In Chongqing, street stinky tofu is usually fried. People dip it in a mix of coriander leaves, scallions, chili powder, Sichuan pepper and oil. Sometimes, it's even dipped in spicy hot pot soup.
• In Beijing, you can buy stinky tofu in a jar, like a curd.

Changsha-style stinky tofu

Sichuan-style (Málà chòu dòufu) numbing spicy stinky tofu

In Anhui, people love stinky tofu that is very spicy. The spicier it is, the more they enjoy it. Many people believe that stinky tofu was first made in Anhui province. Anhui is also seen as the place where tofu dishes generally began.

Changsha, Hunan Style

Stinky tofu is a famous street snack in Changsha, Hunan. Locals sometimes call it chou ganzi, which means "smelly jerky." Changsha stinky tofu is known for its spicy taste. Unlike Sichuan stinky tofu, the Changsha style has a black, crispy outside. It's made from a brine with winter bamboo shoots, koji, and shiitake mushrooms. When the tofu grows white, hair-like bits on its surface and turns grey, it's ready to be fried. People often add chopped mustard, chili, and shallots on top. Changsha stinky tofu is one of "Hunan Sanbao," or Hunan's three treasures. The others are Xiangtan lotus seeds and Yongfeng chili sauce.

Nanjing, Jiangsu Style

There's a famous stinky tofu in Nanjing called "Gaochun stinky tofu." Its brine is different from the Changsha style. This brine is made from rotten pickles, which gives it a very natural strong smell. Like the Changsha style, it also has a black, crispy outside.

Sichuan Style

In Sichuan, stinky tofu often has a mala flavor. This is a spicy and numbing seasoning made from chilli and Sichuan peppercorns. Sichuan-style stinky tofu is not usually deep-fried. Instead, it's stir-fried and boiled with different spices.

Stinky Tofu in Taiwan

In Taiwan, stinky tofu is very common at night markets. Taiwanese stinky tofu can be fried, steamed, cooked in soup, or barbecued. The fried version is the most common. Shenkeng District in New Taipei is famous for its "Shenkeng Old Street." This street has many restaurants that serve different kinds of Taiwanese stinky tofu.

Fried Stinky Tofu

Fried stinky tofu is the most popular kind you'll find at Taiwanese night markets. It's thought to have a less strong smell than other types. It's almost always served with pickled cabbage and garlic sauce.

Steamed Stinky Tofu

Steamed stinky tofu in Taiwan is considered the strongest-smelling type. It's usually served with pickled cabbage, chili sauce, and garlic sauce.

Stewed Stinky Tofu

Stewed stinky tofu comes in a thick soup. Often, a spicy mala base from Sichuan is used. But the soup base can change. The spicy broth of a mala base is said to help hide the tofu's strong smell and taste.

Barbecued Stinky Tofu

Barbecued stinky tofu is a popular type that might have started in Taipei's Shenkeng District. You can find it in many Taiwanese night markets. People often describe it as having a nutty, smooth inside and a spongy outside. Small cubes of stinky tofu are put on a bamboo stick. Then they are roasted over charcoal with a roasted meat sauce. Because of all the seasonings, the unpleasant smell of barbecued stinky tofu is weaker. This makes it a good choice for people trying stinky tofu for the first time.

Stinky Tofu in the United States

You can also find stinky tofu in special restaurants in some parts of the United States. The ways it's made might be changed a bit to follow food safety rules there.

Images for kids

See also

In Spanish: Tofu maloliente para niños