Koya-dofu

Tofu séché (koya-dofu)

What it is

It takes its name from the monastery complex on Mount Kōya, where tofu left out in the winter cold froze, thawed and dried into something that kept a year on a shelf. The ice crystals are the structure: they shoulder the protein aside as they grow, and the sponge they leave behind is the reason the block drinks dashi the way it does.

In the kitchen

Modern blocks need no hot pre-soak: five minutes in warm dashi is enough. Press it gently between the palms rather than wringing it out, and hold the simmer at a bare tremble — a real boil tears the sponge apart.

Goes with

Kombu Dried shiitake (donko) Hon-mirin Soy sauce Carrot Mangetout Egg Chicken

Same species

Chunjang Dark soy sauce Doenjang Douchi Edamame Fermented bean curd

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