Special scent of tofu in hot-spring village

The smelly tofu with a special taste is a traditional dish in Jiangchuan District, central Yunnan’s Yuxi City. In the Wenquan (hot spring) village of Jiangchuan, the tofu is fermented long and evenly, resulting in a strong smell. A single bite on the smelly tofu will make diners immensely delighted. 

In inheriting the traditional tofu-making method, Qi Shangcheng is the master hand of the Wenquan village. Every morning at the market, Qi’s tofu stall is visited by hosts of customers, and a wooden boxful of tofu is quickly sold out. Thanks to his rich experience in tofu making, the tofu tastes great and Qi was nicknamed “oldie Qi of tofu”. Qi said he is making and selling tofu all year around.

“In making the tofu, the hot spring is a must. The key to the ancient method of making smelly tofu lies in smashing beans with traditional grinding stones and heating the soybean milk with a giant iron wok and prolonged wooden fire.” Qi said that due to tiny profit, the number of tofu makers is getting smaller. In the village, only four families are still making tofu, and the Qi's is the only one sticking to the ancient method of tofu making.

The tofu so made tastes good, and this, in the eyes of many, is because of the diverse trace elements from the nature-born hot spring. Qi himself also thinks the hot-spring tofu is totally different from the tofu without using hot spring. Tasting fine and smooth and without a sour smell, the hot-spring tofu gets soft and mellow after being steamed, and it will immediately melt down at the bite. And it seems that such excellence of the hot-spring tofu has been generally recognized by locals.

The smelly tofu is actually the fermented tofu. Another reason why the smelly tofu in the hot-spring village tastes better is that the tofu is thoroughly warmed in the fermentation. Durations for the thorough warmth vary from season to season. In general, it takes five days for tofu to get fermented in autumn and winter, and two days (48 hours) in spring and summer. During the thorough-warmth period, the tofu pieces should be turned around daily one by one, so that the tofu is evenly fermented. As fermentation goes deeper, the tofu tastes sourer and smellier.

“Making tofu is the same as being a man, for both need you to come down to earth, focus on the details and follow the steps, however simple and trivial it seems to be.” This is the motto for Qi, who has taken it part of his life to make tofu. “I feel something is wrong without making tofu for a single day, and I will try my best to pass down to future generations the special ancient craft of making tofu with hot spring,” said Qi.

Source: Yunnan Tourism and Culture Times; Online photos; Trans-editing by Wang Shixue