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In Western culture, tofu (as it's pronounced in Japanese) often gets a bad rap as the vegetarian mock meat in the form of Thanksgiving's Tofurkey, Tofu Pups (a.k.a. hot dogs), and other highly processed meat analogs. When Chinese-style doufu (in Mandarin, literally 'bean curd') products are translated in some packaging as 'Old Inebriation Bean Curd Recipe', it's understandable why first-timers might not be so keen to experiment. It's also easy to overlook bean curd; nothing says bland like a white, mushy cube, but it is precisely this texture—its sponge-like ability to soak up any flavour—that makes bean curd so celebrated in Chinese cooking.

There‘s even an annual Bean Curd Festival held every September 15 in Huainan City of Anhui Province. The date was chosen after the birthday of prince Liu An (179-122 B.C.), known as the 'grandfather of bean curd' after allegedly developing it in his search for a substance to achieve immortality. Though there is little evidence to support the legend, it is believed that doufu was likely discovered accidentally when sea salt was added to cooked soy beans, causing it to curd. Traditionally, a natural sea water precipitate is used to solidify doufu, while modern manufacturers use calcium sulfate or magnesium chloride. The dried soy beans are soaked, then mashed and

mixed with water to make soy milk. I recall a scene from an old kung fu movie in which Jackie Chan's American friend is skeptical about fermented bean curd until he explains to her that it's "Chinese cheese." In fact, bean curd is made by coagulating the protein from soy milk, just as cheese is from milk. After being boiled and coagulated, the resulting curd is left to set and drain. The water content determines the texture and type of tofu, maintaining moisture for softness, draining for firmness or removing almost all moisture to create pressed doufu. The firmer the doufu, the higher the nutrient content.

An excellent source of protein, bean curd contains all the essential amino acids and is also cholesterol free, lactose free, and lower in saturated fats and sodium than meat. With a reported 95% absorption rate when digested, you don't need to eat much doufu to redeem the purported health benefits, which include everything from helping prevent certain cancers to improving concentration. New kinds of doufu are being developed by mixing fruits and vegetables in the processing, adding even more nutrients and a little colour.

Soy bean sprouts benefit from being cooked as their high levels of protein are generally only digestible after processing the beans in various ways. Stroll through any of Qingdao's supermarkets and you will find an overwhelming variety of fried, smoked, marinated, pressed, fermented, frozen, dried or ready-to-eat bean curd products. It can also be found in all forms of street food, whether

Chinese CheeseIn deep with bean curd Vesper Stockwell Photos © Vesper Stockwell

wrapped at a tasty bean curd 'burrito' stand in Taidong or wafting from a stinky doufu (臭豆腐, chòu dòufù) joint in Jimo Lu. In restaurant fare, perhaps one of the best known bean curd dishes is mápó dòufù (麻婆豆腐), a quintessential Sichuan-style dish that literally translates to 'pockmarked grandmother's doufu.' Don't assume a doufu dish is vegetarian, as many are still flavoured with ground pork or dried shrimp, ingredients which aren't always specified on the menu. When buying from a supermarket or street vendor, next to the trays of regular doufu, vegetarians should also be weary of the port colored bricks that are deceptively called xuě dòufù (血豆腐); they're actually congealed pig or duck blood.

With so many varieties and a history stretching back some 5,000 years, it's not surprising to find that bean curd has worked its way into numerous sayings and slights in the Chinese language. A nagging wife might be redeemed by having a sharp tongue but a soft heart, literally 'a knife mouth and a bean curd heart' (刀子嘴, 豆腐心, dāozi zuĭ, dòufù xīn). Although, she may just as easily suffer the unfortunate comparison of older men to blossoming flowers versus older women to bean curd dregs (男人三十一枝花, 女人三十豆腐渣, nánrén sānshí yī zhī huā, nŭrén sānshí dòufù

zhā). Never underestimate bean curd; it can even be used to fight corruption, as illustrated in the writing on the wall along Qingdao's Shantou Lu where a sprig of green onion and two plates of white bean curd are drawn next to the phrase "一清二白" (yī qīng èr bái), which translates to 'one clear (qīng is also homophonous with green), two whites.' Just as there's no mistaking the two distinct colors of these ingredients when combined, the saying advocates the idea that people should have clear, transparent relations, no shady connections. Perhaps this would help prevent a 'bean dregs project' (豆腐渣工程, dòufù zhā gōngchéng), a construction project using shoddy materials.

In the same way that eating vinegar (吃醋, chī cù) can metaphorically mean being jealous, and eating bitter (吃苦, chī kŭ) to bearing hardship, eating doufu (吃豆腐, chī dòufù) harbours strong sexual innuendo. The second meaning is derived from an old custom in which attendants were traditionally served doufu in a post-funeral meal. Occasionally, freeloaders would also sneak in, helping themselves to the free bean curd. Over time it's developed to mean taking advantage of someone, usually a man flirting with or groping a woman in an unwelcome sense, and in some circles a euphemism for certain, ahem, oral proclivities. So the next time someone asks you with a sly smile whether or not you like to 'eat doufu,' you can smile back and confound them by replying, "No, I'm a vegetarian."

Special thanks to Gai Cuijie and Sonya Shao.

a nagging wife might have a sharp tongue but a bean curd heart

Soft bean curd (嫩豆腐, nèn dòufŭ)

Soybean sprouts (黄豆芽, huángdòuyá) Pressed bean curd (豆腐干, dòufŭ gān)

Bean curd puffs (豆腐泡, dòufŭ pào) Bean curd skin (豆腐皮, dòufŭ pí)