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Greetings Hive foodies! Are you also a plant-based muncher that can’t or won’t eat soy? Or you just like to get creative with different flavors? If so, peanut tofu might shake up your kitchen too. Though I will keep the “How to make peanut tofu” post for another time as I am still perfecting the process, I can already tell you that it’s amazing and fairly easy to make.

Though there are many reasons why we shouldn’t eat soy, for me the main reason has to do with my hormonal health. Although I often say to people that I am allergic to soy as this is the easy explanation, it’s not that I am allergic, though you can call it that. I can eat small quantities of fermented soy products such as soy sauce and miso, unfermented soy such as tofu and edamame are a big no-no for me.

So what happens when I eat unfermented soy? Women have about 15 to 20 milk glands in their breasts. When I eat soy, many of these glands become enlarged and swollen. Very uncomfortable and very painful, believe me. Though the reasons why this is happening are unclear, doctors believe it has something to do with phytoestrogens.

Phytoestrogens are plant-based compounds that mimic the hormone estrogen in the body. They have shown some beneficial effects on menopausal women. When menopause nears, your ovaries make less estrogen, causing troublesome menopausal issues such as hot flashes and night sweats.

Fermenting soybeans, however, has been shown to decrease harmful compounds such as phytic acid and soy isoflavones with estrogenic activity.

Though peanuts contain their fair share of phytoestrogen too, it seems that they contain far less than soybeans and for now, they haven’t caused any hormonal issues. And I have been eating a lot of peanut tofu lately. It’s our family’s latest addiction.

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The other day I gave a block to my friends for them to try and they loved it. You can use it in the same way as you would use normal tofu but it tastes so much better.

Apart from causing these hormonal issues, I also never really liked the taste of tofu. So a win-win situation here!

FUSION FOOD - ASIAN-STYLE TACOS WITH HOMEMADE PEANUT TOFU AND KIMCHI

For this dish, I am combing a typical Mexican food - tacos - with the oriental flavor of a miso marinade and kimchi.

If you want to make your kimchi, find my post about it HERE.

INGREDIENTS (SERVES 2)

1 block of peanut tofu
6 hard shell tacos
Red cabbage, shredded
Lettuce (I used rocket lettuce because this is what we had, plus it’s my favorite lettuce)
Kimchi
Cornstarch

For the marinade

2 tbsp miso paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
1 piece of lemongrass
1 tbsp lime/lemon juice

For the avo sauce

½ avocado
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 clove of garlic
A small piece of ginger (same size as the clove of garlic)
Himalayan pink salt and black pepper to taste
Chili powder to taste
½ tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp cashew cream
1 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS

FYI: Freeze your block of tofu before marinating. though this is optional, it is a trick I have learned from a Chinese friend and excellent cook. It is a way to give the tofu a "meatier" texture. Plus, it absorbs marinades and spices even better.

Cut the block of peanut tofu into cubes. Add the marinade ingredients to a bowl and whisk well. Add the peanut tofu cubes to a container or ziplock bag. Make sure to coat the tofu well. I marinade mine In larger cubes first and then cut them into smaller cubes just before coating and frying. This will prevent the cubes from deintegrating while marinating. Especially when you marinate them for a long time.

Marinade for at least one hour or more. Overnight is best.

Add all avo sauce ingredients to a blender or food processor. Process until smooth. Set Aside.

Cut the tofu cubes into smaller cubes and coat them with cornstarch. This will make them easier to fry and adds to their crispy texture.

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Fill a pot with oil for high heat frying. We used rice bran oil, but refined coconut oil or other neutral-tasting oil for high-heat cooking is fine too.

Fry the peanut tofu cubes until golden and crisp. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel to get rid of the excess oil, and add the crispy tofu pieces to a bowl.

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Heat taco shells in the oven.

To assemble the tacos, I prefer to add all the separate ingredients (red cabbage, lettuce, kimchi, avo sauce, peanut tofu) to separate bowls and put them on the table to let everybody assemble their tacos to their liking. There is no wrong way of stacking all this goodness into a taco shell.

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