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Jimamidofu (Tofu of Peanuts)

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Jimamidofu is an Okinawan speciality, a peanut tofu made from freshly squeezed peanut milk and thickened with one of several types of starches – kudzu starch, rice flour, sweet potato starch or tapioca starch. Jimami means peanuts in Okinawan dialect. It is quite similar to Kyoto’s sesame-based gomadofu, but with two differences. First, jimamidofu is softer and more stretchy in consistency – think mozzarella – which can be attributed to the properties of sweet potato starch. Second, jimamidofu is considered more of a dessert than savoury dish. It is typically served with a sweetened soy sauce or brown sugar syrup and ginger, compared to plain soy sauce with gomadofu. Jimamidofu is cooked in water instead or dashi, hence does not have a savoury undertone like gomadofu.

I got to know this tofu variant through the award-winning eponymous film set in Singapore/Okinawa. It traces the love story of a Singaporean chef, Ryan, and his old flame and food critic, Yuki, in a food-based narrative featuring Singaporean and Okinawan cuisine. Foodie films always make me hungry to try the featured foods, and this is no different, especially since it is a locally produced film!

In this jimamidofu recipe, I followed the guidelines set out in my previous post for gomadofu. I used about 16% peanut butter, 5.5% kudzu starch and 2.8% sweet potato starch (8.3% total starch vs 10% in gomadofu) relative to the amount of water. Roasted peanut butter is not commonly used in jimamidofu but I only had peanut butter on hand and I don’t think it affected the taste of the jimamidofu. With this, why not try out a 5D dining experience with the film Jimami Tofu?

Looking for more Peanut recipes? Check out my:

Berbere Dovi (Pan-African Spicy Vegetable Peanut Stew)
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies (No-Bake, Vegan) (replace walnuts with peanut butter)

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Jimamidofu (Tofu of Peanuts)

An Okinawan specialty tofu of peanuts, thickened with kudzu and sweet potato starch. Serve with brown sugar syrup for a creme caramel-like dessert!

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 10 servings
Author Sabrina Chu

Ingredients

Jimamidofu

  • 28 g (2 3/4 tbsp) kudzu starch
  • 14 g (1 1/2 tbsp) sweet potato starch (substitute tapioca starch or potato starch)
  • 500 g (2 cups) filtered water
  • 84 g (1/2+ cup) raw shelled peanuts, soaked overnight (substitute peanut butter at a pinch)

Sauce and Garnish

  • 60 g (1/4 cup) vegan dashi
  • 1 tbsp tamari
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 3-inch ginger, grated

Instructions

Jimamidofu

  1. In a mixing bowl, dissolve the kudzu and sweet potato starch with a little water to form a slurry. Use the back of a spoon to break up any lumps.

  2. In a blender, blend the soaked peanuts with the remaining water on high speed until smooth. Strain the mixture through a nut milk bag into a heavy-bottom saucepan.

  3. To the mixture in the saucepan, add the starch slurry. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring all the time. After 2 to 3 minutes you will feel the mixture beginning to thicken. At the point reduce the heat to low and cook for another 10-15 minutes, stirring all the time. By the end of the cooking, the mixture should develop a strong elasticity.

  4. Wet a square or rectangular mold with water (this is to keep it from sticking). Pour the mixture into the mold and working quickly as it sets fast, smooth the surface with a spatula. Put 2 to 3 tablespoons of cold water over the surface of the mixture to prevent it from drying out.

  5. Place the mold in the refrigerator to set for at least 3 hours or for as long as over night.

  6. When solidified, unmold and slice jimamidofu into squares. Keep in water until ready to serve.

Sauce and Garnish

  1. In a small saucepan, combine the dashi, tamari, and mirin, and bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from heat, and let the sauce cool to room temperature. Store sauce in the refrigerator until serving.

  2. To serve, place a square of jimamidofu in a small bowl. Spoon a little sauce over the gomadofu and garnish with a grated ginger.

Recipe Notes

Raw version:
Blend 1/2 cup peanuts (soaked overnight) with 1/2 cup filtered water and 1/3 cup prepared Irish moss paste. Pour into a shallow pan and allow to set overnight before slicing.

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Comments

  1. Thanks for posting this!

    I haven’t made your recipe yet, but it’s on my list of dishes to make one day. I’ve been boiling peanuts instead of using peanut butter in dishes because it increases the bioavailable resveratrol and avoids acrylamide, but recently started reading about fermenting them as they are so similar in nutrient profile to soybeans.

    You might be interested in this as it adds to your recipe information:
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168160515300453
    Fermentation of ground raw peanuts in yogurt starter and then heating for at least 10 minutes at 210F (100C) or above will safely remove aflatoxins.
    (article title is “Biotransformation of aflatoxin B1 and aflatoxin G1 in peanut meal by anaerobic solid fermentation of Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus” by authors Chena, Kong, Chi, Shan, and Guan.

    Thanks again,
    Nichole

    Reply

    • Hi Nichole,

      Thank you so much for sharing the interesting information and knowledge. I’ve tried lacto-fermented peanuts (as an addition in sauerkraut but not by itself). I wonder if using a regular probiotic capsule with Streptococous & Lactobacillus spp. would work. Unfortunately in the home set-up, we don’t have a capacity to control all the variables (e.g. anaerobic envrionment, temperature) and carry out tests to assess the results. Still worth trying out!

      Reply

  2. Hello! Thanks for the recipe, i can’t wait to try! I was wondering, do you think it would work with either just flour or glutinous rice flour in stead of both starches? I only have that at home at the moment.. Thanks 🙂
    Alex.

    Reply

    • Hi Alex, I have not tried preparing this with rice flour or sweet (glutinous) rice flour. I would expect glutinous rice flour to give a denser, stickier, and chewy texture like mochi. You might need less glutinous rice flour since it is much stronger than other starches. If you try out, I would love to know how it goes. Thank you!

      Sabrina

      Reply

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