Tau Foo Fa (Soy Bean Custard)

tau foo fa (soy bean custard), originally uploaded by pearlyn83.

I absolutely LOVE tau foo fa! I used to be able to eat it for 3 meals a day! For those of you who don’t know, tau foo fa is an asian dessert made from soy beans. It’s a very versatile dessert – can be served hot or cold, sweet or savoury. Different asian countries serve it differently – in Malaysia it’s served with white sugar/palm sugar syrup; a friend of mine from China said in her hometown, it’s served with spicy chilli bean sauce; Ryan said he had one in Sydney done Yin and Yang style with black sesame paste; my mum used to take the leftovers and serve with garlic and onion sauce for dinner – see..it’s really versatile and can be served however you want.

Ingredients:

• 300g soy beans
• 2400ml water
• 3 tbsp corn flour
• 1 tsp gypsum powder
• 3/4 bowl water
• Sugar and Palm sugar (gula melaka)
• Pandan leaves

Method:

• Soak soy beans 5-8 hours.
• Blend with water and strain. Bring to boil in  a large pot.
• While the soy bean milk is boiling, mix the corn flour, gypsum powder and 3/4 bowl water together.
  Pour the mixture into a large pot/slow cooker. Wrap the lid with a tea towel.
• When the soy bean milk comes to a boil, pour it into the pot with the gypsum mixture. Cover the lid and leave it to set for 30 minutes.
• In the meantime, prepare the sugar syrup. Bring the white sugar and palm sugar to boil with water and pandan respectively in 2 saucepan till it thickens.
• Uncover the lid and ladle into bowls. Serve with sugar syrup.

Note:

• Try to use a big pot that’s heat proof or that retains as much heat as possible when setting the tau foo fa. I use a slow cooker. If you don’t have one, wrap a big pot with a tea towel and place in a box or something to retain the heat.
• Use a flat ladle when scooping the tau foo fa. My mum got me this special ladle from Malaysia but if you don’t have one try using a turner.