Adding Tofu to soup

Amateur1

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I have the recipe below for soup and would like to add Tofu. Which type of Tofu is best. How much Tofu should I add? At what point should I add it?

INGREDIENTS​

SCALE1X2X3X
  • 1 and ½ tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon dried mint
  • salt to taste
  • 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
  • 5 cups spinach, chopped
  • 5 cups water
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Optional Topping:​

  • 1 tablespoon coconut yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • A pinch of black pepper, freshly crushed
  • A pinch of red pepper flakes
  1. Saute onion and garlic with olive oil in a large pan over low heat until slightly golden, about 3-4 minutes.

  2. Stir in paprika, cumin, black pepper, dried mint and salt. Cook for one minute, stirring occasionally.
  3. Add in lentils, spinach, water and lemon juice. Cook until everything is mushy, for 30 minutes.
  4. Remove from the heat. Use a hand blender and blend until smooth. Stir and simmer for 2-3 minutes and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust salt and lemon to your liking.
  5. Serve with a swirl of coconut yogurt, chopped parsley, black pepper and red pepper flakes.

NOTES​

Thin the coconut yogurt with a little water and then make the swirl on the soup when serving.
Optional topping ingredients are not included in the nutritional info.
 
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Tofu in soup is not so much a matter of type, since the soup carries its own flavor base. Tofu is more a matter of a textured item in soup. Perhaps, there exists a spicy tofu that will stand out in soup, but that's up to you to choose on that.

Normal tofu is going to do well enough.

On salads, the spicy types of tofu might be more likely to stand out, just like flavored feta cheese would, instead of plain feta.
 
Thanks. Should I add the Tofu at the same time as the spinach or earlier? My habit is to make soup in bulk then freeze. It takes about 5 minutes to reheat the soup from frozen on a hob or about 3 minutes in a microwave. Do I need to give special consideration to the Tofu?
Alternatively, should I just add fresh Tofu each time I heat up some soup?
 
Thanks. Should I add the Tofu at the same time as the spinach or earlier? My habit is to make soup in bulk then freeze. It takes about 5 minutes to reheat the soup from frozen on a hob or about 3 minutes in a microwave. Do I need to give special consideration to the Tofu?
Alternatively, should I just add fresh Tofu each time I heat up some soup?

I would think that tofu can be frozen with no problems, but I've never done this and haven't heard of it ever being done. Keep in mind that tofu is only a bean paste. It is made from soy beans.
 
I'm not a tofu fan but have used it a few times in pad thai, didn't think it added anything but it's traditional. Adding at the end to soup would be my recommendation. Probably not going to survive freezing to well so I'd recommend that your immediate portion to add tofu and leave out for the portion your going to freeze and add it in when you want to use it in the future. imo
 
It really depends on your desired texture. Several Korean soups use soft tofu because it is expected that it will break up a bit in the making of the soup, and it gives a soft, almost egg-like texture to the dish. However there are other dishes (like Chinese vegetarian stir-fry) where tofu may be considered a replacement for meat in which case a firm tofu would be required to withstand being tossed about in a wok.

Where I'm confused is Step 5 in your recipe, because it sounds like this is a creamed/blended soup, so more of a puree. Is the intent for the tofu to add volume here (pre-blending) or to be present as a stand out ingredient (post-blending) in cube or sliced format?
 
Where I'm confused is Step 5 in your recipe, because it sounds like this is a creamed/blended soup, so more of a puree. Is the intent for the tofu to add volume here (pre-blending) or to be present as a stand out ingredient (post-blending) in cube or sliced format?

I thought the same thing.
 
When you don't want to blend the tofu go for a firm tofu, I like smoked tofu and cut it into small cubes. Maybe you should also leave the lentils, because they are the protein source in this dish and the tofu would add to much proteins.
 
It really depends on your desired texture. Several Korean soups use soft tofu because it is expected that it will break up a bit in the making of the soup, and it gives a soft, almost egg-like texture to the dish. However there are other dishes (like Chinese vegetarian stir-fry) where tofu may be considered a replacement for meat in which case a firm tofu would be required to withstand being tossed about in a wok.

Where I'm confused is Step 5 in your recipe, because it sounds like this is a creamed/blended soup, so more of a puree. Is the intent for the tofu to add volume here (pre-blending) or to be present as a stand out ingredient (post-blending) in cube or sliced format?
Yeah, larger chunks of an ingredient isn't something you normally see in a puree. Not something that would have ever cross my mind.
 
I think it will be a stand out ingredient.
Then a firm or extra firm Tofu, sliced or cubed, added after the blending phase. Only problem is: Tofu doesn't have much flavor, it absorbs the flavor of the dish. So either you simmer it with the soup for 10 mins or I like the idea of the crispy tofu laid on top of the soup as you mentioned before.
 
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