A delicacy in Asian cuisine for over 2,000 years, tofu is now a go-to staple of vegan and health-conscious diets here in the 21st century. Widely regarded as a super-food, tofu is popping up in everything from street-food dishes to the menus of Michelin-starred restaurants. However, it’s still misunderstood as an ingredient and is often labeled bland and boring. In this article, we’ll discover that tofu is anything but bland and, as an ingredient, it can form the basis of all manner of exciting and delicious recipes. 1. The Origins of Tofu Like many of the soy foods that are trending in vegan diets, tofu originated in China. According to legend , its invention was a complete accident. The story goes that over 2,000 years ago, a Chinese cook mistakenly added nigari seaweed to the soybean dish they were preparing, which curdled the soybean milk. The resulting curds were then pressed together, and low and behold, tofu – or doufu – was invented. While the Chinese kept their tofu secret for...