History
Yuba arrived in Kyoto from Song China in the 12th century with the same Buddhist monks who introduced matcha and shojin-ryori. The Higashiyama tofu houses around Nanzen-ji codified yuba-making, lifting the surface skin off heated soymilk one sheet at a time. The dish anchors every shojin-ryori menu in the city; fresh yuba sashimi (eaten with soy and a touch of wasabi) and yuba rolls in dashi are the two canonical preparations. Sohonke Yudofu Okutan has served yuba since 1635.
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Common allergens: Soy
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 400ml unsweetened soymilk (the highest-quality you can find)
- Wide shallow pan
- Wooden chopsticks for lifting
- Light soy sauce, wasabi, dashi for serving
Method
- Pour the soymilk into a wide, shallow pan; the pan should be wider than tall to maximise surface area.
- Heat the soymilk gently over low heat to 80C; do not let it boil.
- After 3-4 minutes a thin skin will form on the surface; lift one edge with chopsticks and drape the sheet across the pan rim.
- Continue for 6-8 more sheets, each forming in 2-3 minutes; collect in a stack.
- Serve fresh yuba sheets folded on a small plate as sashimi with soy and wasabi.
- For a hot dish, fold the yuba sheets into rolls and warm briefly in a kombu dashi with a splash of mirin and light soy.
Tip from the editors. The lower the heat, the better the skin; 80C is the sweet spot, boiling soymilk gives you a cloud, not a sheet.
Where to eat yuba
Yuba in Kyoto
Nanzenji Junsei ★ 4.3
A long-running garden-side yudofu room beside Nanzen-ji, set on a 1,200-tsubo strolling-garden plot in Kyoto that changes with every season.
OrderYudofu Gozen course with simmered Kyoto vegetables and tempura
TipBook the garden-side tatami pavilion; walk-ins are turned away in foliage season.
Toseian ★ 4.2
A Nishijin yudofu room set in a former silk-warehouse machiya, opened in the 1970s. Quiet, courtyard-view tatami; locals know the Matsu Gozen set.
OrderMatsu Gozen set: yudofu, yuba-sashimi and seasonal Kyo-yasai
TipClosed Mondays and Thursdays. Two-minute walk from the Omiya Nakauri bus stop.
Tousuiro Kiyamachi ★ 4.4
Tofu-kaiseki on a Kamogawa riverside terrace, hidden down a narrow Kiyamachi alley in a preserved Taisho-era townhouse just steps from Pontocho.
OrderEight-course tofu kaiseki with yuba sashimi and warmed soy-milk pots
TipBook a tatami room on the riverside for kawayuka decking from mid-May to September.
Shigetsu ★ 4.5
Bib Gourmand-listed shojin-ryori inside Tenryu-ji's precinct in Arashiyama. Three-course set lunches eaten facing the temple's Sogen garden.
OrderYuki shojin set with the temple's signature sesame tofu
TipReservation required for parties of two or more, at least three days ahead. The ¥500 garden entry is separate.
Fuka Nishiki ★ 4.0
Fu Ka's yuba and fu skewer stand at Nishiki Market in Kyoto. Soybean-skin and wheat-gluten skewers in dashi, gluten-free yuba options at the same counter.
TryYuba and fu skewers
More cities are in research. Want yuba covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.