History

Yudofu traces to the Zen monastic kitchens of Nanzen-ji and Daitoku-ji in Kyoto, where vegetarian shojin-ryori made tofu the centrepiece of every meal. Sohonke Yudofu Okutan has been serving the dish at Nanzen-ji's gate since 1635, making it one of Japan's oldest continuously operating restaurants. The Kyoto-style preparation, using soft silken tofu in a clear kombu broth, became the canonical form against which Tokyo's harder cotton-tofu variants are still compared.

Common allergens: Soy

Make it at home

Yield 2Hands-on 15 minTotal 30 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 400g silken tofu, cut into 4cm cubes
  • 10g kombu kelp, one strip
  • 600ml cold water
  • 60ml light soy sauce, 30ml mirin, 15g katsuobushi for the dipping sauce
  • Grated ginger, sliced scallions, shaved katsuobushi to serve

Method

  1. Cold-soak the kombu in 600ml water in a clay pot or donabe for 30 minutes.
  2. For the dipping sauce, combine soy, mirin and 100ml of the kombu water, bring to a simmer, add katsuobushi, steep for 5 minutes and strain.
  3. Heat the kombu pot on a tabletop burner to a gentle 80C; do not boil.
  4. Add the tofu cubes when the broth shows steam; warm for 3 to 4 minutes until the centre is hot.
  5. Lift each cube with a slotted spoon to small bowls, ladle a spoon of dipping sauce, top with ginger, scallions and katsuobushi.
  6. Eat hot; refill the pot with tofu as you go.

Tip from the editors. Never let the broth boil; you want silken curd, not rubbery cubes. Stop the heat the moment the surface trembles.

Where to eat yudofu

Yudofu in Kyoto

Nanzenji Junsei ★ 4.3

Japanese Tofu¥¥¥northern-higashiyamaDaily 11:00-15:30 17:00-21:30

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.

Signature: Yudofu, Yuba, Tofu kaiseki

Order: Yudofu Gozen course with simmered Kyoto vegetables and tempura

Tip: Book the garden-side tatami pavilion; walk-ins are turned away in foliage season.

Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8437, Japan Book →

Nanzenji Sando Kikusui ★ 4.4

Japanese Tofu¥¥¥sakyo11:00-17:00 last order 16:15. Closed Thursday

Nanzenji Sando Kikusui in Sakyo in Kyoto is a sukiya inn near Nanzenji with a Jihei Ogawa garden, yudofu kaiseki featuring Hattori tofu, seasonal courses.

Signature: Yudofu, Dengaku

Order: Yudofu set with dengaku miso-glazed tofu skewers

Tip: Closes Thursdays. Aim for the 12:30 sitting before the temple-touring crowd lands.

31 Nanzenji Fukuchicho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8435, Japan

Toseian ★ 4.2

Japanese Tofu¥¥kamigyo-nishijin11:30-14:00 last order 13:30; 17:00-21:00 last order 20:00. Closed Mon and Thu

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.

Signature: Yudofu, Yuba, Matsu Gozen set

Order: Matsu Gozen set: yudofu, yuba-sashimi and seasonal Kyo-yasai

Tip: Closed Mondays and Thursdays. Two-minute walk from the Omiya Nakauri bus stop.

Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto 602-8378, Japan

Tousuiro Kiyamachi ★ 4.4

Japanese Tofu¥¥¥pontochoMon-Sat 11:30-15:00 17:00-22:00; Sun 11:45-15:00 17:00-21:30

Tofu-kaiseki on a Kamogawa riverside terrace, hidden down a narrow Kiyamachi alley in a preserved Taisho-era townhouse just steps from Pontocho.

Signature: Tofu kaiseki, Yuba sashimi, Yu-dofu

Order: Eight-course tofu kaiseki with yuba sashimi and warmed soy-milk pots

Tip: Book a tatami room on the riverside for kawayuka decking from mid-May to September.

Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto 604-8014, Japan Book →

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