BLACK STINKY TOFU: all your questions answered

coming up in today's video not only am I trying black stinky tofu for the first time but I even have a go at making it myself I then finish off a hard day's work with a stinky tofu coffee stay

tuned for all that and more if you visit the city of Changsha the capital city of Hunan Province you may notice a specific smell that follows you pretty much everywhere you go well my friends that

is the smell of stinky tofu and here in Changsha it is famously black [Music] and it's more popular than you could possibly imagine they're a stinky tofu

vendors literally everywhere the one I'm coming across the most is this one here is called Jesus and I wouldn't be exaggerating if I told you there is one every 50 meters so check this out we've

got one store there another store here and down the road there you can see we have another one and most incredibly every single one of these stores that I've seen has a huge

line of people lining up outside of it so obviously people love this snack but why what is it about their stinky tofu that has people coming back time and time again for more where did it come

from what is its Origins and most importantly why is it black well today I'm going to be doing my best to answer all of these questions first up what is it about this black stinky tofu that people love so much

um foreign [Music] [Music] the Temple of the fire god here in Changsha where black stinky tofu can

actually Trace its Origins to over a hundred years ago here I'm lucky enough to meet with Master stinky tofu maker Joel Shuffle who's on the job making some black stinky tofu right now so I

have just entered the room where the stinky tofu is made and guys this the smell in here is intense like I'm usually okay when it comes to smells like I'm familiar with the smell of

stinky tofu but this is just Next Level there's just so much of it it's just such a dense smell I feel like I could like reach out and grab some of that smell and hand it to you on a platter the reason the smell on here is so

strong is because this is where the pots of fermented brine is stored it's this brine here that's responsible for a the signature smell behind stinky tofu and B its signature black color

This is 40 day old Lush way and even though this is a very young brand it's already developed quite a strong whiff to it so it's during this process of fermentation that the brine will develop

its signature smell but before you freak out and get judgy keep in mind that beer yogurt and sauerkraut just to name a few also undergo fermentation before being consumed um

Yes you heard that right this mixture needs to ferment for at least two years until it's officially usable to make stinky tofu and actually the longer the brine ages the more flavorful the

resulting stinky tofu will be you can see this brine here has been minting for over six years and there's also a pot of bride down in the restaurant Below on display behind glass of course that has

been fermenting for a whopping 24 139 days that's 66 years and I've asked you can still use it it can still be used to make stinky tofu I would be very interested to know how strong The Taste

from this dinky tofu actually is okay so you've got your Brian where does the tofu come into it you may be asking the airport depending on the weather the tofu will

soak in the brine from anywhere between four to six hours until it's ready and rinse with water to get off any of that excess Brine and that's that next step is popping it into the deep fryer

and eating it this is so cool to have this opportunity to actually see how it's made never in a million years did I actually think that my dream of learning about the stinky tofu would come true

[Laughter] so guys you gotta shoot your shot I saw my opportunity and I'm going for it I'm gonna try making some of this stinky tofu

okay let's go over here we're gonna put it in um

okay so I have put it in this liquid where I'm going to give it a little wash oh my God [Music]

I'm doing it guys I'm making stinky tofu and I have to say now I can't even notice the smell I think it's just something you adjust to when I first came in the room oh boy it was so strong

but right now I really don't smell anything while eating a [ __ ] wait a dog yeah so if it's something that so many people especially from outside of China turn

their noses up at you know oh stinky tofu it's stinky I don't want to eat it look how much time and effort goes into making it I mean this little tray here it needs at least two years before it's even usable

does that give you any kind of indication to the science that goes into making this product and you know standing with this in my hands I'm so excited to eat it so without further Ado let's head to the restaurant downstairs

and try some of the black stinky tofu we just saw getting made time for the moment I have all been waiting for my stinky tofu my black Changsha style stinky tofu has arrived on my table and

this is a big moment because it's going to be my first ever time trying this black stinky tofu as for the smell look I don't know if it's because I've been in that room upstairs for too long but I

don't feel like this has a smell I've actually learned that in the process of being fried most of the odor producing elements in stinky tofu that arise from the fermentation process actually burn off so it is indeed less whiffy after

deep frying and it's served with a couple of like sides here so here we have some chili sauce and here we have some coriander with some pickled radish

but I've been told that for my first bite I need to have it just as it is and not add any thing so we're just going to appreciate that flavor and taste let's do this guys

[Music] oh when you taste it that smell that we associate with the stinky tofu it really isn't there it's got a crispiness on the outside from that black fried outer

coating and on the inside it's super soft it's not as salty as I was expecting it was going to be a lot of the other stinky tofu I've had before is like quite on the salty side I'd say this has more of

an earthiness to it and I'm loving the crust on the outside from that black kind of outer tofu casing and on the inside it's so soft and actually kind of reminds me of blue cheese a little bit

like yeah um I have to say I'm excited to try it with some of these side additions and I've been instructed you need to open the stinky tofu with your chopsticks and

then put the stuff inside [Music] oh it's quite spicy there yeah go there man that is a whack bag of

flavor there the flavor just explodes in your mouth that chili you've got that crunch from The Pickled uh radish there the coriander gives it some freshness I mean it's so good all I have to say is

I'm glad I had a bite of this original flavor first because after that bite with all of the chili and the pickles and this and the coriander man my taste buds are tingling and I don't think I'll be able to taste anything after this

first ever black stinky tofu check but I have to say I am still very curious to try this famous chain of stinky tofu that I mentioned earlier and see for myself what the fuss is all about and I think this place for real is actually

very tasty there's actually a lady standing in front of me here and she has a hand already full of another brand of black stinky tofu and I had to ask her like why are you standing in this line why are you here if you're already got

your stinky tofu she's like I'm just not satisfied with the sticky tofu because this one is the best so here they actually do the hard work for you your black stinky tofu will come pre-punctured with that chili sauce

pickled radish and coriander already added and here is the finished product he actually did ask me if I want spicy or not spicy so if you're someone who doesn't enjoy spicy food don't worry you can still enjoy this stinky trophy just

ask for it without chili sauce and on top here we have the same pickles and coriander that we had in the place we were just at so let's give it a go I'm going to put a couple of pickles inside because I like when all the flavors

combine First Impressions this one smells a lot garlickier oh yeah that's very spicy very very spicy much more garlickier than the first place for

that reason I probably prefer the tofu we had previously a bit better I personally don't love things that are overly garlicky also I feel like the outside is a bit more crunchier on this one which is an aspect I have to say I

preferred more about this tofu that's super crunchy exterior and almost liquidy insides and you've got to trust me on this guys if you're one of the people that get a bit off put by the smell the stinky tofu puts out when you

walk through like a food Street when you've got this upperclose and personal in front of your nose the only thing that's hitting you is like garlicky salty goodness you have nothing to be afraid of

all of yourself man that was bound to happen sooner or later and it probably doesn't surprise you that a city like Changsha that loves its stinky tofu like it does has taken the concept in some very unique and

creative directions yes this is what you think it is stinky tofu coffee so here it is guys my stinky tofu coffee and holy moly I've never seen anything

like this never did I imagine such a thing could exist and I'm an adventurous eater but this is definitely pushing my limits of what I feel like would go together but you know maybe it's delicious

I don't smell any stinky tofu smell about it I don't know is this is there even stinky tofu in this I don't know let's

try this a piece of stinky tofu oh that's not over that is not stinky tofu that's um it's like yogurt okay well that makes sense there is actually no

stinky tofu yeah there's no stinky tofu in this guys false alarm and I don't know what this is on top actually I'm gonna ask I just went inside and asked and they let me know

that this gray stuff on top is something called jutanthen which is bambooed powdered carbon which I guess is what gives it that gray appearance but watch out because this powdered carbon stuff

will turn your mouth full on growth it's slightly thick on the top but it just tastes like coffee yeah I think it's for the best that there is no actual stinky tofu in this because that would be kind of kind of

funny on that note that's going to bring us to the end of our stinky tofu day here in Changsha I hope I've been able to answer some of your questions I know I've answered a lot of the questions that I had and I hope that one day if

you're someone who maybe has discounted ever trying the stinky trophy because you're scared of it I hope after seeing this video maybe one day you'll give it a go for yourself but anyway that's going to be it from me as always please

don't forget to like this video so more people can see it comment if you feel so inclined and please please please subscribe it would mean the world to me anyway I will see you next week from the beautiful trunch shop bye guys

[Music] thanks