Recently a reader asked me how to properly press tofu and why to even bother in the first place. So naturally, I decided that it was time for The Ultimate Guide to Pressing Tofu!!!!!!! (I get WAY too excited by these types of things).
There is the DIY tofu pressing method and there are store-bought tofu presses. Believe it or not, I have never actually used a store-bought tofu press, so I thought that not only would I provide you with this handy dandy guide of the how’s and why’s of pressing tofu, but I would compare different tofu presses to see which one is the champion of tofu presses! (In my opinion anyway).
Here we go! Are you ready for it? Get excited!
Boom! So ok, Sam, what are you talking about, what’s with this tofu pressing nonsense?
Why press tofu?
When I say press tofu, I literally mean pressing tofu! When working with extra-firm tofu, you can press the tofu to squish out as much water as possible. Watery tofu = bland mush. So when you do press water out of tofu, it allows the tofu more room to suck up marinades and helps get the tofu crispier when frying it. Omnomnomn. This technique can help bring your tofu game from good to fantastic!
When to press tofu?
In my recipes, be sure to only press the tofu when I instruct you to. If you press tofu for recipes when not required it can mess with the end result of the dish. When preparing your own recipes, you should only press extra-firm (my preference) or firm tofu. Any other kind of tofu is too soft, and should not be pressed… unless you just want tofu mush, which I’m guessing you don’t.
So off to the tofu races! Check out my video where I compare the tofu presses, and see who the winning tofu press is!
Tah dah!! I hope you enjoyed The Ultimate Tofu Press Off! In case you missed it, or in case you aren’t into watching tofu videos, I have broken down the methods below, with the pros and cons, and where to purchase each press.
The DIY Method
How it works:
Wrap the tofu in a clean dish towel. Balance a cutting board on top of the wrapped tofu, and put something heavy on top of that such as cans or a cast iron skillet.
Pros:
- It’s free! You can do this with stuff you already have lying around the house.
- It takes as little as 15 minutes but you can press as long as you want.
Cons:
- It doesn’t get as much water out of the tofu as a store-bought tofu press does.
- It can be tricky to balance everything, and probably wouldn’t be easy to assemble in the fridge to press the tofu overnight.
EZ Tofu Press
How it works:
The tofu is placed between two strong plastic boards, then you screw down the boards to start compacting the tofu. The screws need to be tightened every couple of minutes over the course of 5 to 15 minutes.
Pros:
- It’s the cheapest store-bought tofu press, currently selling for $19.99 on amazon.com
- It’s the fastest tofu press and takes only 5 to 15 minutes to press tofu.
- When I tested it, it flattened the tofu the most compared to the other pressing methods. (See the video above).
- Adjustable pressure. As you screw it down yourself, and can continue to press the tofu as much or as little as you like.
Cons:
- If you aren’t very gentle (like I wasn’t), it can crack the tofu. If you want the tofu to hold shape (in cubes or slices), the cracks might make the tofu pieces fall apart.
- You have to keep adjusting the press every few minutes.
- You have to put a plate or something underneath to catch the water.
Tofuture
How it works:
There are three pieces to this press. The lid, the strainer, and the water catching container. The tofu is placed in the strainer, then the lid is placed on top. The lid is secured with rubber bands that press the tofu down firmly, then you snap the handles in place which adds even more pressure on the tofu.
Pros:
- Not the cheapest tofu press, but still not too expensive, costing $29.95 on amazon.com.
- This is the only tofu press of the three that comes with a container to catch water. A big plus in my mind as I like things tidy.
- The compact design makes it east to store in the fridge. When you come home from the grocery store, put your tofu in there, and then the tofu will be good to go when you are ready to cook.
- When I did the test comparing them all, it seemed to get the most amount of water out of the tofu, without cracking the tofu (but note, that it did take the longest amount of time).
- Adjustable pressure. With three different notches, you can press the tofu more or less. I originally had the tofu on the first notch, but once it pressed for awhile, I was able to bump it up to the second notch to press the tofu even more.
Cons:
- The rubber bands can be a bit fidgety to secure.
- It takes the longest amount of time to press tofu (2 hours to overnight).
Tofu Ninja
How it works:
The tofu is placed in the container and is pressed down by the 4.5 pound top. Easy peasy.
Pros:
- Beautiful, simple, chrome design. Pretty enough to display on your counter.
- Very simple to use, just place the weighted top on top of the tofu.
- Comes with a lifetime guarantee.
- Takes 15 to 30 minutes to press tofu (although I think it would benefit to press longer).
- Would make a lovely gift.
Cons:
- Requires a plate or something to catch the water.
- Expensive, costing $105.00 on amazon.com.
- The pressure is not adjustable like with the EZ Tofu Press and Tofuture.
My pick:
Tofuture! While I loved playing with all of the presses, the compact design of the Tofuture tofu press won me over. It’s very neat and tidy, dishwasher safe, and simply works well. Now I just pop my tofu in there when I get home from the grocery store, and I find it keeps well for 1 to 3 days. Maybe even longer if you remember to drain off the water and give it a quick rinse once in awhile. The longer the tofu presses, the more I can bump up the pressure, so by the time I get to cooking with the tofu, it is SUPER pressed!
It does take longer to press, however, so if you are looking for a last minute tofu press, one of the other presses might be best as they are faster.
I hope you enjoyed The Ultimate Guide to Pressing Tofu! If you have any questions or I missed anything, feel free to drop me a comment below.
Bon Appetegan!
Sam.
First let me say I love your recipes and your love of tofu & lentils!!!
I love that you included the raw rutes tofu press, I have had my tofu ninja two years. More costly but very tofu “impressive” in person!! Lol! Bottom line is pressing tofu is worth teh effort.
Keep up the great work sam!
Thank you so much, Rachel! Yes, the Tofu Ninja is very pretty! I wish it just came with a little tray to catch the water, then it would have been perfect for me. I do display it on my shelf tho, whereas the other presses are kept in a drawer. Haha. So happy you are enjoying my posts 🙂
About the only thing I use my George Foreman grill for is to press tofu, stack books on top and the water drains into the catch tray. The tofu does get a wavy look but it goes away.
Hahaha! That’s an awesome idea!
I’m a frugal DIY-er myself, and I wonder if you’ve ever tried freezing your tofu? It, of course, requires time and a bit of planning, but if you freeze a package and then let it thaw completely before using, you’ll find that you can just hand-squeeze so much (SO MUCH) water out of it. It gives it an awesome chewy texture and soaks up marinades like crazy.
Yes absolutely, freezing tofu is great. It does give it completely different texture, and I find some people love it, and some people hate it. Definitely worth a try for anyone that hasn’t tested it out yet. Thanks for sharing, Marsha!
This video was so helpful! I didn’t realize how much pressing mattered (I mean, I did it, but kind of rushed it along)…but after watching, I bought the EZ Tofu Press, and I LOVE IT! No more wasted paper towels or annoying cheesecloth to try and rinse off w/bits of tofu stuck in it. This is simple, affordable, and it really works! My husband has always been so-so on tofu, but ate all the marinated tofu I made with the press in about 2 minutes! Thanks!!
That’s perfect!!! So happy the video helped and that you now have your tofu game on point!! Woot 🙂
I love my Tofu Express! I appreciate your demonstration of other products and although I wanted to love Tofu Ninja because it so attractive, but I like having a container that catches the liquid. keep the videos coming – they are a lot of fun!
Thanks so much, Joanne! Glad you enjoyed the videos, I’m working on more as we speak!
This is a great post and the type i’ll send to my friends when they ask those basic questions that need an in depth answer.
My mom and I collected flat grey stones on the beach about 20 years ago to press our tofu with. I have hers now on the counter with mine.
Awww lovely story! Glad you enjoyed the post 🙂
I have an EZ tofu press and I get those same cracks! I never thought of it as user error, but now that you mention it, I’m pretty aggressive with the knobs in an effort to get it to drain more quickly. I mean, who has 15 minutes? I need tofu NOW, not 15 minutes from now.
I did look at the instructions, and it said some cracking was natural, so I guess that’s part of the press. However, I do think I went a little crazy. I bet if I tightened it slowly over half an hour it would have been a lot closer to the other tofus. 🙂
I’m an EZ TOFU PRESS kind of guy. Love the design. It does the job and is a good price.
Maark
Perfect! It is a super simple design and very affordable. 🙂
Thank you, Sam––so helpful! Unfortunately, I guess because Canadians don’t deserve anything good, the only one of those presses (including the Tofu Express) available on Amazon.ca is the EZ Tofu Press––for $69 (not including taxes and shipping)! I will sadly be using the kitchen towel–cast iron pan method after all.
Hi Erin, I’ve reached out to all three brands to ask if they are for sale in Canada somewhere. I will let you know what they say! 🙂
I love my Tofu Express. had it for years now and it works great. Uses a heavy spring to press the tofu and it doesn’t crack the tofu at all. No plate required… all the liquid is in the container. Watching all those other presses, I would say my TofuExpress is much easier to use and gets better results.
Great to hear! I should get my hands on one of them as well!
Maureen – I didn’t see your post, before I commented, but I agree!
If you wanted to go all America’s Test Kitchen (or, I guess in your case, Canada’s Test Kitchen), you could weigh the blocks of tofu before and after pressing to see what percentage of water is expelled. For even more accurate results, press each block for the same amount of time.
For small amounts of tofu (say an ounce or less, for adding to an omelet or whatever), I’ve found wrapping a thumb-sized piece in a paper towel (like you did with the dishtowel for a full block in the video) and pressing gently for about a moment works just fine.
Oh yeah! Weighing the blocks would have been a great idea. I had considered measuring the water that comes out, but you couldn’t compare it to the DIY method so I decided against it. I didn’t want to press them for the same amount of time because that would be ignoring the instructions, and I think to fairly test a tool you have to accurately follow the instructions it comes with. Yes, any of these pressing methods would work well with smaller pieces of tofu as well.
I let tofu sit in boiling salted water for about 15 minutes before. Helps make it crispy. Then cover in cloth and I lay a heavy item on top to drain the moisture out. Presses seem useful but I only eat tofu 1-2 per month so an extra gadget is a bit silly. Check out Asian Tofu by Andrea Nguyen.
Yeah, if you are only eating tofu occasionally, I don;t think they are necessary. For me, I have it at least once a week, so I am excited to have a tofu press 🙂
As an extra tip for the DIY method, using textbooks on top of a cutting board works really well!
Or cookbooks I bet!
HA! I loved this 😀 I’ve been doing the DIY method forever (although I do have a Tofuture press on my wishlist!). It’s kind of an adventure to balance the most various items on top of a tower of the “bottom plate – tofu – top plate” pressing sandwich 🙂 My go-to items are bean cans or packets of rice and I put this awkward tower in the skink just in case everything falls over…
Hahaha! I have definitely had my DIY tofu pressing tower come crashing down before. These presses are definitely safer for that reason! Haha
TofuXpress!
Haha! I keep getting comments about that one, I should have tried that as well!