Ingredients
- 1 litre Soya Milk (extracted from 1 cup soaked beans, if home-made)
- 2 tbsp Vinegar
Pour the soya milk into a pan and heat it slowly until it starts to boil. Lower the heat so that the milk stays on a constant but slow boil for about five minutes. Make sure to stir the milk continuously so that it doesn’t stick to the pan. After five minutes, slowly add the vinegar while you continue stirring so that the milk curdles uniformly. When it curdles, stop the heat.
Strain the curd through a cloth-covered strainer over a large bowl. The resulting curd will be very loose (but can be used in this form if desired). To make paneer you need to firm it up by draining the water from the curd, so add a weight on top: more water will drain out, the proteins in the soya will bind together and the curd will become more solid and firm. For soft paneer, let the water drain for about 2-4 hours; wait about 6-8 hours if you want it to be firmer.
Once the paneer is set to the desired consistency, put it in a container and cover it completely with water. Store it in the refrigerator and use it within 7 days. Don’t forget to change the water daily so it stays perfectly fresh!
The water that has drained out of the tofu is filled with nutrition, so don’t throw it away! Instead, you can use it in gravy recipes or to make dough. And you can also replace the water in most recipes with this nutritious soya water!