Yuba? You betcha!
Yuba is made from the skin that forms on top when soymilk is heated. It’s also known as bean curd skin or tofu skin. It’s usually sold dried or frozen at the Asian grocery store. I’m fortunate enough to be able to get fresh yuba at the local farmer’s market. Fresh yuba. Fresh tofu. Handmade and totally organic. Yes, I’m very spoiled here in the Bay Area.
I made the yuba rolls using the recipe for Homemade Vegetarian Noodle Prawn from The Modern Vegetarian with a few minor changes. As I didn’t have the white radish called for in the recipe, I substituted cooked bamboo shoots instead. And the shape of mine are more like spring rolls (I didn’t do the twist on the end for a tail), then baked in a 350 degree oven for ten minutes on each side or until golden with a lacquered look.
And voilà! You got yourself delicious yuba rolls, way healthier and tastier than the pan-fried version wheeling around on those dim sum carts in Chinese restaurants. They’re also surprisingly easy to make as well. It’s a great, high protein, low carb starter for any Asian meal.
Wow.
Never heard of YUBA.
Very interesting.
What is the texture like?
How about the taste?
The texture of the yuba in the rolls is crisp and just a little bit chewy. It holds up great as a wrapper.
Since it’s made from heating up soymilk, it doesn’t have a strong flavor to it on its own, it has a subtle soybean/soymilk type of taste. Like tofu, it takes on other flavors – I’ve had yuba sheets with sesame as well as spicy seasonings. If you ever run across it, give it a try, it’s very tasty. :-)
You make me hungry. I want some too. Cheers :)
Thanks crystal! You started it with your mouth-watering recipe!
Yuba rolls! cool much healthier substitute than the usual deep fried pastry :)
I have never tried yuba before and am quite intrigued. The rolls look delicious and I like that they are baked. Must try to find yuba! Love the photos, too!
I join the ranks of the intrigued. looks lovely!
Thanks everyone for the nice comments! :-)
Can this be made with frozen, defrosted yuba? I don’t have access to fresh yuba where I live, only frozen… thanks!
I’m guessing it can, I’ve only made it with fresh yuba sheets. But defrosted frozen yuba should work as long as the sheets are large enough to roll. If you give it a try, I would love to hear how it turned out. :-)
I just had my first prepackaged spicy yuba noodles and I’m hooked, so I googled. Glad I found your recipe – I was wondering whether yuba would bake up crispy. I’l try an Indian spiced filling. Glad these worked for you & thank you for the tips!