Onsen Yudofu, or tofu boiled in hot spring water, is a local specialty of Ureshino Onsen which is selected as one of Japan’s three great hot spring towns for beautiful skin. This product was brought to life over 30 years ago with hopes to allow more people to easily enjoy the taste of the popular morning dish served at Japanese ryokan inns at home. The set comes with tofu, special water made up of the same ingredients as the Ureshino’s hot spring water, sesame sauce and ponzu sauce (soy-based sauce with citrus flavor). As you cook the tofu in hot spring water instead of normal water, it starts melting making the soup milky white while the tofu’s texture becomes extremely smooth and soft on the palate, which goes well with sesame sauce or ponzu. You can enjoy it in three ways at a time: After eating the tofu, the soup is perfect for making soy milk hot pot (tonyu nabe), then the soup left in the pot can be used to make zosui, Japanese rice porridge. You can even make yuba, or soy milk skin, which is the film that forms on top of moderately boiled soy milk.
Tofu is 100% made with soybeans produced in Saga Prefecture, which is one of the largest producing areas. The company’s directly-operated restaurant in Ureshino Onsen receives many customers who visit from afar to try the Onsen Yudofu set menu. In addition, the company also runs a café in Fukuoka where Onsen Yudofu arranged in different styles such as sundubu jjigae (Korean spicy soft tofu stew) and clam chowder soup are served. The company believes that Onsen Yudofu can draw more attention going forward as plant-based diet is on the rise around the globe today.