Local Tofu

Did you know that most Tofu manufactured in the US is made with genetically modified soybeans? This also leads to the increased needs for extra pesticides and fertilizers during their farming. Similar to the artisinal cheese movement, there is a growing surge of artisnal tofu producers who use organic and locally sourced soybeans to make small batches of preservative free, fresh tofu.

Image Credit: photo credit: jonathan mcintosh

Here in Chicago, two such producers are Pheonix Beans and Tiny Greens, which acquires its organic soybeans from Ackerman Farms in Mortn IL. While Phoenix Beans makes about 1200 blocks of tofu a day, Tiny Greens can make 64. Both are available at local farmers’ markets and over 70% of the restaurants in Chinatown in Chicago use Phoenix Bean’s fresh tofu.

Find them at the Chicago Green City Market and at the Andersonville Farmer’s Market