Chickpea Yogurt & Cultured Tofu

No special yogurt culture and extra equipment is needed for this Chickpea Yogurt & Cultured Tofu. They are simply made from chickpeas and water!

When I started to learn to make my own yogurt and tofu a while back, I got turned away because I didn’t have the right equipment they suggested for making it.

Later, when I became determined not to buy any more yogurt knowing the containers will end up in the landfill, I realized that making my own yogurt and tofu is so simple. I don’t need to use any extra equipment at all.

Ever since, I have been making my own yogurt and tofu with homemade sprouted soy milk for years. It’s so comforting to know that I can do this whenever I want–right in my kitchen.

Besides homemade soy milk, I also make yogurt from all kinds of other plant milk using brown rice rejuvelac.

Recently, a few of my viewers have asked me to share the way I make yogurt and tofu with chickpeas. I was a little bit uncertain at first as I wasn’t really happy with the result. The taste of it was very bland, and I could strongly smell the chickpea.

However, with the same method, I use rejuvelac made from chickpeas. It’s for sure doable and super easy. 

The yogurt tastes better with fruits and sweetener. The tofu has more flavorful, but also is more work. You can definitely use it to create more healthy & tasty dishes.

Ready to make your own Cultured Chickpea Yogurt & Tofu from chickpeas and water? Let me show you how!

Ingredients for making Cultured Chickpea Yogurt & Tofu

Note: I’m showing you how to make it with 1 cup of dried chickpeas, but feel free to adjust the quantity accordingly.

1. 1 cup (240 ml) dried chickpeas 
2. 3 cups (720 ml) filtered water + more for soaking and making rejuvelac

Instructions:

Preparing Rejuvelac:

1. Rinse the chickpeas and soak them in filtered water overnight.
2. The next day, rinse well. Tilt the jar in a container to catch excess water, cover it and let them sprout. It takes about 1 night to see tiny sprouts, but if you like to see them longer–let them sprout for 2 nights. Rinse well each day.
3. When they are sprouted, rinse well again, fill the jar with filtered water and let it ferment for one night.
4. The next morning you should see lots of bubbles in the jar. The water has turned into chickpea rejuvelac. Put it in a glass container and keep it refrigerated, we’ll use it to make Cultured Chickpea Yogurt & Tofu. Note: it lasts over a week if you don’t use it up earlier.
   

   sprouted chickpea

   

   chickpea rejuvelac

Making the Milk:

1. In a blender, blend together the sprouted chickpeas and 3 cups of water until it’s very smooth. Strain it through a cloth bag and squeeze as much milk as you can. 
2. Cook the milk on medium to low heat, stir it constantly as it gets clumpy very easily. It doesn’t take long for the milk to thicken. When it becomes thick with big bubbles, turn the heat off and let it cool for a few minutes.
   

   fresh chickpea milk

Making the Yogurt:

1. Checking the milk temperature, it should be on the warm side. You can simply test it on the back of your hand, if it doesn’t hurt you–it’s fine to use. If you prefer, you can use a thermometer and it should be about 140 °F (60 °C ).
2. When it’s ready, add 3 TBSP (45 ml) of the rejuvelac you made earlier, mix well and let it ferment at room temperature for one night.
3. The next morning, you have chickpea yogurt. It’s still very soft, and the taste is very bland. You can eat it now, but from my experience, it tastes better if you put it in the fridge for another night or two. The texture will get firmer and the taste will be more tangy. Note: it’s not that kind of yogurt to enjoy plainfor me. However, you can make it more flavorful by eating it with fruits and some sweetener. I’m sure you can create your own ways.
   

   plain chickpea yogurt

   

   eat it with fruits and some sweetener

Making the Tofu:

1. Instead of eating it as yogurt, you can turn it into cultured tofu. Put it in tofu mold making sure the mixture reaches all the corners for a nicely formed tofu. The mixture is too soft to press with a heavy weight the same way we do with soy tofu. Simply let it drip the whey out on its own. It takes a few hours, so covering it and leaving it in the fridge overnight is the easiest way to do it.
2. The next morning, you have cultured chickpea tofu. Carefully remove the mold, it’s still very soft but firm enough to handle. You can use it right away, or keep it in the fridge. From my experience, you get more whey coming out in the fridge, and it will get a little bit soggy. So, eating it within 2 days is the best. 
3. Note: this tofu is full of good bacteria, so it’s best to eat it without heating it. However, the taste is very bland (but it has more flavor than the yogurt) I have come up with a tasty sauce to eat with it. I got the idea from the sauce I ate with fried tofu from street vendors in Thailand. It’s sweet, but if you don’t mind eating extra sugar once in a while. Feel free to do the same.
   

   forming the tofu

   

   plain chickpea tofu is very bland

   

   the sweet sauce adds more flavor to it

Making the sweet & sour sauce:

Ingredients:

1. 1 ½ TBSP (17.5 ml) palm sugar Note: you can use maple butter or coconut sugar if you can’t get the same.
2. 1 ½ TBSP (17.5 ml) soy sauce
3. 1 TBSP (15 ml) apple cider vinegar

Instructions:

1. On low heat, mix the palm sugar and soy sauce together. Bring it to a soft boil on low heat, and make sure the sugar dissolves completely. Turn the heat off and let it cool.
2. Add apple cider vinegar, mix well and set it aside.
3. Cut the tofu into bite size pieces, separate them so the sauce can get in. Pour the sauce over and sprinkle on some crushed peanuts. Enjoy!