歡迎光臨高雄市新聞局

Handmade the Natural Way: Meinong's Sun-Dried Tofu Skin

◎English translation: Peng Hsin-yi

◎Photos by Lin Yu-en

　　In October, the sun is in no hurry. It roams leisurely across the land, keeping the weather warm and crisp, creating the perfect conditions for laying out tofu skin to dry. And this is exactly what Mr. Song Sin-fu is doing on this bright autumn day -laying out one sheet of tofu skin after another in his courtyard. There they will stay for the next three days, soaking up sunshine until they have absorbed enough of the heat and turned into the delicious-smelling golden delicacy so sought after by those in the know. Mr. Song's workshop is the only one in Meinong that makes tofu skin this way. Mr. Song told us that it is a handmade product and so cannot be rushed. Nor can it be volume produced, because quality is more important than anything else.

　　Stepping into Mr. Song's factory, one is immediately enveloped by the fragrance of soybeans. Plumes of white steam rise from trays and trays of soy milk, turning the work area into a sauna. This is what Mr. Song has had to endure for the past 22 years. He said summertime is the worst; the baking sun outside and the steam combine to make temperatures inside as high as 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). When asked if he has ever considered giving it up, Mr. Song says his father passed the business down to him, and he will not let it go for anything, especially not when his 86-year-old father is still there to help, laying the tofu skin under the sun. Tofu skin is nothing fancy. It is an everyday food for common people, but it is what his father devoted his lifetime to. Asked if his children are going to take over one day, Mr. Song smiles and says they are still considering, what with the need to start work so early each day and having to endure hot weather. But Mr. Song's face shows much love and understanding.

　　The two Mr. Songs have sustained this demanding business for over 60 years, yet nothing has changed since the day old Mr. Song started it. They take no short cuts, nor do they add anything artificial. The workshop has gone through financial crises, but they have pulled through by taking part-time jobs elsewhere. "The natural way" is a simple philosophy, yet it takes so much effort to uphold. Old Mr. Song firmly believes artificial additives can only do harm to the body, and would rather take a loss than falling in with the trend. But their persistence has been rewarded. As people have become more aware of food safety, business has turned around, even without any advertising.

　　Tofu skin is a staple in Taiwanese home cooking, often used in stir-fries or braised. Yet few know how labor-intensive it is to make it manually. The work starts with preparation; the soybeans need to be soaked overnight. At 3:00 am, when the sky is still dark, work begins. First, Mr. Song makes soy milk; they then filter out residues before pouring the soy milk into big trays. The soy milk must be kept at around 85 degrees Celsius (185 degrees Fahrenheit). In just two to three minutes, a thin film of tofu skin forms over the surface of the soy milk. At this time, you must swiftly cut it loose from the edges of the tray, and nimbly lift it up with just two fingers, inserting a bamboo stick underneath, and pull the whole sheet away from the tray like hanging a towel on a towel rack. The sheets are white and translucent at this point, like a silky curtain hanging in the air. The curtain is pushed in from both sides, and scrunched up in the middle. Mr. Song says that is because tofu skin is brittle when in sheets. The scrunched up texture provides better support as they hang there for the next three days. He checks each piece throughout the drying process, and pulls the folds apart to ensure every part of each sheet is dried through, and turned a light shade of yellow. That is when he knows his work is done.

　　In the Song family, Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve always features a hotpot dinner which symbolizes togetherness. And that hotpot is not complete without tofu skin. Mr. Song said having tofu skin in his New Year's Eve's hot pot always makes him feel fulfilled. It is his ultimate comfort food.

以天然勝出 美濃宋新富的日晒豆皮

◎文／侯雅婷

◎攝影／林育恩

　　十月底高雄的陽光暖洋洋，晒起手工豆皮正好。一片片黃澄澄的豆皮在太陽底下晒個三天，吸納太陽的熱氣，乾燥後豆皮透著豆香，這股內斂的味道，讓老顧客甘願慢慢等。美濃僅有一家，採手工天然日晒豆皮，產製職人宋新富表示，這手工製的產品產量不大也急不得。

　　踏進廠區，瀰漫濃郁的豆香味襲來，盛著豆漿的鐵盤不時冒著豆漿白色的蒸氣，工作區濕度極重，且製作豆皮已22年經驗的宋新富說，做豆皮這行最辛苦的是每到夏季廠區40度的高溫，對製豆皮的工作人員而言是最嚴苛的考驗。當被問起，為什麼沒放棄做豆皮？宋新富說，捨不得父親傳下來的豆皮事業，86歲的父親到現在都還在幫忙晒豆皮的工作，餐桌上常見的豆皮，是父親一輩子的付出。談起下一代是否有意願接棒，宋新富笑著說，孩子們還在考慮，畢竟每天這麼早起，夏天又這麼熱，口氣裏盡是慈父的關愛和寬容。

　　宋新富從父親手上接下製作豆皮的事業，兩代製作豆皮時間超過一甲子，但他們不取巧，不添加人工原料，寧可兼差打工貼補收入，父子始終懷抱著這樣簡單卻不易的堅持 ，只因宋爸爸認為，「這人工的東西吃久了，對身體不好。」這份堅持陪伴他們走過慘澹經營的時期，直到近二、三年，大家越來越重視讓人吃得安心的食材後，宋新富不打廣告的手工豆皮，才開始日益受到肯定。

　　台灣庶民料理常使用豆皮或滷或炒 ，但其實豆皮製作過程極為繁瑣。前一晚須先將豆子泡水，凌晨3點半就得摸黑上工，從磨黃豆開始，濾除黃豆渣後，將豆漿放進鐵盤，豆漿溫度約85度，約莫2～3分鐘，豆漿表面凝結成一層薄膜，形成豆皮，工作人員拿著鐵片俐落地沿著四方型的鐵盤迅速割下，接著以兩指輕輕拉起豆皮，穿進根竹棒，將豆皮像晾毛巾般披掛著，這時的豆皮透著光，煞是好看，之後再把豆皮從左右兩側往中間推，有皺摺的豆皮掛在竹棒上較不易斷裂，且串好的豆皮須日晒三天，過程中宋新富仔細檢查每片豆皮，每片豆皮都得拉開邊緣兩側使其乾燥，等到乾燥豆皮呈現淡黃色澤，整個製作才算完成。

　　每年過年時，宋家吃著象徵團圓的火鍋一定要有豆皮，這時吃著豆皮讓宋新富感到格外踏實。