Tofu is curdled soy milk pressed into soft white blocks — the protein curd of the soybean (Glycine max), invented in China and a cornerstone of Chinese, Japanese and Korean cooking for the better part of two millennia. It smells faintly beany, nutty and subtly sweet, and tastes almost neutral, which is exactly the point: tofu is a blank canvas that drinks up marinades, broths and sauces. Its character is texture as much as flavour, running from custard-soft silken through pressable firm to a golden, crackling deep-fried skin. Mild, protein-rich and infinitely adaptable, it is one of the world's great vegetable proteins.