bean curd

bean curd — noun

1. a soft, white, mild-flavoured food made from soybeans (soya beans) that are grou

1.nounB1
Definition

a soft, white, mild-flavoured food made from soybeans (soya beans) that are ground, cooked with water, and pressed into blocks. It is used in soups, stir-fries, and other dishes, and is a common source of protein in vegetarian cooking.

Example

Wei stir-fried some bean curd with vegetables and soy sauce for a quick dinner.

collocation: stir-fried bean curd

At the Asian market near the hospital, a night-shift nurse bought firm bean curd.

collocation: firm bean curd

Common collocations
  • firm bean curd
  • soft bean curd
  • silken bean curd
  • smoked bean curd
  • block of bean curd
  • cubes of bean curd
  • slices of bean curd
  • stir-fried bean curd
Synonyms
  • tofu

    the far more common term in modern English, borrowed from Japanese; 'bean curd' is older and now less frequent

Usage Note

Bean curd is also very commonly called by its Japanese name, tofu, which is the more frequent term in everyday English. 'Bean curd' tends to appear on restaurant menus and in ingredient lists.

Common Mistakes

I ordered a bean curd for dessert.
I ordered tofu pudding for dessert.
'bean curd' refers to the savoury soy product, not sweet bean-based desserts like douhua (tofu pudding).

Word family

  • tofu
    nounA2
  • bean-curd
    adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Bean curd' and 'tofu' refer to exactly the same food product made from soybeans. 'Tofu' (from Japanese 豆腐) is overwhelmingly the more common term in modern English, used in cookbooks, grocery stores, restaurants, and everyday conversation. 'Bean curd' is an older English descriptive name that still appears on some Western restaurant menus and in ingredient lists, but it is gradually falling out of use. 'Doufu' is the romanization of the original Chinese term (豆腐) and is occasionally seen in Chinese cooking contexts. For most learners, using 'tofu' is the safest and most natural choice in any English-speaking situation.

tofu ↗bean curd ↗doufu

Common collocations

Phrases

  • block of bean curd
  • cubes of bean curd
  • slices of bean curd

Etymology

ChineseJapaneseEnglish

The term 'bean curd' is a literal English translation that first appeared in the 19th century. It describes the food's production process: soybeans are soaked, ground, and boiled to make soy milk, then a coagulant ('curdling' agent) is added to separate the solid curds from the whey, just as in cheese-making. The more common name 'tofu' was borrowed directly from Japanese (豆腐, tōfu), which itself came from Chinese (豆腐, dòufu, literally 'bean-fermented' or 'bean-curdled').