Back
in 2009 I did a review of the TofuXpress a product that has changed the way I eat
tofu and prepare tofu and one that I truly love. But the TofuXpress had and
still has one big problem - its price tag. At $41.95 (nearly $50 with shipping
and handling) it hits the wallet pretty hard for just pressing water out of
tofu, no matter how great of a job it does at it. It’s been nearly 4 years and
nothing new has made its way to the market to compete with the TofuXpress until
now.
Last
year the EZ Tofu Press was introduced as an alternative. Instead of a spring
loaded system like TofuXpress the EZ Tofu Press is two plates anchored by two
large screws and bolts. You simply place your tofu in between the two plates
and adjust the sides to the tension you desire slowly to press the water out of
the tofu. It comes with instructions, that can explain it better than I ever
could (and frankly that I didn’t read past the first few lines). I’m going to
be honest with you. To me, something like a tofu press should be intuitive to
use. And when I opened the box it was about 30 minutes until dinner time and I
just needed to get this tofu pressed, cubed and into the oven quickly so
reading through the directions was unappealing to me. Besides, how hard could
it be to press tofu between two plates? After the first time I used it I
noticed that my tofu was not pressed to a firm, nicely textured block like I’m
used to with the TofuXpress. Instead only a little water was pressed out the
tofu and there were cracks in it from the tension of the plates. Also, my block
was uneven because I was in a hurry and didn’t take the time to make sure that
each side was precisely screwed down the same. By this time my directions were
already in the recycling bin so I shot myself in the foot on this one!
was introduced as an alternative. Instead of a spring
loaded system like TofuXpress the EZ Tofu Press is two plates anchored by two
large screws and bolts. You simply place your tofu in between the two plates
and adjust the sides to the tension you desire slowly to press the water out of
the tofu. It comes with instructions, that can explain it better than I ever
could (and frankly that I didn’t read past the first few lines). I’m going to
be honest with you. To me, something like a tofu press should be intuitive to
use. And when I opened the box it was about 30 minutes until dinner time and I
just needed to get this tofu pressed, cubed and into the oven quickly so
reading through the directions was unappealing to me. Besides, how hard could
it be to press tofu between two plates? After the first time I used it I
noticed that my tofu was not pressed to a firm, nicely textured block like I’m
used to with the TofuXpress. Instead only a little water was pressed out the
tofu and there were cracks in it from the tension of the plates. Also, my block
was uneven because I was in a hurry and didn’t take the time to make sure that
each side was precisely screwed down the same. By this time my directions were
already in the recycling bin so I shot myself in the foot on this one!
On
my second try, I had a bit more time and took care to make sure the sides were
even and increase the tension slowly. I decided to try to do a side by side
comparison of the amount of water removed from each type of tofu press. With
the TofuXpress I was able to get out ½ cup of water from a block of firm tofu
(who knew there was that much water in tofu!) From the EZ Tofu Press I was able
to get out ¼ cup. Once again, I’m sure if I took the time and read through the
directions thoroughly and used the little ruler they enclose in the package I
would have gotten similar results to the TofuXpress. My impatience is probably
the biggest flaw of the EZ Tofu Press. I’ve gotten used to just plopping my
tofu into the TofuXpress, snapping on the top and walking away. Also, I’m not a
fan of having to let the tofu drain over a plate or the sink, it’s just one
more thing for me to clean up and with a 14 month old running around the house I need every second I can squeeze out
of the day. BUT…the fact is the EZ Tofu Press is only $26.99 and if you have an
amazon prime account shipping is free. That makes the EZ Tofu Press half the
price of the TofuXpress, which makes a huge difference. Overall, it’s hard for
me to say one is truly better than the other. I have my personal preference
between the two but the list of pros and cons with both is equally long. If it’s
ease you’re looking for and you have a little extra money lying around then the
TofuXpress is for you, if you don’t mind taking a little extra time to get
everything right and save about $25 then the EZ Tofu Press is for you. Either
way you really can’t go wrong!
I love my TofuXpress because it comes with the marinating lid. I will press tofu overnight, then cut it and toss it back into the container with a marinade and let it sit during the workday. That way I can have very flavorful tofu to cook when I get home. I know the price tag sounds steep, but I'm thankful to no longer have cans falling after plates shift and having to clean up the liquid from a tray/plate.
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed that a product like this even exists! I don't think that i eat enough tofu to buy this yet but i want to start eating it more. I'll keep it on my wish list!
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