4 Soy Products Not Typically Consumed By Westerners

[Anonymous]

In America, soybeans are usually made into soy milk, tofu, soy sauces, soybean oil, dairy product alternatives, and meat product alternatives. But there are certain soy products that are just not in the mainstream American supermarket.

1. Soybean Paste

It is unlikely that you will find this stuff in an American supermarket. American supermarkets may have a little aisle for "Asian" cooking, but even then, finding sweet and sour sauce or fried rice mix is more likely than finding soybean paste. If you want to find soybean paste in America, then you have to look for this stuff in an East Asian supermarket in America. Alternatively, you can make your own soybean paste at home out of real soybeans.

2. Grinded Soy Beans

I struggle with finding a good picture of Grinded Soy Beans on Bing and Google, so I just leave this entry without a picture. I am not sure whether this is an actual recipe, or something made up by my Grandma. But I know that soybeans can be grinded up, cooked, and eaten.

In the process of making soymilk, Grandma would drop the water-laden soybeans in the food processor and separate the "milk" from the soybean residue. The soybean residue (let's just call it that) is mixed with spices and stir-fried to make a dish. Then, the dish is served on the table to eat with rice and vegetables/meats/soups.

3. Soymilk Skin

During the process of making soymilk, the top layer of soymilk is lifted and removed. It can be used to make Dried Soymilk Skin, which can be used in soups and dishes. Soymilk Skin can be purchased in sheets (as shown in the picture above) or rolled-up sticks.

4. Soybean Sprouts

You may have heard of alfalfa sprouts. Well, these are soybean sprouts. They are usually served in stir-fried dishes or soups.

[Curmudgeon]

"In America, soybeans are usually made into soy milk, tofu, soy sauces, soybean oil, dairy product alternatives, and meat product alternatives."

Even more than that, by volume, soybeans are usually fed to cattle, or used in industrial processes.

[Cccgala]

Nice Take. :)
I would never hate soybean sprouts because they have this unique taste you can only taste from them.