Stinky Tofu

A long, long time ago, in the streets of Beijing, there was a magical tofu shop.

The owner of the shop was named Wang Zhihe, and he was the one who invented stinky tofu!

You might wonder, does stinky tofu taste good?

Although it smells a little stinky, the taste makes you want to eat more and more.

Today, let’s hear the story of how Wang Zhihe invented stinky tofu!

Wang Zhihe’s family wasn’t rich. His father ran a tofu shop in their hometown.

When he was a child, Wang Zhihe learned how to make tofu from his father.

When he grew up, he decided to go to Beijing to take the imperial exam and become a great scholar.

But, things didn’t go as he hoped. He didn’t pass the exam and felt a little sad.

But Wang Zhihe didn’t give up.

He decided to stay in Beijing for a while and prepare for the next exam.

However, transportation was difficult, and he didn’t have money to go home, so he had to find a way to make a living.

Remembering his father’s tofu shop, he rented a few small rooms, bought some basic tools, and started selling tofu.

Summer came, and the weather in Beijing was very hot. Wang Zhihe’s tofu often spoiled quickly and couldn’t be sold.

He was worried because wasting the tofu would make him lose money.

But he didn’t want to give up. He kept thinking about how to turn the spoiled tofu into something useful.

One day, he had an idea: What if he cut the tofu into small pieces, dried it in the sun, and then salted it?

So, Wang Zhihe started doing it this way.

He cut the spoiled tofu into small pieces, dried them in the sun, and salted them.

Then, he focused on his studies and forgot about the jar of salted tofu.

After some time, the autumn breeze came, and the weather cooled down. Wang Zhihe started making fresh tofu again.

Suddenly, he remembered the jar of salted tofu and quickly went to open it.

“Wow! It smells awful!” A bad smell hit his nose, and Wang Zhihe quickly took out the tofu to check.

Strangely, although it smelled bad, the tofu had turned gray but gave off a strange fragrance.

Wang Zhihe decided to taste it, and to his surprise, it actually tasted really good!

Though it had a little stinky taste, the texture made him think it was something special.

So, he decided to let his neighbors try it too.

After eating it, the neighbors were surprised and said, “This tofu smells a little stinky, but it tastes really good!”

Wang Zhihe was happy to hear the compliments and thought, “Maybe I can start a business with this!”

He decided to start making this “stinky tofu,” which was cheaper than regular tofu and affordable for many workers and common people.

Wang Zhihe’s stinky tofu gradually gained many customers, and his business became better and better.

He sold not only to his neighbors but also started setting up a stall on the street.

Little by little, his stinky tofu became more famous.

To improve even more, he expanded his business and opened his own shop on Yanshou Street.

This way, his stinky tofu business became very successful and grew more and more popular.

Wang Zhihe’s stinky tofu eventually made its way to the palace.

It is said that Empress Dowager Cixi also tried Wang Zhihe’s stinky tofu and liked it very much.

However, Empress Cixi thought the name “stinky tofu” sounded bad, so she gave it a new name—“Qing Fang,” because it looked like a little green square.

From then on, Wang Zhihe’s stinky tofu became more and more famous, not only in Beijing but even across the country.

Today, stinky tofu has become a special snack in many places.

Wang Zhihe’s stinky tofu became one of the most unique foods in history.