5. Conclusion
To provide the increasing global population with
a source of protein other than meat is a worldwide
challenge. Alternative sources are legumes and cereals.
But plant protein by itself often lacks desirable
flavours. To overcome this deficiency, fermentation
can either add desirable flavour or destroy unpleasant
flavour. This is especially true in soybean products
made by fermentation.
In China, sufu is one of the most important
traditional fermented soybean foods. It has been
widely consumed as a relish by Chinese people for
more than 1000 years, and further, it can be used in
the same way as cheese. Throughout history, the
Chinese seemed to follow their own ways in developing
the product without foreign influences. Although
a pure culture method for preparing sufu has
been developed, further studies are still needed to
guarantee uniform high quality products. If innovations
in taste, flavour and product quality are made,
sufu may become more widely popular all over the
world.