This might sound silly but I guess naming can matter a lot, but is there a name other than “tofu” that these “rare Chinese tofus” can be called that wouldn’t just be made up? If they are indeed as different then it might be worth marketing them with a different name to distinguish them strongly from what Westerners currently think of as tofu. I am a Westerner and long time vegan, but throughout the article whenever I read the word “tofu” the image of only culinary blandness crosses my mind because that is the only reference point I have. This image association I introspectovely notice I cannot seem to break despite being very excited now to try these rare Chinese Tofus before I die.
On that note, I’d like to voice support for the sentiment that Chinese vegan cuisine is shockingly diverse. I travelled to Hunan pre-covid and thought I would have cheat and eat meat from time to time thinking veganism just doesn’t exist there. I was incredibly wrong.
It felt easier to find cheap incredibly tasty full vegan meals there even though I didn’t know the area than it is in my very vegan-friendly West Coast city despite living here for over a decade. Almost certainly my memories are being clouded by positive association due to being on vacation, but still a data point. Make of it what you will.
This is a good point—branding is so key. Creating contrast between normal and rare tofus could turn out to be a really powerful marketing tool, or make us sad and un-credible.
Very cool that you’ve spent time in Hunan. I’d love to visit someday. And absolutely, it blows my mind how people talk about western veganish cities—it’s a thousand times easier in China
I think Cornelius and Lumpyproletariat make good points, but as evelynciara points out in another comment, it’s also important to make sure you don’t do anything that’s seen as cultural appropriation-y. There’s one world where marketing rare Chinese tofu as something other than tofu could lead to accusations of white-washing and bad PR overall*. That being said, I could imagine that branding it with some other names used for the specific tofus in China could work, since it wouldn’t be white-washing (I think?) and it wouldn’t carry the negative connotation of tofu.
I know these are all conflicting comments, so my advice is just to be thoughtful about the various considerations before committing to a name :).
*Particularly since veganism is sadly (anecdotally) perceived as being super white, even though that’s not true in America at least (BBC).
This thought crossed my mind as well. On the flip side, there is also already a market for tofu, supermarkets know where to put it and consumers know what it is. Though some hate it, some also like it and might be more easily enticed to try a new kind of it, than something completely unfamiliar. On the other hand, if most of the benefit is in replacing meat, it certainly seems like appearing to people who don’t like current forms of tofu would be valuable. Maybe there is some way to do both?
Strong upvote because I think this should be at the top of the conversation and this is what I came here to say.
Tofu has strong negative associations for many Americans; if you want to sell something which does not taste like American tofu and doesn’t have the texture of American tofu I would advise you in the strongest possible language to call it anything but tofu.
This might sound silly but I guess naming can matter a lot, but is there a name other than “tofu” that these “rare Chinese tofus” can be called that wouldn’t just be made up? If they are indeed as different then it might be worth marketing them with a different name to distinguish them strongly from what Westerners currently think of as tofu. I am a Westerner and long time vegan, but throughout the article whenever I read the word “tofu” the image of only culinary blandness crosses my mind because that is the only reference point I have. This image association I introspectovely notice I cannot seem to break despite being very excited now to try these rare Chinese Tofus before I die.
On that note, I’d like to voice support for the sentiment that Chinese vegan cuisine is shockingly diverse. I travelled to Hunan pre-covid and thought I would have cheat and eat meat from time to time thinking veganism just doesn’t exist there. I was incredibly wrong.
It felt easier to find cheap incredibly tasty full vegan meals there even though I didn’t know the area than it is in my very vegan-friendly West Coast city despite living here for over a decade. Almost certainly my memories are being clouded by positive association due to being on vacation, but still a data point. Make of it what you will.
This is a good point—branding is so key. Creating contrast between normal and rare tofus could turn out to be a really powerful marketing tool, or make us sad and un-credible.
Very cool that you’ve spent time in Hunan. I’d love to visit someday. And absolutely, it blows my mind how people talk about western veganish cities—it’s a thousand times easier in China
I think Cornelius and Lumpyproletariat make good points, but as evelynciara points out in another comment, it’s also important to make sure you don’t do anything that’s seen as cultural appropriation-y. There’s one world where marketing rare Chinese tofu as something other than tofu could lead to accusations of white-washing and bad PR overall*. That being said, I could imagine that branding it with some other names used for the specific tofus in China could work, since it wouldn’t be white-washing (I think?) and it wouldn’t carry the negative connotation of tofu.
I know these are all conflicting comments, so my advice is just to be thoughtful about the various considerations before committing to a name :).
*Particularly since veganism is sadly (anecdotally) perceived as being super white, even though that’s not true in America at least (BBC).
This thought crossed my mind as well. On the flip side, there is also already a market for tofu, supermarkets know where to put it and consumers know what it is. Though some hate it, some also like it and might be more easily enticed to try a new kind of it, than something completely unfamiliar. On the other hand, if most of the benefit is in replacing meat, it certainly seems like appearing to people who don’t like current forms of tofu would be valuable. Maybe there is some way to do both?
Strong upvote because I think this should be at the top of the conversation and this is what I came here to say.
Tofu has strong negative associations for many Americans; if you want to sell something which does not taste like American tofu and doesn’t have the texture of American tofu I would advise you in the strongest possible language to call it anything but tofu.