New cauldron packaging and size

[littlemiss]

I got some cauldron tofu from asda's last week in the new packaging and was surprised how much it had gone up by but then realised the pack size has almost doubled. It no longer says anything about freezing it on the packet but I have as hubby likes the texture firmer.
Also an email from the veg society had a voucher link for cauldron tofu attached but I lost the email (and the voucher I took to asda with me):( so if anyone has it could they paste it up? I only buy the tofu so dont know if other items have changed or if the new products are vegan friendly.

[scoultas]

The disappointingly small list of vegan products listed on their website:

• Which products are suitable for a vegan diet?
The following Cauldron products are suitable for a vegan diet:
Tofu Block
Tofu Marinated Pieces Moroccan Falafel Bites
Chickpea & Spinach Balti
Mexican chilli & rice

More importantly, it appears they've stopped selling the Organic Tofu - everywhere that used to sell it is currently 'out of stock', so I suspect they've discontinued it.

[Mr Flibble]

Couldron's choice for vegans has been crap for years and their tofu inferior to taifun / clearspot. It's annoying as they have good distribution channel in the UK, but if they choose not to market products to me that's their loss.

[harpy]

I wrote to ask them about organic tofu but they didn't reply, which I take to be a bad sign. The Taifun stuff which is fairly widely available is all organic, I think.

[smallhelen]

Just a quick warning - the Moroccan Spiced Falafel Bites actually have honey in them. I bought some by accident as a quick of the 'allergens' revealed no milk or egg. Got them home and was gutted to read 'honey' in the ingredients. I was looking forward to them. Oh well, they will be donated to a non-vegan family member. :(

[Est]

^ I was just going to say that! I thought I read on here that someone had emailed them ages ago about this, and they were going to change it on their website. Hmmm!

[Mollfie]

They're the only tofu I can get, without having to travel to specialised shops which is annoying. I don't like the new tofu though, bigger pack but the lot I had last night wasn't very firm and crumbled a fair bit. Annoying.

[leedsveg]

Just a quick warning - the Moroccan Spiced Falafel Bites actually have honey in them. I bought some by accident as a quick of the 'allergens' revealed no milk or egg. Got them home and was gutted to read 'honey' in the ingredients. I was looking forward to them. Oh well, they will be donated to a non-vegan family member. :(

Hi smallhelen

Just spotted your posting after I'd posted on the Gripes & Grumbles thread about honey.:)

lv

[cobweb]

I like Cauldron Tofu, i prefer it to some of the others i've tried. The new pack size suits me as it's big enough to make 2 meals, so i cook a whole pack for dinner and then it does us for lunch the next day aswell. It definitely is less firm than it used to be, i usually mash or scramble it now instead of making 'steaks' with it.

[smallhelen]

It's taken me a while to get used to the new tofu texture, but I think it makes even better faux egg salad than the old one did, and possibly nicer scrambled tofu as well. Haven't tried freezing or baking it yet (never seems to last that long in my house), but it could be interesting.

[Mollfie]

^ I'm thinking it'll be good for scramble, so it's not all bad lol.

Would freezing it make it firm up a bit?

[kokopelli]

One thing I noticed is, that the new tofu is made in the USA, which is weird, why did they start doing that? It seems mad.

[Ruth]

My sister and I have both been complaining about this! We have an ongoing hunt for the old packs, which some store still seem to be stocking (she isn't vegan, but she's a pregnant veggie trying to get more protein and Cauldron tofu had become her main source).

I've been stockpiling the old packs when I see them. The new stuff is too airy and watery, I like it firm. It isn't as tough for stir-frying (it crumbles more). And there's was too much. I often have it in pasta dishes, so I only need one pack to make enough for two nights. I don't like having to store it, it's a hassle.

I've been cooking with tempeh more now, which is lovely. It has more of a flavour than tofu, so you can throw it into a dish and not think about marinating it and it still tastes great.

My sister was going to write to Cauldron and complain, she was so annoyed.
:p

[leedsveg]

I made eggless "egg mayonnaise" today with the new Cauldron tofu and GranoVita "mayo". Bloody awful. The tofu was sloppy and the "mayo" was very runny. Previously, I have used with success, the old style Cauldron tofu and Asda low fat salad cream. Why are the "suitable for vegans" foods, in this country, either slowly getting worse, or disappearing altogether?:confused:

lv

[harpy]

One thing I noticed is, that the new tofu is made in the USA, which is weird, why did they start doing that? It seems mad.

Agreed - I hadn't noticed that.

That and the non-organic thing will probably make me look for other brands in future, but I realise it's not so easy for people who don't live in big towns.

[leedsveg]

Bloody hell! Made in the US of A. Mad, as you rightly say, kokopelli.

Just to change the subject, I bought a carton of "Kara Dairy Free" today from Tesco after seeing the adverts in the Vegsoc and Vegansoc magazines. Very white and looked like frothy cow's milk. It was ok but I thought from the way they'd plugged the coconut content (in fact only 8.4%) that it would taste more "coconutty" than it did. 'Made in the EU' so I bet they're not even using British coconuts.:D

lv

[littlemiss]

Update on trying to freeze the tofu, it doesn't make it firmer. It just made it more crumbly and when I tried to drain it the same way I used to drain it between sheets of kitchen towel I flooded my kitchen side. Not happy with it but its the only tofu I can get here.

[f2097]

I used to get Cauldron all the time because its the only brand you can get in supermarkets (apart from waitrose who do taifan).

I don't bother now. They are owned by the same food giant as Quorn and their two brands have a monopoly in the mainstream meat free industry. All of the Quorn products have diary in and most of Cauldron does now too..

Also if Cauldron don't care enough to even have the word vegan on their products then I don't care enough to buy any. Its not like there isn't room and wtf about importing something from the US that could easily be made here and not shipped (or more likely air freighted) halfway round the world :/

There are so many better options...

Most places have a health food shop that sells usually nicer tofu made by a companies that care more about animal rights and the environment. Waitrose sell Taifan tofu which you can order online through them or Ocado. You can get a decent veg box scheme in most areas of the country (and they almost always sell tofu & vegan items.. just don't use Able & Cole as they pack chilled items in sheep wool!!)... Finally Blue Dragon do a vegan silken tofu that you can get in most bigger supermarkets.

[Ms_Derious]

I used to buy at least two blocks of Tofu a week, but the new format Cauldron Foods tofu (the only one I can get near me) is so crumbly and poor I started making my own. Now I make a block about the same time as the old style cauldron tofu out of a litre of soya milk, so it's a lot cheaper too.

[leedsveg]

How do we place our orders with you Ms Derious?

lv:)

[Adena]

Wow my thoughts exactly! How on earth do you go about making your own tofu? Sounds like something I've got to try!

[Ruby Rose]

Yes, if you can work out how to package and ship it cost-effectively, looks like there's a market out there for decent home-made tofu, Ms Derious

[harpy]

I think there must have been a run on the Taifun one as a result of this because they never seem to have it in our Waitrose now. It's a full-blown tofu crisis in fact. Ms Derious could clean up!

[kokopelli]

I used to make tofu often, but haven't had so much time spare lately. My tofu usually comes out a bit like the new Cauldron plain tofu, a bit too wet and soft and better for desserts and mayonnaise than for slicing and frying. The proportion of solidifier used, temperature and pressing all contribute to final consistency. I'm going to start making it again, and try pressing the tofu harder and for longer.

This book is brilliant for instructions and recipes:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Tofu-1-William-Shurtleff/dp/0345351819/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277996968&sr=8-1

One major benefit (apart from the interest and excitement of making your own) is the cost. If you start from soaked soya beans it's only about 25p a block. :thumbsup:

I agree, there's definitely a major gap in the market now, ready for some entrepreneurial vegan to fill!