Why ‘don’t buy pork early, don’t buy tofu late’?

To have quality, safe meals for your family, shopping for food is extremely important. Housewives often pay attention to choosing the right time to shop to choose the freshest, cleanest food. “Don’t buy pork early, don’t buy tofu late” is an experience passed down through generations.

Why don’t you buy pork early and don’t buy tofu late? 

In the past, when the economy was still difficult, pork was quite a luxury food. There are families who only buy pork a few times a month. Therefore, when butchers are struggling, they often collect leftover meat at the end of the day to sell again the next day. Previously, meat preservation technology was outdated, so meat left overnight, even in the cold season, would become rancid.

Therefore, if you go to the market too early, when it is still dark and do not pay close attention, consumers can easily buy meat that has not been sold from the previous day, and the seller will “take advantage of it” or quickly exchange it and sell it to customers.

Currently, most families can afford to buy meat every day, but the supply has also increased very high, so the situation of unsold meat at the end of the day continues. Many store and stall owners still mix old meat with new meat to display for sale early the next morning. However, the experience of “not buying pork early” is no longer as valuable as in the past, because old meat stored in an insulated or frozen cabinet will be continued to be sold later in the morning.

To avoid buying old meat, whether going to the market or supermarket in the morning or afternoon, consumers still need to know how to distinguish new meat from old meat.

Answering the folk wisdom “Don’t buy pork early, don’t buy tofu late” (Illustration: Istock)

What about “don’t buy tofu too late”? To bring a batch of tofu to the market, the seller has to wake up and produce while it’s still dark. With the same conditions of tools and manual bean making methods as in the past, it is difficult for them to produce many batches of beans every day and do it continuously from morning to afternoon like today.

Therefore, if customers buy tofu in the morning, they will buy hot, fresh tofu. If they buy in the evening, they will have to receive old pieces of beans that have been left at room temperature all day, no longer delicious, and even sour and stale, especially in the summer when the weather is hot. Therefore, based on practical experience, the ancients advised not to buy beans in the late afternoon.

The advice “Don’t buy pork early, don’t buy tofu late” is based on the market experience of housewives from ancient times, when production was still poor, the market had few people and the level of circulation of goods was low. Currently, traditional markets have to compete with supermarkets in both price and food quality. The process of slaughtering, transporting pork as well as making tofu takes place faster, enough to supply the market continuously throughout the day.

Therefore, whether you go to the market early in the morning or late in the afternoon, you can buy fresh meat as well as fresh tofu. Although used goods are still mixed in, you can learn to recognize them so you don’t buy the wrong ones.

How to choose good pork 

To buy delicious pork, press your finger into the meat and observe, if there are no dents or sticky hands, it is fresh meat.’ If you buy meat in the supermarket, you should choose dry pieces that have not leaked onto the tray or package. Meat should not be too soft when stored in the refrigerator.

Based on the color of the meat, you can also choose the tastiest piece. If the outer meat membrane is dry and bright red or dark red, it is a fresh piece of meat. Rotten meat will be brown, gray, dark red or light green.

The clearer the fat lines on the surface of the meat, the tastier it is. However, you should not choose a piece of pork with too much fat because the meat can easily become tough. Young beef or chicken will have white veins, while old ones will have yellow fat veins.

How to choose good tofu

A good piece of tofu is usually ivory white, while tofu with gypsum is usually more clearly yellow, the more yellow, the more gypsum.

Pick up a piece of tofu and examine it. If you feel it is light and very soft, then it is a good piece of tofu. If the tofu piece is heavy, firm, a bit hard, and the square piece has sharp edges, it will not be delicious.

A good piece of bean will have an attractive aroma, while a piece of bean with plaster will smell of lime or not smell at all.