On Food and Cooking

China and Japan, have long used grains,
beans, and nuts to make foods with the
chewy texture and savory flavor of meat.
Protein extracts from wheat (gluten or
seitan, p. 468) and soybean (yuba, p. 494)
can be manipulated to simulate meat-
protein fibers, and fermented to produce
savory, meaty flavors. In seed mixtures,
whole grains lend chewiness, beans a softer
background and some sweetness and
complexity of flavor, and nuts both
richness and roastiness.
Of course the most important grain and
legume foods are made from finely ground
flours or extracts. Mix water with ground
grains or with starch extracted from beans and
the result is a dough or batter, which heat can
turn into noodles or flat breads or cakes.
Aerate doughs or batters with the help of
yeasts or bacteria or chemical leaveners, and
the result is raised breads and cakes. Doughs
and batters are special materials in their own