admin | December 12, 2022
News Brief
Capella Dovonou is a technician in nutrition and food technology in Benin who turns soybeans into milk for her food start-up Saveurs Nouvelles (New flavours). In a recipe that you can try at home, Ms. Dovonou presents a step-by-step process for how to properly process soybeans to make nutritious soy milk and bran. First, she removes the rotten soybeans and dust. Next, she sorts the soybeans, then washes and soaks them, removing any impurities that rise to the surface. Then she crushes the soybeans to remove the skin, and washes them. When washing the soybeans, a foam appears. This foam contains saponins, which hinder digestion of nutrients. She grinds the soybeans to a soft paste and adds water to make soy milk. For one kilogram of soybeans, she adds six to seven litres of water. Finally, she cooks the milk for 30-45 minutes and seasons to taste.
Capella Dovonou is senior technician in nutrition and food technology in Benin who turns soybeans into milk for her food start-up Saveurs Nouvelles (New flavours).
One sometimes hears that soy is not easily digested, but that is true only when soybeans are not properly processed.
In a recipe that you can try at home, Ms. Dovonou presents a step-by-step process for how to properly process soybeans to make nutritious soy milk and bran.
She explains, “To make soy milk, it is necessary to [first] remove the rotten seeds, the dust, [and] the impurities of the soy, so that the milk is good quality.”
Step one is sorting the soybeans, and step two is washing and then soaking them. She says, “You have to wash them because there is dust and then you have to soak them for eight to twelve hours.”
After soaking, you remove any impurities that rise to the surface of the water.
Step three is crushing the soybeans. This helps remove the skins.
Ms. Dovonou explains, “We remove these skins to enable better digestion of the nutrients in the soybeans.”
When washing the soybeans, a foam appears. This foam contains saponins, which hinder digestion of nutrients. Properly sorting, washing, and soaking helps remove the saponins in soy and makes soy healthy to eat.
Ms. Dovonou explains the next step: “After washing our de-hulled seeds, we grind the seeds to a soft paste. We add water to this soft dough to make the soy milk. For one kilogram of soybeans, you need six to seven litres of water to make soy milk.”
The soy milk is then squeezed through cheesecloth to capture the soy bran. This can be used in animal food, or in baked goods like cupcakes and cookies.
Ms. Dovonou cooks her soymilk in a pot with a lid. She explains: “I cook the milk for 30-45 minutes, depending on the quantity. If you are cooking a large quantity, you can use a thermometer to check the temperature of the milk. Once the milk reaches 100°C, you boil it for 20 minutes.”
When the soy milk is fully cooked, you can add sugar or honey to your taste. You can also add flavourings like lemongrass, mint, or lemon balm.
Then your soy milk is done! Try making your own nutritious soy milk at home, based on these instructions from Ms. Dovonou, founder of Saveurs Nouvelles in Benin.