Okara: No-Waste Japanese Soy Pulp Fritters with Ponzu

Walk into any tofu shop in Japan and you'll see okara. It is the fiber-rich pulp left after making soymilk. Sometimes it's free; other times there's a nominal charge. You can also find it at the supermarket in the cold case somewhere in the produce section, which is what I do. Even there, it is less than $1 USD for one pound.

In the West, most producers throw it away because there's no market demand. This is textbook mottainai: wasting the inherent potential of a resource simply because we don't know what to do with it, or the public has been given any resources to figure that out. Until now. I am supplying the resource: my recipe for Okara Fritters.

Okara Fritters with Ponzu © 2025 Tenzo's Kitchen LLC

Okara is nutritionally dense. One cup of the raw pulp delivers roughly 4.5 grams of protein, 3.5 grams of fiber, and significant amounts of calcium, iron, and B vitamins. Compare that to the cost—free to pennies per ounce—and you're looking at one of the most economical protein sources available. The fiber content alone makes it valuable for digestive health and sustained energy. Yet most people have never heard of it, much less cooked with it.

In shōjin ryōri, decisions are made based upon what tastes good or what we feel like eating. We consider the full context: where food comes from, what happens to byproducts, whether we're using resources with respect and awareness. Okara represents the complete soybean—what remains after we've extracted the creamy liquid for tofu or soymilk. To discard it is to ignore half the bean's potential. The waste isn't simply the physical resource either. It extends to our bank accounts.

The economic argument is equally compelling. When I lived in Oakland, I'd pick up fresh okara from Tokyo Fish Market in Berkeley for free. They were happy someone wanted it. Even in areas where you have to purchase it from Asian grocers, you're paying $1-2 per pound for a complete protein that stretches across multiple meals. For anyone facing budget constraints—or anyone simply interested in cooking economically—okara should be a pantry staple.

This recipe transforms okara into crispy fritters with a tender interior, served with the perfect counterpoints: ponzu sauce and fresh grated daikon. The technique is straightforward: season the okara with a few basic ingredients, bind the mixture with rice flour, form into patties, and pan-fry until golden brown and crispy. The ponzu and daikon cut through the richness of the fried exterior while the okara itself delivers a subtle, earthy sweetness. Total active time is less than 25 minutes. The result is a complete dish that costs less than a dollar to make.

These fritters work as a side dish alongside rice and miso soup, as a protein element in a larger meal, or as a standalone snack. They hold well for a day or two refrigerated and reheat quickly in the oven. Depending on how much okara you have on hand, this recipe scales easily.

This is the practical application of mottainai: taking what others discard, recognizing its value, and preparing it with the same care you'd give any ingredient. The fritters aren't elaborate or time-intensive. They simply ask you to see potential where most see waste.