This hemp tofu comes from the powder room in old Beijing (the powder room is where the powder and starch are produced). When the beans were crushed on the stone mill, water was added while crushing, during which they were divided into three things - the finest, which is soybean paste, the genuine product, which can be made into starch; the thinnest, which is the juice, soybean juice; and the middle layer of the thick, dark green powdered milk, which, if heated in a cloth bag and boiled, and then strained to remove the water, is hemp tofu.

Fried hemp tofu is a poor people's food, but the rich people are also good at it, and even have an addiction. Chen Huilian, the wife of Ma Lianliang, a famous actor in the Pear Garden, made stir-fried sesame tofu and became famous in the Pear Garden.

In fact, this fried hemp tofu is a favorite traditional snack of the old Beijingers, as is the bean juice. It is said that fried hemp tofu first appeared in the early Ming Dynasty. At that time, poor families would take the scraps of mung bean starch and vermicelli home and fry them in goat's tail oil, then put some salted snow peas and green beans in them, which could be eaten hot or cold.