INTRODUCING TEMPEH, QUALITY FOOD FROM INDONESIA

Have you heard about tempeh? Maybe you haven’t. Let me tell you about it. Tempeh (the e sound is pronounced like sing) is a kind of food made from soybean. It comes from Java, Indonesia. The history of tempeh dates back to at least 16^th century. Serat Centini (the book of Centini), an old Javanese book written in 16^th century, mentioned that tempeh was the staple food of the Javanese people.

Tempeh is made mostly from soybean but there are also tempeh that is made from velvet bean (mucuna pruriens -Latin). In Javanese language velvet bean is called koro benguk and the tempeh made from velvet bean is called tempeh benguk. But this kind of tempeh is less popular than soybean tempeh.

The process is easy. First soybean is cleaned. After that it is boiled. Then wait till it is dry. When it is dry add some yeast and store it inside banana leaves. Leave it for about four or five days. At last it is fermented. Its texture become white and soft.

Tempeh is an excellent source of nutrient. Tempeh is rich with vitamins and protein and low cholesterol. So it is good for everybody. Some experts have done research on it and all of them find its pluses.

Originally the Javanese people sell it inside banana leaves. Unfortunately today some people store it inside plastic pouch. Beside banana leaves there are other kind of leaves like leaves of teak wood tree. They are large enough to wrap several pieces of tempeh.

Today tempeh is produced and consumed not only by Javanese people but also by most Indonesians. In Indonesia it is sold in many places like traditional markets and malls. Besides there are many street vendors who go around to sell tempeh together with various kinds of vegetables.

Indonesian people cook tempeh in several ways. First they just fry it after they add some powder and dressing like salt and garlic. In Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) it is called tempeh goreng or fried tempeh. People in Yogyakarta boil it with brown sugar. This kind of tempeh is called tempeh bacem in Javanese language. Both kinds of tempeh is very popular for snacks. We can also slice it and mix it with vegetables to make soup.

In many parts of Indonesia there are many street vendors selling fried tempeh in a small booth. They go around selling it with other kinds of snacks. In the photographs below that I took close to my house, I show you the fried tempeh on a dish and also the street vendor’s booth.

Today tempeh is very popular in many countries including the United States. Some companies produce and sell it.