TEMPEH GOODNESS

I love fried crispy tempeh as well as those cooked in sauce or gravy. It has this bland but chewy taste that I don’t get sick of. The blandness of the tempeh complements well with the tasty gravy or sauce it is cooked in. Tempeh can be eaten as a side or main dish, on its own or with accompaniments like vegetables, tofu and fungi. It is truly a nutritious vegetarian dish made of soy protein which is popular with vegetarians as tempeh can be a substitute for animal protein. I am not a vegetarian but I enjoy cooking tempeh dishes that go very well with rice.

Since tempeh is a staple source of protein in Indonesia for several hundred years, tempeh processing could be the oldest food technology in the history of Javanese people. Soy beans may have been introduced by the Chinese as such beans, which were first grown in the 11th century in Northern China, were the first crops to be grown by man. The popularity of the beans spread to other parts of Asia and then to Europe by missionaries. It was first introduced in USA in the early 19th century. It was not until 1945 that soy bean plantations were dramatically expanded.

Tempeh is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybean particles into a cake form. Rectangular in shape, tempeh is sold in dried banana leaves in Asian countries where it is exported from Indonesia and Malaysia. Since tempeh cannot keep for long without refrigeration, it is sold in vacummed square packets in Australia, USA and Europe.

Tempeh can be found in selected supermarkets in Europe, Australia and USA. In Australia it is sold in giant supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths. Look out for it in the vegetarian frozen section. In Coles and Woolworths, two versions of tempeh are available, the original which I prefer and spicy version. As it has to be imported from afar and is vacuumed packed, it naturally costs 4 ½ times in Australia. This is valid as it is much heavier in weight.

Tempeh is so easy to cook as a stir fry. You need everyday ingredients like oyster sauce, soy sauce, tomato or chilli or barbecue sauce along with vegetables of your choice.

Here is a favourite tempeh recipe of mine.

Tempeh and mushroom stir fry

Ingredients

1 packet tempeh
2 chilies, sliced thinly
½ onion, sliced
5 button mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp tomato sauce
cooking oil
water

Method

1. Thaw tempeh and cut the block into small square pieces.
2. Heat the oil in a pan on medium flame.
3. Fry the onions in hot oil till transparent.
4. Add chilies and mushrooms and stir fry till they are a little bit softened.
5. Add oyster sauce and mix well.
6. Add soy sauce and tomato sauce and mix the ingredients well.
7. Add water if too dry.

Serve with hot steaming jasmine rice.

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