Tempeh is a soy bean whole food from Indonesia. It is a cultured food that undergoes a 24 to 48 hour fermentation process. This fermentation is the same process that gives us foods like cheese, yoghurt, bread and beer. The fermentation process uses a mould called ‘Rhizopus Oligosporous’. This fermentation aids digestion and making the normally hard to digest soy beans into a good source of protein.
The mould binds the whole soy beans, so that a flat ‘cake’ is made. The end product can be sliced, diced or left whole and can then be cooked in many ways. Traditionally in Indonesian cuisine, it is prepared with fast cooked vegetable dishes, but it is also tasty in stews, baked, or salads.
Because tempeh is made from dried soy beans, it is available all year round. There are a variety of companies that make tempeh in Australia. Check that the correct mould (Rhizopus Oligosporous) is used.
Baking tempeh is a good way to start, if you’ve never cooked (or eaten) tempeh before, and you can find a great recipe here.