Tempeh

Tempeh

What it is

A colony of Rhizopus knits whole cooked soybeans into a solid white cake in about thirty-six hours, and the mycelium itself is eaten - it is the structure, not a seasoning. Javanese writing of the early nineteenth century already describes it, which makes it, unusually among soy foods, an Indonesian invention rather than a Chinese one.

In the kitchen

Steam it ten minutes before marinating: it opens up, takes salt, and any raw bitterness goes off with the steam. Grey and black patches are the mould sporing and are harmless, but a smell of ammonia is not - that block goes out.

Goes with

Soy sauce Garlic Palm sugar Coriander seed Tamarind paste Chili pepper Lime Peanut

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