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— Tempeh is a mildly fermented soybean cake common in the Indonesian diet. Production starts with the washing and husking of beans.
Tempeh is a mildly fermented soybean cake common in the Indonesian diet. Production starts with the washing and husking of beans.
Rebecca Davis / NPR
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— Soybeans are then boiled in industrial-size barrels. In Kebun Jeruk, a village in west Jakarta, Indonesia, a cooperative of more than 1,400 local households produces nearly 2 tons of tempeh daily.
Soybeans are then boiled in industrial-size barrels. In Kebun Jeruk, a village in west Jakarta, Indonesia, a cooperative of more than 1,400 local households produces nearly 2 tons of tempeh daily.
Rebecca Davis / NPR
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— Once boiled, the beans are combined with yeast and cassava starch, shaped into bricks and laid out to ferment on drying racks for 18 hours.
Once boiled, the beans are combined with yeast and cassava starch, shaped into bricks and laid out to ferment on drying racks for 18 hours.
Rebecca Davis / NPR
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— Mr. Hendoko manages the Kebun Jeruk cooperative, which produces nearly a third of Jakarta's tempeh.
Mr. Hendoko manages the Kebun Jeruk cooperative, which produces nearly a third of Jakarta's tempeh.
Rebecca Davis / NPR
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— Tempeh, with its meaty, nutty taste, can be served in a variety of ways, from thick tempeh "steaks" to thinly sliced, deep-fried crackers. Hendoko says that with proper marketing, "in 20 years' time, tempeh will conquer the world."
Tempeh, with its meaty, nutty taste, can be served in a variety of ways, from thick tempeh "steaks" to thinly sliced, deep-fried crackers. Hendoko says that with proper marketing, "in 20 years' time, tempeh will conquer the world."
Rebecca Davis / NPR
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