A Conscious Feast by Nicole Aloni

Tempe Lalah Recipe

fresh tempe wrapped in banana leaves, photo Wiki

Tempe, a naturally fermented soybean cake, was invented hundreds of years ago in Indonesia. The simplest explanation I’ve heard for the complicated steps required to turn soybeans into tempe compares it to the transformation milk undergoes on the way to becoming cheese. Like I said, it’s complex.

Today, tempe is one of the most popular foods throughout Indonesia and especially in Bali where the diet focuses on rice, spicy, vivid sauces, and fresh ingredients like seafood, vegetables, tempe and small amounts of the best free range pork in the world.  The wisdom of this light diet is apparent in the glowing beauty of the Balinese people —from toddlers to grandmothers they are slender and fit.

Tempe’s mild flavor can be adapted to all kinds of bold sauces and condiments as in this delicious, crispy dish from the Balinese chef who is co-hosting my culinary adventure in Bali.  Its ability to take on a crisp, meaty texture and flavor makes it particularly popular in the vegetarian kitchen.

Check out the video at the end of this post showing chef Made preparing his Tempe Lalah from start to finish.

EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy & creative

BEVERAGE TO ACCOMPANY: Thai beer or Alsatian riesling

Makes 6 to 8 servings

• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 T. palm sugar or brown sugar
• ¼ c. soy sauce
• 1 to 2 T. red chile flakes
• 5 dash Tabasco
• 2 T. ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce)
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 3 (8 oz.) pkg. tempe (Whole Foods, health food store)
• 5 shallot, sliced very thinly
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 3 to 4 c. vegetable oil

1. Slice the block of tempe into very thin slabs. Then slice the slabs into little “sticks”. It’s important they are all the same size.


matchstick slices on tempe, photo Wiki

2. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok to very hot. Add the shallots and fry, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Strain out of the oil and put on paper towels to drain.
3. Add the sliced garlic to the hot oil and cook until golden brown, about 2 ½ minutes. Strain out of the oil and put on paper towels to drain.
4. Add the tempe to the hot oil (in 2 or 3 batches) and fry until golden brown and crispy. Strain out and drain.
5. Pour off the oil from the wok and add in the minced garlic, stir fry for 20 seconds. Then stir in the glaze mixture and sauté quickly to thicken and heat.
6. Add the crispy tempe into the wok with the glaze and stir to coat. Continue to sauté until the tempe has absorbed all of the liquid, 2 to 3 minutes.Add ½ of the friend shallots and ½ of the fried garlic into the pan and toss to mix.
7. Serve immediately topped with the remaining fried shallots and garlic and some leaves of Thai basil.

I love this recipe for Orange Pan-glazed Tempeh from 101 Cookbooks, too.