How to Make Tempeh (With Soy-Free Options)

The History of Tempeh

Tempeh got its start in Indonesia, and it’s essentially just tender cooked legumes bound together by a dense mycelium of white Rhizopus mold. Tempeh originated as a tofu and soybean oil manufacturing byproduct in Java, Indonesia.

When food crafters would press oils from nuts and seeds and liquids from soybeans, the resulting waste products were fibrous and dense seed, bean, and nut cakes to be discarded.

This soybean waste is called okara. It’s speculated that the okara got contaminated with fungi used for soy sauce production. Accidentally inoculating okara waste with fungi brought about a protein-packed, fiber-rich food that is quite delicious… and economical.

So, accidently or not, if you love tempeh, you can thank Indonesia for this delicious food!

Why Tempeh is Great for Gut Health

Homemade tempeh isn’t exactly probiotic because we cook tempeh before eating it. You technically can eat some raw, but I do not recommend it, and it’s best to cook it. However, the fermentation process of tempeh is very beneficial for gut health.

Tempeh fermentation helps remove phytic acid from legumes, making them easier to digest. The elimination of phytic acid through the fermentation process also means that the legumes will cause less gas production in the gut (so yes, you will fart less haha).

I should note here that cooking also reduces phytic acid in beans. So beans don’t have to be fermented to be good for you.

Tempeh is great for people who want to eat more beans. Shifting the diet to more beans and legumes as protein sources can sometimes cause bloating and gas initially. However, these side effects are significantly less likely with tempeh since it is fermented.

The Rhizopus fungi that ferment the legumes into tempeh make nutrients and vitamins more readily available.

How to Make Tempeh at Home

Learning how to make tempeh starts with a fungus. Let’s talk a little bit about the fungus that makes tempeh! It’s called Rhizopus, and it’s pretty cool.

Rhizopus is a genus of filamentous fungi commonly found in nature, on food, and in association with animals. Rhizopus fungi are characterized by a branching mycelia composed of three types of hyphae: stolons, rhizoids, and usually unbranching sporangiophores. This complex mycelium holds tempeh together in a uniform, dense mass.

Multiple species of Rhizopus can be used to make tempeh, but the most common species used is R. oryzae. CLICK HERE for the starter culture I like to use.

How to Make Tempeh: Removing the Hulls

I like soaking my legumes for about 12 hours. After soaking, I put the legumes in a bowl of cold water. Then I rub them between my hands in the water until many of the hulls float to the top. The hulls are easily poured off.

You don’t have to remove every single hull; the tempeh will still come out fine, as long as you remove a lot of them and break apart the legumes a little. More hulls will come off when you cook the legumes, too.

When cooking, you want them to be tender but not mushy. The legumes should be firmer than if you were cooking them to eat right away. It’s important not to overcook.

How to Make Tempeh: Drying Out the Beans, Peas or Lentils for Tempeh

For your homemade tempeh to come out delicious and safe, you must dry the legumes you just cooked.

Please do NOT put them in a dehydrator or anything; you are not trying to dry them out that much. I like to spread the cooked legumes on a clean sheet pan lined with a clean towel and let them air dry for about 2-4 hours. Sometimes, I’ll use a blow drier and blow hot air under the towel holding the peas to speed up this process.

The cooked legumes have to be more on the dry side, and the material the tempeh is wrapped in has to be breathable (either with holes or made from a porous material).

Wrapping the Tempeh

When learning how to make tempeh, one of the most essential aspects is deciding how to wrap it. You must tightly wrap the cultured legume mixture in a bag or something similar to make tempeh.

Honestly, I HATE using plastic to make tempeh. I think the most problems arise when you use plastic because the plastic holds too much condensation and moisture. This leads to nasty results and undesirable microbial growth.

However, if you want to take a chance, you can use a plastic bag with holes poked in it. If you need to use a plastic bag, I suggest using plastic bulk section bags or produce bags from the store. I get great results using these because they’re more porous than a ziplock.

Banana Leaves work best since they are porous, and you can sometimes find these at the Asian market. Another option is bamboo leaves (my personal favorite). You can also use cheesecloth (but you’ll have to wrap it with a few layers and sterilize it somehow after).

You’ll also need something heavy, like a large cutting board or a textbook, to press the legume mixture into a dense cake.

How to Tell if Homemade Tempeh is Safe to Eat

The breathable material provides oxygen to the aerobic fungi and, in tandem with dryness, prevents anaerobic spoilage microorganisms, like Bacillus spp. and Clostridium spp. These are the worst contaminants that we need to worry about with tempeh. These contaminants usually result from too much heat and too much moisture.

When you smell it, you’ll know if the tempeh hasn’t fermented properly. Bad homemade tempeh is very hard to miss.