History of tempeh

Tempeh has probably been around for thousands of years and is native to Indonesia. There it was probably discovered by accident, because boiled soybeans were stored in hibiscus leaves. These leaves naturally contain the fungus that is still used today for the fermentation of tempeh. Initially, tempeh was mainly made from black soybeans, but now yellow soybeans are usually used.

For a long time, tempeh was a relatively unknown product. Little was written about it, because it was mainly eaten by the poor. The word tempeh has also only been around for a relatively short time. In Europe, it first appeared in 1875 in a Javanese-Dutch dictionary.

Tempeh owes its fame in Europe to Dutch settlers. The first European tempeh companies were founded in the Netherlands and were run by Indonesian immigrants. The prominence and popularity of tempeh in the Western world is still rising due to the increasing interest in healthy eating and vegetarianism.