big brown horse
Hoof In Mouth
Tempeh from Wild Fermentation
Timeframe: 2 days
Special Equipment:
Grain grinder
Clean towels
Zip-lock bags (3 large ones) or a baking tray and aluminum foil
Ingredients (for about 3 lbs/1.5 kilograms of tempeh):
2 cups soybeans
2 T vinegar
1 t tempeh spore
Process:
1. Crack the soybeans in a grain mill, coarsely so that every bean is broken but in just a few large pieces. This makes the hulls fall off the beans when they are cooked, and gives more surface areas for the spore to grow on. Removing the hulls is the critical part. In the absence of a grain grinder, you can soak the beans overnight then kneed them with your hands to loosen the hulls before cooking them the rest of the way.
2. Boil beans, without salt, until they are just barely soft enough to eat. For soy beans, 1-1 hours should do it. Do not cook them as soft as you would want them to be for eating. The fermentation will continue to soften the beans. As you cook and stir the soybeans, their hulls will rise to the surface of the pot in a foamy froth. Skim off the froth with the hulls and discard.
3. As the beans boil, take a few zip-lock bags and poke holes in them with a fork every couple of inches. The bags provide a form for the tempeh to fill, and the holes ensure good air circulation, which is necessary for the spore to thrive. You can reuse the bags by cleaning them after use, drying them thoroughly and storing them in a special place. Alternatively, you can form tempeh in a baking tray with a lip of at least inch, then cover it with foil with fork holes punched every couple of inches.
4. When the beans are ready, strain them and spread them, or a portion of them at a time, on a clean towel. Use the towel to dry them. The most common problem with tempeh is excess moisture, which yields a foul, inedible product. Swaddle and pat the cooked soybeans until most of the surface moisture has been absorbed into the towel. Use a second towel if necessary.
5. Place the cooked and dried soybeans in a bowl. Make sure they are no warmer than body temperature. Add the vinegar and mix. Add the spore and mix well so the spore is evenly distributed around the soybeans. The acidity of the vinegar gives the spore a competitive edge over bacteria that are present in the air.
6. Spoon the mix into the bags with the holes, spreading it evenly, sealing the bags and placing them on oven racks or wherever they will incubate. Like wise, if you are using a baking pan spread the mixture evenly and cover with foil with holes.
7. Incubate at about 85 to 90 degrees for about 24 hours. No dramatic changes occur during the first half of the fermentation period. I like to start the process in the afternoon, let it spend the night unattended, then watch the exciting drama of the later period. What happens is that hairy white mold begins to form I all the space between the soybeans. It begins to generate heat, as well, so keep an eye on the temp and adjust the incubation space as necessary. The mold gradually thickens until it forms a cohesive mat holding the beans together. The tempeh should have a pleasant, earthy odor, like button mushrooms. The process generally takes 20-30 hours, considerably longer at cooler temperatures. Once it has large patches of gray or black it is ready.
8. Remove the tempeh from your incubator and from its forms. Allow it to cool to room temp before refrigerating, then refrigerate without stacking. IF you stack tempeh before it is cool, the mold will continue to grow and generate heat, even in the refrigerator.
9. Tempeh is generally not eaten raw. Saut slices of it plain to discover its unique flavor.
Timeframe: 2 days
Special Equipment:
Grain grinder
Clean towels
Zip-lock bags (3 large ones) or a baking tray and aluminum foil
Ingredients (for about 3 lbs/1.5 kilograms of tempeh):
2 cups soybeans
2 T vinegar
1 t tempeh spore
Process:
1. Crack the soybeans in a grain mill, coarsely so that every bean is broken but in just a few large pieces. This makes the hulls fall off the beans when they are cooked, and gives more surface areas for the spore to grow on. Removing the hulls is the critical part. In the absence of a grain grinder, you can soak the beans overnight then kneed them with your hands to loosen the hulls before cooking them the rest of the way.
2. Boil beans, without salt, until they are just barely soft enough to eat. For soy beans, 1-1 hours should do it. Do not cook them as soft as you would want them to be for eating. The fermentation will continue to soften the beans. As you cook and stir the soybeans, their hulls will rise to the surface of the pot in a foamy froth. Skim off the froth with the hulls and discard.
3. As the beans boil, take a few zip-lock bags and poke holes in them with a fork every couple of inches. The bags provide a form for the tempeh to fill, and the holes ensure good air circulation, which is necessary for the spore to thrive. You can reuse the bags by cleaning them after use, drying them thoroughly and storing them in a special place. Alternatively, you can form tempeh in a baking tray with a lip of at least inch, then cover it with foil with fork holes punched every couple of inches.
4. When the beans are ready, strain them and spread them, or a portion of them at a time, on a clean towel. Use the towel to dry them. The most common problem with tempeh is excess moisture, which yields a foul, inedible product. Swaddle and pat the cooked soybeans until most of the surface moisture has been absorbed into the towel. Use a second towel if necessary.
5. Place the cooked and dried soybeans in a bowl. Make sure they are no warmer than body temperature. Add the vinegar and mix. Add the spore and mix well so the spore is evenly distributed around the soybeans. The acidity of the vinegar gives the spore a competitive edge over bacteria that are present in the air.
6. Spoon the mix into the bags with the holes, spreading it evenly, sealing the bags and placing them on oven racks or wherever they will incubate. Like wise, if you are using a baking pan spread the mixture evenly and cover with foil with holes.
7. Incubate at about 85 to 90 degrees for about 24 hours. No dramatic changes occur during the first half of the fermentation period. I like to start the process in the afternoon, let it spend the night unattended, then watch the exciting drama of the later period. What happens is that hairy white mold begins to form I all the space between the soybeans. It begins to generate heat, as well, so keep an eye on the temp and adjust the incubation space as necessary. The mold gradually thickens until it forms a cohesive mat holding the beans together. The tempeh should have a pleasant, earthy odor, like button mushrooms. The process generally takes 20-30 hours, considerably longer at cooler temperatures. Once it has large patches of gray or black it is ready.
8. Remove the tempeh from your incubator and from its forms. Allow it to cool to room temp before refrigerating, then refrigerate without stacking. IF you stack tempeh before it is cool, the mold will continue to grow and generate heat, even in the refrigerator.
9. Tempeh is generally not eaten raw. Saut slices of it plain to discover its unique flavor.
