Scent of Sweetness in Kering Tempe
If this recipe were a person, they would come across as clingy and distant at the same time. But actually, they were sweet, kind, and had long-endearing patience, and you'd die to have a bowl of them.
Around late March, early times of this pandemic, I was just moving to Ubud for less than 3 weeks. I lived in a kost - a compound housing with some Balinese families, a yoga teacher from Kupang (who introduced me to Sambal Lu’at), a bitcoin miner, and a single mother with two toddlers that I babysit when she had to work. It was a small kost with a ceiling fan (a typical Ubud housing has no aircon) right in the heart of Ubud - I planned to live there while looking for a cheap house to rent and exploring the waterfalls around Ubud. But, after only 2 weeks being there, it was the time for Nyepi, the day of silence celebrating Saka New Year.
This day of compulsory quietness and darkness usually lasts for 24 hours. But last Nyepi in March lasted for 2 days. Luckily, on the second day, the electricity and phone service were on. But, many of us did not know that this Nyepi was meant to be a trial for staying at home.
To me, staying at home means I had to survive without buying fresh vegetables and tempe every other day since I had no fridge. My go-to for a long-preserved meal is Kering Tempe (or Orek Tempe as other people name it). My mother used to make this everytime we did a road trip. We had them for our 10 days journey across Java and Bali, a couple days journey to her hometown in Madiun, and we even had this for our 4 weeks in Jakarta (She was so sure everything tasted horrible in Jakarta and she was right most of the time). We enjoyed this with warm nasi pulen - a well-cooked fluffy rice, porridge, or even with Nasi Kuning if we want to feel special that day!
It’s an interesting way to preserve tempe. I’m not sure if this is fermentation. All I know is that the sugar coating the deep-fried tempe gives it a longer time to enjoy tempe. This version of Kering Tempe is fresh, sweet, rich, and warm, hugging you all day everyday in the blend of soysauce, palm sugar, and the pungent scent of lime leaf. To me, this feels like dessert and one whole meal at the same time. No cake needed after a whole meal of Kering Tempe!
Kering Tempe and Nasi Kuning
Ingredients
Tempe (2 squares of tempe) - mine is 12cm width x 16cm length
Coconut oil (a lot - to deep fry until it’s dry and crispy)
4cm of Lengkuas / Laos / Galangal
around 6 tablespoons of Tamarind water
4 - 6 tablespoons of Gula Kelapa (Palm Sugar or substitute it with Brown Sugar)
some water
Ingredients for Bumbu Ulek
5 shallots
3 cloves of garlic
5 chillies (optional)
2 Kaffir lime leaves (or substitute it with 2 Bay Leaves, a bit of lime zest, and 2 lemon thyme leaves)
Trick
slice thinly (but not too thinly * see picture below)
if you use lime leaf, do not use the “bone” of the leaf, just use the leafand chop
the key is LESS WATER - MORE SUGAR
wait until the sauce slowly becoming thick, then turn off the heat, before you put the deep-fried tempe into the pan
to avoid the tempe becoming wet and thus, makes it less preserve, TURN OFF THE HEAT, then mix the sauce and tempe together.
Steps
Deep-fry the tempe
Slice tempe thinly (so it would be dry and crispy pretty quick)
Fry tempe until it’s very dry and crispy (usually this would work with a lot of oil - but by cooking it in low heat would be good)
When it’s dry and well-cooked, set aside.
Make Sambal Ulek
Chop shallots, garlic, chillies, and lime leaves.
Mix all ingredients from Bumbu Ulek, put a bit of salt, mash! (no need ulekan and cobek, you could mash it in a bowl with a jar or glass bottle that has flat bottom)
3. Make tamarind water (you could substitute it with lime juice)
Boil 30-50ml water with 4cm of tamarind
Pour into a cup
Make the sauce and later, with the heat off, mix it with the tempe
Put some oil in the pan, saute the sambal ulek, put laos (or ginger), sugar, tamarind water/lime juice (6 tablespoons is enough)
Lengkuas / laos / galangal, Bumbu Ulek, Palm Sugar, and Tamarind Water
Cook in low heat and stir until it becomes thick - you’ll know when you dip a spoon/spatula, bring it up, then it drops slowly
the sauce!
Taste it, if it’s too sweet, put only 1 or 2 tablespoons of water/lime juice, stir again - if it’s still sweet, do not worry, it will mix with the tempe
When the sauce is ready (thick and with the desired taste), turn off the heat.
Put the fried tempe in, mix well while the heat is off - you could put a tablespoon of water or two, then mix it again, and turn the heat on for just a minute.
Once you mix it well, turn off the heat, and let it cool for 5 minutes
After around 5 minutes, put in a jar or a container (don’t let it sit on the pan for too long because it will stick to the pan and you don’t want to spend your life washing the dishes)
Enjoy over warm rice, porridge with steamed woodear mushroom and pok choy, nasi kuning, paella, or even risotto! Just one spoonful of sweetness to comfort you during this uncertain time!
Monggo sakeca’aken, everyone!
