Unlocking the protein potential: Here's tempeh, your vegetarian diet's new best friend

The tempeh craze is riding on the plant-based protein wave all over the world. The global tempeh market, valued at $3.8 billion in 2022, is expected to reach $6.3 billion by 2032, expanding at a CAGR of 5.3%, according to DataHorizzon Research, a market research and consulting firm.

So, what exactly is tempeh, and why is it becoming popular? Tempeh is basically fermented soya bean, where soya bean is cooked, dehulled, and then combined with a starter culture containing a specific strain of fungus called Rhizopus oligosporus. This fungus binds the soya bean together, forming a dense cake-like structure with a whitish mycelium network. This can then be sliced and diced and used for cooking. It has 60% water, 20% protein, 8% carbohydrates, and about 12% fat.

Tempeh is firmer than tofu and has a grainier texture and nuttier flavour, making it more versatile. But it is tempeh’s gut-enhancing quality—which helps boost the immune system—that has got the world to sit up and take note. “Tempeh is fermented, so [it] is easy to digest. It provides calcium, magnesium, zinc, and lots of vitamin B, besides of course being a high source of protein. It has 19 gm of protein per 100 gm, making it an ideal source of protein, especially for vegetarians,” says Kavita Devgan, a Delhi-based nutritionist and author of books such as The Don’t-Diet Plan and The Immunity Diet.

Chefs are beginning to experiment with it and are enjoying it. In February, when The Spice Route, an iconic restaurant at New Delhi’s Imperial Hotel, changed its menu after almost three decades to provide dishes inspired by the ancient trade route from East Asia through Java to India, it introduced tempeh on the menu. “I wanted to introduce something that was an alternative to tofu, which I feel is not really preferred by the Indian market,” says Mustian Gadang, Chef de Cuisine at The Spice Route. In fact, he was so convinced of tempeh’s qualities (both in terms of nutrition and its versatility in the kitchen) that he decided to make tempeh in-house at the hotel, instead of buying it from the handful of start-ups selling it in India. “Tempeh is traditionally made of soya bean, but we are making it with lobia beans, which are more indigenous,” says Gadang.

Adds Arun Sundaraj, Director of Culinary Operations at Taj Mahal, New Delhi, who uses tempeh at popular restaurants House of Ming and Machan at the hotel: “While tempeh is a lot like tofu, it has a higher [level of] protein content and is less processed than tofu. Though it may be considered a meat substitute, it has its own status on the menu.”

Tempeh can be fried, simmered, or grilled. Its texture and ability to absorb flavours make it a perfect base for marinating. “People are not eating it only as a substitute for meat; it has its own following. Because of the fermentation, it has a rich, intense umami flavour,” says Dhruv Oberoi, Executive Chef at Olive Delhi, The Grammar Room and Bar Serai, who has a Bolognese pasta on his menu where instead of minced beef he has used tempeh, and a cheese steak where tempeh has replaced haloumi to make the dish vegan.

It was in 2021 that Siddharth Ramasubramanian, Founder and CEO of Hello Tempayy, set up his company selling ready-to-cook tempeh in Bengaluru. Having a background in hospitality and having worked in the US, Australia and Dubai, Ramasubramanian says that he had an understanding of how various cultures consumed food and how a variety of foods introduced at different times eventually became a part of mainstream culture.

When Sushi came to the US, “everybody thought it was weird and today, it’s available pretty much at a gas station; or how pizza or pasta was introduced in India, and considered a novelty before it became commonplace,” he says. Tempeh, he feels, will go the same route, and he is beginning to see that. In just over 24 months, the company has grown to nearly 400 retail stores across the metros and tempeh is available online across the country, with purchases being made even in smaller towns like Panipat and Jabalpur. It is also sold to over 75 F&B outlets across India. “While figuring out my business plan, I realised that vegetarians had very limited options when it came to protein, paneer being the de facto choice. And I figured tempeh would be ideal,” says Ramasubramanian.

Vaibhav Krishnaswami had a similar idea when he set up his vegan cloud kitchen in Bengaluru in 2017 at the age of 22. With a menu of 184 dishes, it soon became a one-stop shop for all things vegan. Tempeh, he says, was difficult to make. So he went to Java, Indonesia, to learn the process and got certified; he set up a tempeh manufacturing unit in 2019, and a brand called ‘Tempe Wala’. Tempe Wala is tempeh-centric but sells all kinds of probiotics. Krishnaswami sold his cloud kitchen last year and is currently pursuing his MBA from IIM Bangalore. “I still sell tempeh to the cloud kitchen. It is a profitable business,” he says. Tempeh, he believes, is still in its nascent stage and it will be a couple of decades before the market matures. Tempe Wala has a revenue of around `60-70 lakh annually; of which tempeh contributes 20-25%, from just about 5-6% in the first year.

While it may still be some time before tempeh becomes as commonplace as paneer in Indian kitchens, it’s here to stay. 

@smitabw