Botok Tempe - Steamed Spicy Tempe

Ready for another Indonesian delicious home cooking?

I am back with easy breezy Indonesian food for you to try. This time, I am still using tempe as the main ingredient.


Botok tempe, everyone?

Tempe is surely one of the most popular ingredients back home in Indonesia. This fermented soybean cake is famous for its exquisite taste and unique texture. And I have to say it's addictive! That is why I was super excited when I found that tempe is easy to find here in NYC. And I am not only talking about buying it in Asian market or shops, but I can also find tempe in many big chained supermarkets in NYC like D'Agostino and Trader Joe's. Apparently it becomes quite famous as vegan staples here. Great! So I can introduce you all with more Indonesian food using tempe as one of the ingredients.

Siapa yang tidak suka tempe?
Rasanya jarang saya menemukan orang Indonesia yang tidak suka dengan makanan sederhana namun sehat ini. Yang ada malah ketagihan seperti saya. Ke mana pun pergi, selalu menyempatkan diri (dan berusaha keras :)) mencari tempe. Rasanya kalau bisa mendapatkan tempe seperti memenangkan undian berhadiah lipstik setahun #eeeh. Dan bahagianya, di New York City tempe bukanlah bahan langka. Asal hapal jadwal tempe-tempe ini didrop di berbagai toko bahan makanan khas asia, maka tempe segar yang biasanya dipasok dari daerah Philadelphia dan New Jersey pun bisa kita nikmati. Bahkan dengan bonus bahan makanan khas tanah air lainnya seperti sambal pedas, bumbu-bumbu masakan, sampai teh kotak :).

So, what do we have here today.
I'd love to introduce you to Botok Tempe - steamed spicy tempe.
A la mama Bo et Obi :).

Kali ini saya mau berbagi resep sederhana a la dapur Astoria. 
Botok tempe :).
Botok itself is a famous dish in Indonesia and it has many varieties. It can be mainly composed of tempe, tofu, mushroom, and other vegetables. Some use grated coconut and dried fish as well. Originally, it's wrapped in banana leaves, which make it somehow more delicious, before you steam it. But for the practical reason, I just put it in the steamer without wrapping it with banana leaves. Back home, I just need to go to the backyard to fetch some banana leaves. But surely not here in NYC :).

And here we go.

Ingredients:
Tempe - one pack, cute in cubes 
Red onion or shallots - thinly slices
Garlic - peeled
Coriander - one tea spoon, seeds of powder 
Kemiri or candlenut - 2 pieces
Fresh chili - if desired
Cilantro - sliced
Salt - as desired
Sugar - as desired

Bahannya sederhana dan relatif mudah didapat, bahkan untuk teman-teman yang sedang tidak berada di Indonesia. Tempe, bawang merah, bawang putih, cabe, dan bumbu-bumbu khas Indonesia seperti ketumbar dan kemiri. Kemiri juga relatif mudah dijumpai di sini karena ternyata banyak yang menggunakannya untuk memasak. Di sini saya juga menggunakan cilantro, bukan daun bawang, karena wanginya yang khas. Berhubung tidak ada kemangi, kebanyakan adanya daun basil, maka cilantro is a good substitute.

How to cook:

Put all the spices - garlic, red onion/shallot, coriander, candlenut and chili in the grinder. I usually use stone grinder because it feels authentic, like cooking it at home (I do bring my stone grinder from Indonesia :). But you can of course use your usual grinder or food processor for this. Once it's well grounded, add tempe, coarsely grind it and mix it well with the spices. Add salt and sugar as desired. 


using the stone grinder, we mix all the ingredients

If everything is well mixed, put them in a bowl or steamer and steam it for 20 minutes. Once it's ready, it will be best to eat it with steamed rice.


ready to steam :)

You can certainly substitute or add the ingredients with tofu or mushrooms. These are two of my favorite ingredients.

Gampang kaaan buatnya. Kalau di tanah air, botok tempe biasanya dicampur dengan teri asin atau sayuran lainnya seperti pete cina ya. Tapi berhubung di sini mencari bahan-bahannya perlu perjuangan, jadi memasaknya memanfaatkan bahan yang ada. Dapet tempe aja bahagianya sampai sejagad raya :).

Bon appetite!

47 comments:

  1. gampang banget..biasanya kalo olahan tempe tuh aku paling suka ama sambel tumpang mbak...hehehe

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  2. Mak Indah doyan tempee.. Bravo.. Kalo di sini masak tempe terus nanti diomongin, tempe lagi.. Tempe lagi.. Xixii..

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    1. Kalau aku maunya memang tempe lagi, tempe lagiii mba :)

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  3. yummiii mbaaa, walaupun lagi merantau jauhh alhamdulillah nemu tempee yaaa....

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  4. Dah lama banget ngak makan botok tempe, emak ku biasa nya di campur ama teri kecil2 gitu

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  5. What?? New yorker ngomongin botok? Beneran tu ulekan dibawa kesana ya? Aku sering terkejut melihat kegigihanmu membawa Indonesia ke meja makan keluarga. Aku aja yg nggak kemana-mana sering malesnya.

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    1. Hehehe... Surprise surpriseee :). Justru di sini serunya mbaaa. Aku selalu mencoba menjadi orang Indonesia asli di mana pun berada :)

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  6. Aku penggemar tempe hihi, dimasak apapun suka :)

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  7. sama terkejutnya aku dg mb lusi, demi melihat cobek dan ulekan :D kereen

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    Replies
    1. jangan-jangan itu cobek buatan indramayu.

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    2. Noe.. Cobek tidak pernah ketinggalan dari packing list aku setiap penempatan di mana pun :).

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  8. Aku juga terkejut dengan cobek itu... ;D
    Di rumahku tempe sama tahu selang-seling. Gak pernah bosen. Kapan-kapan mau coba botok juga deh. Gampang juga ya, bikinnya :)

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    1. Super gampaaang mbaaaa. And I'm proud with my cobek :)

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  9. seringnya makan botok tahu, kalau tempe belum pernah mbak

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  10. Mbak Indah bawa cobek ya? *salah fokus :D

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  11. Hahahha keren banget cobek bisa nangkring di AStoria :) Luar biasa nih Mama Bo ;)

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    1. Hihihi.. Bagian dari keluarga yang tak terpisahkan judulnya :).

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  12. saya belum pernah bikin tempe dijadiin botok. Biasanya kalau diulek gitu, saya bikin sambal tempe, Mbak :)

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  13. Your food always looks so great! I love spicy foods!

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  14. Wow, makan botok di Astoria? cool.
    Bwt your blog look prettier Mama Bo

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    Replies
    1. Iya mba etty, makan botok di Astoria yummy banget. Thanks for the compliment :).

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  15. Ternyata tempe sudah mendunia. Dulu kalau makan tempe jadi bahan ejeen karena jaman dulu yang makan tempe itu umumnya orang miskin. Orang kaya malu jika makan tempe. Dunia telah berubah.Botok itu umumnya pakai tahu kalau disini.

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    Replies
    1. Tempe banyak peminatnya mas, termasuk di luar negeri lho :).

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  16. It looks really good and I bet it's delicious. I hope you have a great day! :)
    Julie

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  17. tempe mendoan kalo dirumah jadi juaranya sama tempe garit, tempe yang digoreng biasa tapi di garis2 permukaannya pake pisau jadi bumbu bawang meresap ke dalam hahahaha

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    1. Garit2nya yg agak dalem.jd meresap banget.xixixixi

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  18. Waaah. Syukurlah tempe ada di mana- mana, soalnya dia memang makanan favorit. Dimasak apa aja enak haha.
    Btw, botok tempe aku suka jugaa

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  19. Botok tempe sama sayur bayam..enaaakk

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  20. Botok tempe sama sayur bayam..enaaakk

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  21. eh saya malah baru tahu kalo tempe bisa di botok, mirip sama tumpang tapi kering ya bu

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  22. Aku aja belum pernah makan botok tempe mak ... biasanya makan botok mlanding aja ... hehhehehhee

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  23. Oh, I wish I can buy plenty of tempeh in Suly. :(

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  24. This sounds delicious. I love spicy foods.

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  25. This looks so tasty! I doubt I could find all the ingredients in my rural area but I shall look!

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  26. This looks so tasty! I doubt I could find all the ingredients in my rural area but I shall look!

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  27. Tempe favoritku. Dimasak bagaimana aja tetep suka kalo tempe :)

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