Food Product Review: White Wave Five-Grain Tempeh

Tempeh (pronounced tem-pay) may be one of the best foods you have never eaten. Tempeh comes in a package similar to tofu and will most likely be found at a natural foods store in the refrigerated section near the tofu. White wave is the brand name, and the particular type of tempeh is five-grain, which is lower in fat and calories than some other types of tempeh.

What is Tempeh Made From?

Tempeh is primarily made from soybeans. The White Wave five-grain tempeh contains organic soybeans, filtered water, wheat, barley, millet, oats, brown rice, white rice, and tempeh culture. Each serving of tempeh has 160 calories and 6 grams of fat (1 gram of which is saturated fat).

Why Eat Tempeh?

Tempeh is High in Protein

Tempeh is an excellent source of protein. One serving size, which is 1/3 of the 8-ounce block of tempeh, contains 12 grams of protein. About 2.5 ounces of tempeh provides approximately one-fifth of the average person's daily protein intake needs.

Tempeh is High in Dietary Fiber

Each serving of tempeh contains 7 grams of dietary fiber, which is 28% of the average person's daily fiber needs. Many people do not get enough dietary fiber in their diet. Eating tempeh is an excellent way to get a lot of dietary fiber from a small amount of food.

Tempeh is Very Low in Sodium

One serving of tempeh contains 10 mg of sodium, which is an insignificant amount. Many people consume way too much sodium in their diets, causing such health problems as high blood pressure.

Tempeh Tastes Great!

Although I have been vegetarian for over five years, I had never heard of tempeh until fairly recently. I certainly did not know how to pronounce it until I read about it in a vegetarian cookbook. Thankfully, the cookbook had a pronunciation key.

I first tried tempeh by substituting it for ground beef in a taco salad recipe. My husband and I were delightfully surprised that the flavor of the tempeh was outstanding. We got the idea for tempeh taco "meat" because our local natural foods deli and café, The Earth, serves tempeh tacos, and our friends always order them when we meet there for lunch.

Tempeh is Versatile

Tempeh can be used in sandwiches and in stir-fry. I found a recipe for Nostalgic Noodle Soup (a vegetarian version of chicken noodle soup) in a vegetarian cookbook that calls for tempeh as the meat substitute. I cannot wait to try it!