When it comes to tempeh making, each of us has our own preferences from the type of beans used and their unique processes, as well as preferred incubators and moulds. 


Tempeh is formed by beans lightly packed in a vented container, ideal thickness is between 2-3cm deep. Personally I recommend covering with damp tea towel instead of vented cover, 100% success rate so far. There’s a bit of trial & error required with the vented cover option, the vents or holes must be large enough to allow for air circulation, yet not so large that the beans dry out. 

I have been using various shape of containers (square, round, rectangular and irregular), made from materials such as glass, plastic, silicone and of course the traditional green containers used by most Indonesian tempeh makers, the banana leaves. 

Round & Rectangular tempeh cake

Select shape of containers based on how you intend to use your tempeh at the end. If you want to use it as burger patty, then round shape makes sense. For me, square/rectangular shape provides most versatile and firm tempeh. For final consumption, you can cut it into cubes for your vegetarian curry or slice thinly and air fry it for yummy snacks. 

Table below shows pros and cons of some common container materials. It is listed based on my preference, from my favorite on the top.

Material Pros/ConsTips
Glass/Plastic Container* Reusable, multi purpose
* Comes in Variety of shapes and thicknesses 
* Retain shape well

* Cover with damp tea towel to avoid dryness and allow for air circulation
* Choose BPA free plastic
Silicone moulds* Reusable, multi-purpose
* Comes in Variety of shapes and thicknesses 
* Retain shape well (though not as solid as glass/plastic container)
* Cover with damp tea towel to avoid dryness and allow for air circulation
* Choose food grade silicone 
Resealable (Ziploc) bag* Good portion batch per bag (produce approx 200-250g tempeh cake)
* Little prep needed for first use (poke vent holes)
* Harder to compact beans
* Easy to see what is going on during incubation
* Holes to be approx 1 cm apart to allow for air circulation
* Wash & re-use for future batches
Banana leaves* Fresh leaves harder to find unless you happen to grow banana tree at home. You can get frozen version at most Asian grocery store.
* Doesn’t hold shape well so result in irregular shaped tempeh cake
* Add lovely fragrance to the tempeh
* Hard to check progress during incubation

* Choose large leaf for easier fold.
* Make sure to cut a few slits at the top to allow excess moisture to escape

Share your experience with us by commenting below. Which molds to you prefer to use and why? 

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