Indonesian Tempeh turned into Tokyo specialty

It may not be everyone's idea of dessert, but chocolate-covered tempeh is gaining fans in Tokyo.

Tempeh, a type of fermented soybean cake that originated in Indonesia, is being produced by a growing number of makers, including Tokiwa Foods, a 61-year-old food processor based in Fuchu, western Tokyo.

Schools are adding tempeh to lunches as a result of municipality efforts to encourage greater consumption of local produce.

And Tokiwa Foods' dessert made of tempeh and chocolate has even been declared a local specialty by the Tokyo metropolitan government.

"Tempeh has great potential (in Japan) as a food product," said Makoto Yusaku, president of Tokiwa Foods. "We want to develop more food products that people appreciate."

The company started adapting traditional Indonesian tempeh to suit Japanese palates six years ago.

Its "fresh tempeh" is made by fermenting cooked soybeans with tempeh bacteria extracted from hibiscus and other leaves.

According to Yusaku, tempeh was first introduced in Japan about 25 years ago, and natto makers marketed it as something similar to their primary offerings.

Demand was sluggish initially. But about a decade ago, tempeh again drew attention amid growing interest in health food.

Fresh tempeh is delicious on its own and also goes well with other foods due to its plain flavor.

Building on that characteristic, Tokiwa Foods devised a variety of tempeh products, blending the soft food with ice cream, rice porridge and other ingredients.

Especially popular is Tokiwa's soy tempeh chocolate, a freeze-dried tempeh dipped in chocolate.

The company's tempeh is also increasingly used in school lunches. Orders have soared since the product was introduced at a study session for school nutritionists in August 2008.

Sales in the year ending in August are forecast to exceed the record 12.34 million yen ($132,000) set in the year ended August 2005.

In March, a group of school nutritionists visited the Tokiwa Foods factory to see how tempeh is produced.

Yusaku emphasizes his commitment to only using quality ingredients. The company buys soybeans from Hokkaido, Ibaraki and Tochigi prefectures.

In Tokyo's Tama region, which includes Fuchu, it works with producers in Ome, Hamura and Hino.

Lombok, Sumbawa eying 1 million tourists by 2012

Lombok and Sumbawa in West Nusa Tenggara have set a target of wooing one million tourists to visit the islands by 2012, says an official.

“We are confident of reaching the target,” West Nusa Tenggara culture and tourism agency head Gita Ariadi said Tuesday as quoted by Antara state news agency.

Gita said the agency recorded nearly 620,000 tourist arrivals in Lombok and Sumbawa in 2009, up by 13 percent from a year earlier, thanks to a comprehensive tourism strategy through Meeting, Incentive, Conference and Exhibition (MICE).

This year, the agency is expecting 700,000 tourist arrivals in the two prominent islands, Gita added.

Indonesia takes to the stage in Shanghai Expo

The Komodo dragon, the Borobudur temple and traditional food are among the features showcased at the Indonesian pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo that was officially opened here Saturday.
Indonesia’s participation in the five-yearly world expo is its second after New York in 1964. This time the country engaged in “a massive PR event”, a minister said, to show how it has moved away from decades of autocratic rule, becoming a beacon of democracy and emerging as one of the most resilient economies in Asia.
“The Expo is looking to draw 70 million visitors so it provides a great opportunity for Indonesia to boost its branding,” Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu, who also chaired Indonesia’s executive committee for the expo, said.
Mari said that in line with the expo theme of “Better City, Better Life”, Indonesia defined “better life” as harmony among different ethnic groups with their innate cultural heritage, while constantly moving forward in democracy and modernity.
“We are showcasing our democracy and the progress that we have made in political, economic and
cultural aspects in the past years,” she added.
The 2,400-square-meter pavilion incorporates a tropical contemporary concept dominated by bamboo material. Architect Budi Lim said he did not want to be trapped in a box building.
“Instead, I want to highlight the tradition of openness in Indonesia,” he said.
The Indonesian pavilion — one of 45 other countries in the World Expo 2010 Shanghai China information center — is divided into three zones: the bio zone featuring the country’s abundant natural resources, the diverse zone showcasing equipment used by traditional society in agriculture, and the city section including food and beverages.
Organizers hope to have 70 million guests visiting the pavilions of 192 participating countries and 50 international organizations. The Indonesian government expects the six-month expo to net Rp 1 trillion (US$110.8 million) in transactions from multiplying effects in tourism, trade and investment.
Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa said in his opening speech that Indonesia’s participation in the expo served as a means of promotion for trade, tourism and investment, as well as showcasing Indonesia’s role in the world.
“Through this expo, we should be able to change the paradigm that Indonesia is just a market,” he said.
Among Indonesia’s main objectives in the expo, he said, was improving bilateral trade relations with China, which was $25.5 billion last year. Hatta hoped that bilateral trade could reach $50 billion by 2014. China is currently Indonesia’s third-largest export destination.

A sunrise tryst with Yogyakarta

By Shweta Ganesh Kumar

We are Javanese first and everything else after that!” our guide proudly told us as she led us to the Javanese cottage where my husband and I would be staying in Yogyakarta. We were in Indonesia for a week and were all set to explore this reg ion in Central Java. Stepping into the house with a black-oxide floor and a thatched roof replete with wooden beds covered by mosquito nets, Java did not seem all that different from rural India. Yet, we soon realised that the sort of religious harmony that exists here is something that our country is yet to achieve. And everything we saw during the course of our travels only reinforced that.
Flourishing under the shadow of the active volcano Mount Merapi, Yogyakarta or Yogya, is what many would call Indonesia’s soul, the culture capital of sorts. We had six days and therefore no time to waste. Determined to experience the town as the locals did, we set out on a walking tour with our guide. Before starting the actual tour though, we spent an agonising ten minutes attempting to cross the road while Yogyakarta’s manic and trademark traffic rushed on. That adventure behind us, we followed our guide into an alley that turned out to be a peaceful residential colony. We walked past grandparents sunning themselves in their patios as their toddler grandchildren stumbled and crawled away. Our guide had a smile and a greeting for every person we met. They returned the greeting, not only to her but also to us, teaching us that a smile goes a long way in these parts. We made our way to the Alun-Alun or the South Square and then walked down a cobblestone path, to the back door of the Kraton or the Sultan’s palace. This was not our destination for the day though. We walked on to a small shack just beyond the back gate. There, hanging from the walls and casually left on a worktable were the famed Indonesian puppets in various stages of formation. As we looked at the Krishnas and Hanumans and other characters of the great epics, the puppet maker told us that his family had been creating them for seven generations. With the white paint coming from the crushed horns of the Caribou and the black from the volcanic ashes of Mount Merapi, a ‘Walang Kulit’ puppet as they are called is all Yogya.
As is the Kraton, that we visited the next day, armed with the mandatory palace guide who dutifully pointed out the artefacts and the Sultan’s family tree. Yet what caught my eye were the ‘offerings’ that the Sultan had left at odd corners of the vast palace. Freshly plucked flowers placed on a cut banana leaf were something I would have expected in a Hindu temple, but certainly not in a Muslim ruler’s residence.
A stroll through Yogya’s traditional bird market later, we were ready for the sights that travellers come to Yogya for. The temples of yore! Ever ready to take us to our destination, our guide and her friend revved up their bikes and whisked us away to the ninth century Prambanan temple complex. Standing proudly erect, apparently unaware of the small town that grew around it, we caught our first glimpses of Prambanan while waiting for the signal at the junction.

Getting there: One can get into Yogyakarta via air, bus or train. There are plenty of low cost flight options from Jakarta. If you have the time, you can also take the train down or even rent a car. The travel time ranges from eight to ten hours. Accommodation: Yogyakarta offers a wide range of accommodation from expensive hotels to home stay options. For an authentic Javanese vacation try reserving at Via Via Yogyakarta. Get more information here — http://www.viaviajogja.com/ Food: There is a wide range of food available in Yogya. From cafés to roadside stalls, you can afford to get adventurous here without worrying about either your stomach or the price. Remember to carry your Indonesian phrase book though as not all menu’s are in English. Season: The best time to visit Yogyakarta is from the end of April to October, which is the dry season

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