Nutritional Composition Changes During Tempeh Gembus Processing

This paper was aimed to analyze nutritional composition during tempeh gembus processing. Processing of tempeh gembus may cause an increase or decrease in its nutritional value such as amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. Regardless, tempeh gembus may still be potentially beneficial to help fulfill nutrient needs. This was a descriptive study with three samples: soybeans, tofu residue, and tempeh gembus. Soybeans used were varieties of Grobogan, Central Java. Minerals identified in all three samples include sodium, calcium, potassium, phospor, and iron. Soybeans, tofu residue, and tempeh gembus each contain 34.12%, 5.40%, and 4.80% of amino acids. Saturated fatty acids were the lowest in soybeans (12.01%), marginally surpassed by tofu residue (12.41%) and tempeh gembus (12.55%). Total levels of monounsaturated fatty acids were also found in a similar pattern (34.1%, 36.5%, 36.7% respectively). In contrast, soybeans had significantly more polyunsaturated fatty acids than other samples, containing up to 43.6% in comparison with 38.29% in tofu residue and 30.18% in tempeh gembus. Overall, the nutritional profile of soybeans was generally better than tofu residue and tempeh gembus. However, fermentation process may play a role in enchancing the fatty acid profile.