Oncom — West Java, Indonesia

Oncom is a fermented staple of Sundanese cooking, the cuisine of West Java, made by inoculating the press cake left over from peanut oil or tofu production with a mold and letting it set into a firm block. Two kinds are reported: red oncom, fermented with a Neurospora mold, and black oncom, fermented with a Rhizopus mold closer to the one used for tempeh, which oncom is often compared to since both are mold-fermented press-cake foods. This entry covers a simple West Javanese way of cooking oncom into a side dish, sambal oncom, prepared in home kitchens across the Sundanese region as an everyday companion to rice rather than as a special-occasion food. It sits alongside tempeh and tofu as one of the region's staple protein sources. The block of oncom is crumbled or sliced, then sautéed with a ground paste of shallot, garlic, chili and bay leaf, seasoned with a little sugar, salt and sweet soy sauce, and finished with a splash of water so the crumbs soften and take up the seasoning. Some households add tomato or shredded kaffir lime leaf toward the end for brightness. Because it starts from a fermentation base rather than a fresh ingredient, oncom carries an earthy, slightly nutty flavor that is milder in the red type and stronger in the black type, and cooks adjust the amount of chili and sugar accordingly. It is served hot, spooned over rice with raw cucumber and lettuce leaves on the side.