Addition of tape yeast and tempe mould in optimization of traditional coconut oils production

Pliek u is fermented, grated, and dried coconut meat which is used as a cooking ingredient in Aceh, Indonesia. This ingredient is a by-product of the manufacturing process of traditional coconut oils which are known as simplah and pliek u oils. These three products are produced by natural fermentation (without the addition of starter cultures) and the whole process takes up to 20 days. Therefore, this study aims to test methods for speeding up production time and for increasing the yield by adding commercial starter cultures ( tape yeast, tempe mould, and combination of both types). The coconut was fermented for one to three days. A control was conducted for fermented coconut without adding any starters. This experiment was conducted using group randomised design with three replicates. The results show that the addition of commercial starters decreased the production time up to nine days. The application of a single starter shortened fermentation time to two days while the combination of the starters required three days. In terms of the yield, the use of tape yeast either on its own or in combination starters increased the yield of simplah oil more than 100%. The addition of tempe mould either on its own or in combination starters increased the yield of pliek u oil up to 60%. Conversely, the yield of pliek u was maximised without adding any starters. These findings suggested that tape yeast and tempe mould should not be added at the same time to maximize the production of both oils.