I first discovered tempeh in Toronto Canada. I was in a trendy vegetarian restaurant lounge where we almost felt like we weren't cool enough to get in. I had no idea what tempeh was so I gave it a shot. It came fried like a little chicken appetizer. I loved it.
After a year we went back to Toronto to this restaurant and ordered it again. I didn't like it this time. I never saw or had tempeh again until many years later, when my partner and I got a job with a vegan company making tempeh from scratch in large amounts. I liked tempeh again.
After 5 months we were moved to their new central kitchen to cook the tempeh with their sauces, for retail. I got so much tempeh to take home that eventually I couldn't eat it for a while.
Then in 2019 we found ourselves in Bali Indonesia. We discovered that this was the best tempeh ever. I can't describe why. Indonesia is the original inventor of it. Now it's become extremely popular in plantbased communities and Japanese are enjoying it as well. I wasn't able to find it at all in Thailand which was strange to me.
The tempeh I have made in this recipe, has some Japanese notes to it. It really absorbs flavors well, so as far as I'm concerned it can go into any direction.
I personally enjoy tempeh more if it's been marinated. I happen to have a giant bottle of sake that was given to me, and I will never drink it, so it is used for cooking. I added it to the marinade.
Tempeh marinade
2 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons tamari
1 tablespoon sake (optional)
Marinate for an hour. I left mine over night.
Put the marinated tempeh in a pot and add enough water to cover. I used a shallow pan but it doesn't matter. Boil, then simmer on low until all of the liquid has evaporated. I didn't add salt because of the sauce that will be applied during the grilling.
Sauce for tempeh
15 g garlic
10 g tamari
20 g sake (optional)
20 g rice vinegar
70 g miso paste
20g chili paste
10 g sesame oil
15 g minced ginger
20 green onion
30 g maple syrup or agave
150 g water or vegetable broth
20 g cornstarch
Saute garlic, ginger and onion.
Add chili paste and mix.
Add all liquid reserving a little to mix with the cornstarch.
I added the cornstarch at the end. First I simmered the sauce for 20 minutes then cooled. It was blended until smooth, put back in the pot, then had the cornstarch slurry added to it. Mix and simmer until the sauce has thickened.
Meanwhile take the tempeh and cut it into desired shapes. I wanted to take a 240 g block of tempeh and turn it into 8 pieces.
First I cut four pieces of triangles. Then I cut each triangle into two cutting it in the middle. I happen to have had quite a bit of practice in my former workplace, but if you haven't done this before, you may botch up the first piece. Perhaps you'll be a natural, unlike me. I have botched up many many pieces. No harm done since it can be ground up and treated like mince.
The only way I can grill something is with my electric grill so after adding the slices on the hot grill, I flipped each side and slathered the miso ginger sauce then pressed gently with the grill to brown each side.
I coated with black sesame seeds.
I almost always eat jasmine or basmati rice but I wanted a grainier rice. I happened to have a bit of red rice left that I bought last year. It's nuttier and to me it's like a combination of wild rice and brown rice.
Instead of boiling it on it's own, I decided to add a couple of items to it. I was using what I had in the fridge.
Red rice
130 g red rice
70 g chopped carrot
180 g water or more if nessary
Oil to cook
Heat some oil in a pot and add rice, carrot and onion. Brown then add water and simmer until liquid has absorbed. You may want to add more water depending on how soft you want it.
Vegetable stir fry
100 g oyster mushrooms
90 g bell pepper
100 g broccoli
100 g snow peas
70 g chopped onion
I kept these veggies simple since the marinade on the tempeh was where the flavor was. The mushrooms garlic, onion and peppers were fried in a bit of hot oil, until the mushrooms were done. The peas and broccoli were cooked separately. I blanched them for 30 to 40 seconds in boiling water that had a small pinch of baking soda in it. I find that it helps to keep the colour. After draining I rinsed in cold water to stop the cooking. I added them to the mushroom mix before serving and heated everything together.
I felt like having more vegetables so I added a green salad.
Even though this has Japanese notes to it, I wouldn't imagine this being on the table of a Japanese restaurant but here in Canada we are influenced by many cultures so our foods tend to become fusion. I call it "con-fusion", however when you eat it, it becomes clear.
One thing about tempeh if you've never cooked it before, is that it swells up, so even though one block of tempeh may seem only enough for one person, it really is enough for two with other items on the side.
It may seem strange but I like to squeeze citrus on many savoury dishes and this is one of them.
Thanks for dropping by and have a great day.
Photos taken with a Nikon D7500
design by: @KidSisters
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Wow! This looks so tasty! Never heard of it before but now I have got to try! Loving the fresh ingredients and quality pictures.
Oh thank you so much. It's worth a try if you're talking about the tempeh itself.
wow this is really the newest variation, I've never tried to make it, thanks a lot for sharing
Thank you so much. I'm sure your tempeh would be amazing. I love Indonesian recipes as well.
thank you very much 🥰
That looks fabulous! I've never tried tempeh, since the only time I saw it in a shop I was told by my friend not to buy it, since he absolutely would never eat it again, after having tried it once. And now I cannot find any 😿
I totally understand where your friend is coming from. It's not for everyone. I discovered more things after I stopped eating meat so it helped me be more flexible and adventurous. Now I like it a lot if it's well flavoured. I hope you try it and see if you like it. I've had tempeh that wasn't tasty at all. It's one of those things.
Thank you
Tempe is always appetizing when grilled with chili sauce, especially when the chili sauce you make looks different. Isn't tempeh a substitute for meat in your cooking? In my opinion, it is very delicious.
One more thing, you are blessed to get tempeh, which in my opinion is not easy for you to find in your country. Moreover, the price is fantastic in other countries.
OH no we have tempeh factories right here in the city. I can get it anywhere, but as good as it is, Indonesian tempeh is even better. I pay an average of 5 dollars for one piece.
Wow I just found out about that and it sounds interesting.
I'm curious, with the taste of tempe there. I hope someday I can taste it too.
It's the same taste but not as clean tasting as Indonesian. No need to try ours when yours is better haha.
Yup! We couldn’t order this in restaurants. But I have seen them on online stores. Many people like to eat this stuff here nowadays.
Bangkok has so many vegan and vegetarian restaurants I could only go to a few. For this reason I'm surprised nobody has started a tempeh factory. It would do well. I wish I could do it haha. Having warm weather makes it even easier.
I have seen some imported tempeh sold online. It still isn’t very well known here. I wonder how much volume they could sell tempeh each month.
I think with the right marketing to vegan restaurants in Bangkok, it would steadily become more popular. It can really be flavoured any way. My ex co worker a Vietnamese native tasted it for the first time and said they have something similar in Vietnam.
thick tempeh with soy, I never thought to marinate tempeh like that, and it looks very delicious. It's such an unexpected meal, I can imagine the taste by seeing it served so nicely and delicious like this.
Here in Canada we take tempeh and turn it into anything we want. The company I worked at had, Smokey tempeh, Thai tempeh, bacon tempeh, Barbecue tempeh and more. It's a vegan favorite here and available in many stores.
It's best fried but I try to limit my frying haha. Thank you for stopping by.
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Thank you!
Hello dear friend @carolynstahl good day
I must admit that I had never heard of this dish, but it looks very good and delicious.
I appreciate that you share the ingredients and the way of preparation
I take this opportunity to wish you a great day
I made the recipe so that's one reason you've never heard of it. The tempeh that I use is not popular in your area but it's a fermented soybeans pressed into a cake and used any way desired. It's not something everyone likes but some people love it. Indonesia probably consumes more of it then anyone. It's a staple there.
I appreciate your comment my friend and best wishes to you!
Well… this is art!! What a process and what a way of cooking!! I really want to try this dish!! Thanks a lot for sharing!!
Wow thank you for that complement. I appreciate that and hope you can try it someday. I'll warn you though that tempeh, is something people often hate haha.
😊
Thank you very much
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Thank you very much!
this looks incredible!
Much appreciated. Thank you.
Wow, it looks delicious. As a vegetarian myself, it is good to see Vegan food recipes on Hive.
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Yes the vegan community is really big here. Thank you for visiting.
Wow! This all looks sooo appetizing! 😋 I’ve never had tempeh but I’ve seen Indonesian recipes with it. I love miso!
Indonesian tempeh recipes are the best but I wanted to take it into a different direction this time. I hope you can try it. Not everyone likes it. But I know people that love it right away. It's one of those things haha.
🥰Quite creative. I like what you’ve done with it.
This looks so tasty and yummy 😋 The high quality images you shared also added to its attractiveness. Also, the neat preparation makes it stand out.... 🥰 I'd love to have a bite 🥰
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I have never heard of Tempeh before, but you have certainly piqued my curiosity with you recipe. Also I must say, thank you for making the recipe so clear to follow. As a novice cook I am often intimated to make new dishes, but you have made this very simple to follow along.
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It’s very pretty
Until I met @rubencress, I had never eaten tempeh before, I don't even know if knew it existed back then, haha. But now it has become one of my favorite things to eat, together with a bowl of coconut rice and veggies.
We usualy glaze it with a sweet kecap and sambal sauce, but that ginger and miso sauce sounds like something we would like as well!
Wow that's great. It's a love hate item haha. I'm glad you like it! Hmnnnn coconut rice and sambal. I have to get on that. Thanks for your comment!
I never had any tempeh before and your final dish is looking so mouth-watering and colorful. It is so nice that you shared your personal recipe, thank you :)
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Hopefully you can try tempeh someday. It can have any flavor added. But you have to like the texture of beans. Some people I know don't like it haha.
Thank you so much!
First, we eat the food through our eyes, and then we eat and this truly applies to this dish. It looks so tempting and delicious and I am sure you enjoyed it.
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Hey @carolynstahl
What a fantastic recipe you shared for this food and I just loved it. Great efforts and needless to mention that photography is great.
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