Learn how to make the most of this traditional, plant-based protein food in your diet with these Top 5 Ways to Use Tempeh.
Today I’m celebrating the traditional soyfood, tempeh. A couple of decades ago, this food was relatively unknown in American supermarkets and households, but today—thanks to the powerful plant-based movement—you can find tempeh in many grocery stores and even restaurants across the country. Tempeh is a traditional, fermented Indonesian soy and grain food. It comes in a neatly pressed little block, perfect for slicing into your favorite dishes as a meat replacement. It has a tangy (thanks to fermentation), mild, nutty taste, and firm texture. Learn more about tempeh here.
I love to slice tempeh into stir-fries, casseroles, stews, and pasta dishes. It’s especially good in a dish that has a vibrant sauce so that tempeh can pick up the flavors of the recipe. You can also marinate and roast tempeh into a delicious entrée all its own (see my favorite recipe).
And many creative food makers are whipping up really good tempeh products, such as tempeh bacon and seasoned tempeh. Tempeh is based on the real, whole plant foods, soy and grains, thus it should be part of your plant-based lexicon. In fact, tempeh is so “real” you could make it at home, if you were so inclined. But if you don’t want to go to all that trouble, you can find tempeh in most supermarkets next to the tofu. You will always find a block of tempeh, with its long shelf-life, rattling around in my refrigerator deli drawer, waiting for my next plant-based creation.
One of the beauties of tempeh is its nutritional profile: ½-cup serving size has 160 calories, 15 g protein, 9 g total fat, not to mention vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytochemicals and probiotics (remember, it’s fermented!)
Check out My Top 5 Ways to Use Tempeh, and get cooking with this traditional, plant-based food today!
My Top 5 Ways to Use Tempeh
1. BLTA. You can cook up your own healthy, whole foods, plant-based bacon with tempeh. Just slice tempeh into thin strips, drizzle on a marinade, and roast it at 400 F in the top rack of your oven until it’s golden brown. Or you could skip that work and buy premade tempeh bacon, too. Check out my yummy, easy vegan BLTA using tempeh bacon here. Learn how to make my BLTA sandwich in my cooking video here.
2. Make up a Batch of Roasted Tempeh. Create a delicious roasted tempeh by marinating it and roasting it. Then add it to sandwiches, salads, whole grain bowls (see below), sandwiches, and wraps any time of the week. Check out my delicious recipe for Sesame Roasted Tempeh here.
3. Comfort Food it Up. I love adding hearty, rustic slices of tempeh to favorite comfort food classics, such as casseroles, pasta dishes, and stews. Check out one of my favorite recipes featuring tempeh: this delicious Veggie Pot Pie.
4. Remember the Classic Stir-Fry. One of my all-time favorite ways to use tempeh is to add it to a classic vegetable stir-fry.
5. Get Cultural with It. Go deep into traditional cuisines from countries in Asia, such as Thailand, China, and Indonesia, with the help of tempeh. For starters, try out my recipes for Thai Tempeh Noodle Skillet and Tempeh Lettuce Cups from Plant-Powered for Life.
To help get you going with your newfound appreciation for tempeh, I’m sharing one of my favorite videos: Sesame Tempeh Buddha Bowl here.
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Get the recipe from the video here: Sesame Tempeh Grain Bowl.
For more tips on how to enjoy healthful plant-based foods in your diet, check out the following:
Top 5 Ways to Use Avocados
Top 5 Ways to Use Almonds
Top 5 Ways to Use Oats
Main image: Sesame Roasted Tempeh, Sharon Palmer, MSFS, RDN
