Teriyaki Tempeh

Tempeh. Where we live is not as easy as we would like to find Tempeh. Lidl offers a very good deal for tempeh during their Vegan week but then takes it away (why Lidl?). Large supermarkets often offer one or two different brands of tempeh, so we make the most of it when we find it at a good price. Try to get tempeh that hasn't been marinated with a sauce already.

For this recipe, we use a tempeh that comes already cooked, so all I do is heat it up with the sauce when ready. You can sautée the tempeh just like you would sautée tofu, with a little bit of oil.

Mirin. To add sweetness to our sauce, we use mirin, a type of rice wine used commonly in Japanese cuisine. It has a low alcohol content and high sugar content. Rice vinegar is an excellent substitute for mirin.

Sake. This second rice wine contains a higher alcohol content than mirin but doesn't contain sugar so it brings the right balance to the dish. Don't worry, the alcohol will evaporate while cooking the sauce. No sake? White wine would be a good substitute for the sake to use in this teriyaki recipe.

Maple Syrup (optional). I like adding a little maple syrup to add some more sweetness to the sauce.

Soy sauce or tamari. The key ingredient to make your teriyaki sauce. You can use light soy sauce, tamari (gluten-free soy sauce), or liquid aminos.

Fresh veggies. For this recipe, I use seasonal produce from my garden such as edamame, radish, or cucumber. You can buy some seasonal produce, depending on the time of the year to make this meal colorful and fresh.

Quinoa. Teriyaki sauce is quite rich, so I like pairing it with a grain that can soak some of that sauce such as quinoa or rice.

The first thing I like to do is cook my grains. If you are cooking quinoa, briefly rinse the quinoa with cold water and add quinoa to a pan with double the amount of water. Bring to a boil, cover the pan, and then reduce the heat to low and let it cook until all the water has evaporated.

Fluff the quinoa with a fork, and set aside.

Cut your tempeh into thin strips, or cubes, depending on your preference. Now, depending on the type of tempeh you've got, you'll need to sautée or air fry the tempeh. If your protein is already cooked, simply set aside.

Prepare the teriyaki sauce by combining all the ingredients for the sauce: soy sauce, mirin, sake, and maple syrup.

Bring the sauce to a simmer and leave simmering for a few minutes before adding the cornflour slurry.

To make the slurry, simply add some lukewarm water to the cornflour and whisk until well combined.

Add the cornflour to the sauce, and mix well. You'll see that the sauce starts to thicken straight away.

If you add the cornflour without diluting it in water, it willmake your sauce lumpy. Now, don't panic, I've been there, and there is still hope. You can transfer the sauce to a blender and blend the mixture until smooth.

Once the sauce has the right consistency (like syrup), add your tempeh and combine well.

Now, slice the radish, briefly cook or steam the edamame, and slice the cucumber. Also, I added some spiralized carrot, but you can add carrot sticks or sliced carrot.

Add the cooked quinoa in a serving bowl, together with all the crunchy veggies, and your Teriyaki Tempeh. Garnish with some sesame seeds, and enjoy!