Sweetie’s on a diet, so I’ve been trying to cook extra light and healthy. Last night we had a big salad of red leaf lettuce, carrot pulp (left over from juicing), and sprouts. I topped it with tempeh (see recipe below), a generous sprinkling of seaweed gomashio, and hemp seed oil. Sound like weird vegan rabbit food? It was actually quite delicious.
Those last two ingredients probably sound fancy and indulgent. Gomashio isn’t really—it’s just sesame seeds and sea salt ground together. The hempseed oil, on the other hand, is very expensive ($8.50 for 8 organic ounces), but I rationalized it because my naturopath recommended that and flaxseed oil (also expensive) as good Omega 3 fatty acid sources that could help with the eczema I sometimes get on my hands and legs.
Honey-fried Tempeh
- Cut a package of tempeh (usually 6-8 oz) into bite-sized pieces.
- Saute with oil and minced garlic over medium heat until garlic starts to brown.
- Add tamari, soy sauce, or Braggs (approx. 1 1/2 TBSP), honey (approx. 2 TBSP), and water (approx. 1/4 cup).
- Simmer vigorously until liquid evaporates and tempeh is evenly brown and tender.
I’ll do some proper research at some point, but it’s my understanding that fermented soy products like tempeh and miso are much better for you than non-fermented products like soy milk and tofu. So, if you haven’t cooked tempeh before, this might be an easy way to give it a go. This tempeh would also be great over any kind of stir fry or potato/veggie combo.
Is using honey an active choice for you guys? Do you find that you get any feedback or comments because you use honey?
I have agave nectar as a sweetener, but if find that i like the flavor and consistency of honey better…
i’ll take your comments off the air.
I hope you don’t mind if I answer “on the air” Tina because you bring up a very good point. A lot of vegans don’t eat honey. It doesn’t jive with a strict definition of not eating any animal product, but I guess we get a little loose when it comes to bugs. We do eat honey, and I’m so used to it that it honestly didn’t even occur to me to consider the vegan grey area there.
Basically it doesn’t seem like there’s suffering happening at a honey farm. But here’s an eloquent vegan who disagrees with me and argues pretty strongly and at length. I think I’ll have to visit a honey farm myself one of these days.
Oh, and I think agave nectar would work pretty well in this recipe. Maybe cut back the liquid a little because agave doesn’t have the thickness of honey.
on the air comments are just dandy and I appreciate very much your response.
This is a huge grey area for me in my vegan-quest and i don’t want t offend but dang it, I like honey.
I like to cook with it and use in various recipes. I’m more than willing to give up cheese for three lousy flavors…honey- it’s a little harder. Agave is fine, and useful, just not honey.
Rice syrup I’m not sold on either- I worry about my sugar levels when I eat so many rice products (I drink Rice milk instead of Soy milk).
For god’s sake, though, don’t include honey in any recipes you submit to VegWeb. Those suckers’ll pound you good.
This recipe sounds both yummy and very, very out of our ordinary. Is the tempeh very sweet tasting?
Cerise
You’re probably right Cerise. I get so annoyed with mean holier-than-thou vegans.
And no, it’s not extremely sweet tasting. The garlic and soy sauce balance it out nicely. I use 2-3 cloves of garlic, but that’s a matter of taste, and I’m a garlic fiend.
You know how I said I wasn’t likely to blog about food again? Well, alas, I was wrong.
Icky! Ew! I would so much rather be eating such foods as you blog about here. But between being broke and lazy, it’s not likely I’ll be cooking any of them soon. (Must get by on what’s presently in the fridge/cupboards until Jeff gets paid next. Either that, or take up shoplifting. My kids, though, probably would do better without their mama going to jail.)
I am, in any case, happy to salivate over the virtual offerings here. Yum, yum!
I just checked it out and ewww is right!
If we were in the same time zone I would totally invite your entire family over for dinner. You so need a food break!
Do you steam your tempeh first?
Nope. The tempeh I got is “steamed and ready to eat.” I’ve found that to be the case with most packaged tempeh, even if it’s not noted.