Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Vegan MoFo Day 3 - Tempeh Tuesdays - Tempeh Matar



Out of all the daily themes I've selected, Tempeh Tuesdays is the one that has filled me with the most concern. I've cooked way more mediocre tempeh meals that successful ones - as a result this has made me rather unadventurous with it. The prospect of cooking and eating four unappetising tempeh based meals in the space of a month has been weighing heavily on my mind but thanks to the success of this first effort for Vegan MoFo, I'm feeling more optimistic.

To kick off this theme I tried to play it as safely as I possibly could, combining the tempeh preparation method in my favourite lasagne recipe with a recipe we used to love back in our omnivorous days - kheema matar. Kheema matar is a dry Indian curry traditionally made with minced lamb meat and peas. I posted about it during my first vegan MoFo using a faux mince meat recipe courtesy of Diet, Dessert and Dogs made from cauliflower and nuts. This is a fantastic recipe but the downside is that it needs to be prepared in advance so I was hoping that tempeh would also work well in this recipe.

For the initial preparation of the tempeh I used the same technique that is used in this tempeh lasagne - frying the minced tempeh in oil until browned and then pouring soy sauce over the tempeh in order for it to absorb the salty flavours. The rest of the recipe was made in a fairly similar fashion to the meaty version in my favourite non-vegan cookbook The Food of India, although some of the cooking durations in the later stages were shortened a little as the minced tempeh began to clump together a little.

The man doesn't have the same issues with tempeh that I do, in fact he is quite the fan, so it wasn't surprising that he loved this version of kheema matar. The tempeh matar was served with cauliflower tikka masala - a recent addition to our rotation of curry dishes which was also veganised from The Food of India. This tempeh dish won't take the top spot away from my favourite lasagne but I'm happy to say that it is something I'll be repeating again!


Tempeh Matar (Adapted from The Food of India)

1 onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2cm piece ginger, roughly chopped
1 large green chilli, roughly chopped
1 medium tomato
2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
300g tempeh, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon soy yoghurt
½ cup water
1 cup frozen peas
Pinch of garam masala
2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves

Place the onion, garlic, ginger, green chilli and tomato in a blender or food processor and blend until it becomes a smooth paste. 

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a deep sided frying pan over medium-high and cook the minced tempeh for 15 minutes until browned, stirring every couple of minutes. Pour the soy sauce over the tempeh, stir well to combine and cook until the liquid has been absorbed. Transfer the tempeh to a bowl.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the same pan and pour in the contents of the blender. Allow to cook for 5 minutes over medium meat, stirring occasionally. Add the coriander, cumin, turmeric and salt and stir through for a minute. Add the tempeh back to the pan along with the yoghurt and water and stir to combine thoroughly. Cover and allow to simmer on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally - if it looks too dry and is sticking to the pan, add some additional water.

Add the peas and garam masala and cook for a further 5 minutes. Stir through the coriander leaves and serve.

24 comments:

  1. Great idea for tempeh - I loved the method in that lasagne and have also wondered about using the tempeh method in other dishes. Sounds like it might be good for oven bakes where it doesn't need to be stirred a lot over the stovetop.

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    1. Thanks Johanna, it is a great method and takes the hassle out of pre-steaming the tempeh. I've been meaning to make a spag bol similar to the lasagne too but am trying to be more adventurous with it during Vegan MoFo.

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  2. Definitely sounds 'safe' to me! I agree that tempeh can be quite awful at times, but this sounds like it has enough flavour to cover the 'tempeh' taste! nice work! :-)

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    1. Thanks Sandy, I'm still a bit wary of tempeh in recipes and am only just starting to get the hang of what does and doesn't work.

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  3. I totally understand your tempeh hesitation. I go very hot and cold with it too. It has such a particular flavor that is difficult to mask. I don't mind it every now and again, but I almost exclusively eat it in restaurants nowadays. It's not really something I crave at home. When I first went vegan, I liked tempeh a lot, but I've gotten less interested in it over the years. Still, I'm glad you're off to a good start!

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    1. Thanks Cadry, that's interesting you don't cook with tempeh much these days but you used to love it in your earlier days. I'm sure the fantastic restaurants you visit would always do a great job with it!

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  4. This sounds like a slightly more straightforward approach than Ricki's recipe, and makes me think I could get into tempeh myself it I tried harder. I find it daunting not so much because I've had failures, but because I just see it as something I have no experience with! I am pretty sure there's only one way to fix that though, so I shall be following your tempeh recipes this month with interest :)

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    1. Thanks Kari, I had a feeling that you were a bit of tempeh fan. Perhaps you only wrote about your initial good experiences?

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  5. I have to confess that the only reason why I like tempeh now is the tempeh "bacon" tofurky. I really need to try it in other non-'bacon' forms.

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    1. Thanks Amy, it's funny that so many people love tempeh "bacon" - I never warmed to it and usually make tofu "bacon" but have been thinking that I need to try making it again. I've never tasted the commercial tofurky products either.

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  6. Yeah, I've had my fair share of failed tempeh recipes, although I have found a few that have worked well. This combo sounds like something I'd really like, I'm more a fan of chopped or crumbled tempeh more then the slab.

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    1. Thanks Megan, tempeh does seem to present a learning curve. I'm much more a fan of crumbled tempeh too and haven't ever liked it served in thick slabs.

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  7. I rarely use tempeh in Indian cuisine--what a great idea! Tempeh definitely can be tough to work with, kudos for choosing to do it 4x this month!

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    1. Thanks Jes, it was a good way to force me into using it by choosing this one themed day of the week for MoFo.

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  8. I love tempeh! The secret is to steam the tempeh before cooking, it mellows the flavour :)

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    1. Thanks Bluberries, I steam tempeh before using it in most recipes but this method of dry-frying the crumbles until they are browned and then drenching them in soy sauce seems to works wonders too.

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  9. ooh my kind of food. looks delicious! i use tempeh a lot in indian cooking. works as a perfect paneer or meat sub

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    1. Thanks Richa, I'll have to check out your tempeh recipes for more inspiration as I can't get enough Indian food.

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  10. Yeah, tempeh kind of works that way for me too - I've had more failures than successes. Glad this one turned out well though - curry spices can work wonders!

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    1. Thanks Joey, I've been so wary of it since the early failures that I think the successes are starting to catch up finally! And I totally agree about curry spices!

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  11. I'm really glad you enjoyed your first tempeh meal of MoFo2013! I really miss tempeh, so I will live through you ;)

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    1. Thanks Mandee, it's really sad that you miss tempeh so much especially when so many people struggle to like it. Not fair :(

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  12. This sounds delicious! I haven't cooked loads of meal with tempeh either, but the chilli-con-tempeh and tempeh burgers I've tried have been great. You can't really go wrong with a good Indian dish and loads of spices though :)

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    1. Thanks Reanna, I've had success with tempeh burgers too and have been contemplating trying it a chilli dish soon. Thanks for those tips!

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