A taste of summer

Vegan Teriyaki Tempeh and Pineapple Fried Brown Rice

This meal cost about 40 dollars for everything, with a lot of leftover spices, oil and rice.  This recipe made enough to feed four very hungry people.

Intrigued? Hit the jump to see a detailed shopping lost and step-by-step instructions.

Shopping List:

  • 4 Cups Brown Rice
  • Sesame Oil
  • Vegetable Oil
  • 1 Fresh Pineapple or 1 Can of Pineapple (I prefer fresh)
  • 1 Medium Shallot
  • 1 Head of Garlic
  • Brown Sugar
  • Soy Sauce
  • Curry Powder
  • Red Pepper Flakes
  • 1 Package Frozen Peas
  • Cashews
  • 1 Package Tempeh
  • Olive Oil
  • White Rice Vinegar
  • Ground Ginger
  • Sesame Seeds
  • 1/2 cup Vegetable Broth/Vegetable Bouillon

Prep:

Cook your rice the night before you cook this meal. Place it in a container and store it in the fridge overnight.

Step one:

Slice your shallot very thin and dice 2 cloves of garlic. Then, cut your pineapple. I cut both the ends off of mine,  then cut it lengthwise, and skinned the meat out. I did this because I wanted to use the skin as a serving bowl. But, if you don’t want to go through the trouble, you can simply cut off the skin in a hexagonal shape. Follow this by slicing the fruit into 1/2 inch thick pieces. Make sure to cut around the core. It will not be used, since it is very hard. You want to end up with as much soft pineapple as you can get.

Mix together 4 tbsps soy sauce and 2 1/2 tsp curry powder and set aside. This will be used on the rice while stir-frying.

Now time to make the teriyaki sauce:

Take 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes, 2 tbsps sesame oil, 2-3 cloves of garlic, 2 tsp sesame seeds, and 1 tsp ground ginger. Mix this together with a fork until everything is blended. This will be used later for the tempeh.

Step two:

(While frying the rice, your pan may become dry. Instead of adding more oil, simply add a splash or two of vegetable broth/bouillon.)

Take your day-old refrigerated rice and mix in 1 tbsp of oil to moisten. Grab a large fry pan and heat up some oil on medium heat. Then add your shallots and garlic. Cook this until tender and fragrant.

Next, add 1/4 cup cashews and 1/2 cup of frozen peas. Let this cook for about one minute. If dry, drizzle some broth. Now it’s time to add the pineapple and the rice.

photo by kc orcutt

Mix this up and add your stir fry sauce (soy sauce and curry powder). Let this fry over medium heat until your rice begins to jump. The mixture should be moist enough from here on out, so you probably wont need more broth.  Adding too much could end up making it soggy.

It is important to taste test it while cooking. Depending on your preference, you may want to add more soy sauce here and there.

Step three:

While preparing the tempeh, I would leave the rice on low heat, to keep it warm. The tempeh won’t take more than 10 minutes.

Grab a medium sized fry pan and heat up some oil. Cut your tempeh into bite sized pieces and simply let this cook until it is browned. When its browned and slightly crispy, slowly add your teriyaki sauce. Let this cook together for about 4-5 minutes, or until all the sauce is used and it starts to thicken.

Step four:

If you chose to eat out of your pineapple skin, as I did, simply place it on a plate and  fill it with as much rice as you would like to eat. The teriyaki tempeh can be served on top of the rice or separate but I think it tastes great when eaten together. Enjoy!

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