Maple-Miso Tempeh Cutlets

January 31, 2019

Maple-Miso Tempeh Cutlets (Kristy Turner)

Serves 4

active:
30 min

total:
45 min

Though it would be nice if the whole family were cool with you replacing the turkey or ham or whatever poor animal has to be the centerpiece of the holiday meal with something vegan, that’s not likely to happen. Not right away, at least. What we always do is bring along a vegan main dish that’s just for us (and the other vegans/vegetarians at the gathering). The rest of the family can still have their traditional main dish and you don’t have to sacrifice your lifestyle choice. Although I could bring a store-bought faux meat dish, I like to bring something homemade (I’m going to get far fewer jokes about some tempeh than if I’m heating up a “tofurkey”). These tasty tempeh cutlets, glazed in a savory maple-miso sauce, are best enjoyed the day they’re prepared. If you need to prepare them somewhat in advance, steam the tempeh and prepare the sauce so that all you need to do on the day of is cook the cutlets in the sauce.

Ingredients

Two 8-ounce (225 g) packages tempeh

¼ cup (60 ml) low-sodium vegetable broth

¼ cup (60 ml) liquid aminos (or gluten-free tamari)

¼ cup (60 ml) maple syrup

2 teaspoons white soy miso (or chickpea miso)

1 teaspoon dried sage

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Salt and black pepper to taste

Steps

1. Chop each tempeh block in half horizontally, then chop each half diagonally so you have eight triangles.

2. Fill a large shallow saucepan with a couple of inches of water and fit with a steamer basket. Place the tempeh triangles in the steamer basket and cover with a lid. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Steam the tempeh for 15 to 20 minutes, flipping the triangles once halfway through. Remove the steamer basket from the pan (keep the tempeh in the basket) and set aside.

3. Dump the water from the saucepan. Combine the vegetable broth, liquid aminos, maple syrup, miso, sage, and thyme in the pan and stir to mix. Add the tempeh triangles and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a low simmer. Let the tempeh simmer in the sauce for 10 to 12 minutes, flipping them once halfway through, until the sauce is absorbed and starts to caramelize. Remove from the heat and add salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.

Tip: For a killer Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich, slice one of the triangles widthwise so that you have two thinner triangles. Use those in the sandwich.

Recipe from But My Family Would Never Eat Vegan!: 125 Recipes to Win Everyone Over © Kristy Turner, 2016. Photographs © Chris Miller, 2016. Reprinted by permission of the publisher, The Experiment. Available wherever books are sold. theexperimentpublishing.com