The Best Teriyaki Tempeh

teriyaki tempeh in a bowl with rice and vegetables

5 from 4 votes

This protein-rich teriyaki tempeh has a thick sauce and a fantastic meaty texture. It feels like you're eating in an Asian restaurant. Served with rice and garnished with vegetables, spring onion and sesame seeds. Satifying in everyway!

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Total Time30

Course: Canape, main, starter

Cuisine: Asian, Japanese

Servings: people

Calories: 384kcal

Author: Vanessa Sturman

Equipment

Ingredients

For the teriyaki tempeh:

250 g tempeh A block is usually around 250-300g or 1½-2 cups
1 tablespoon neutral oil such as olive oil
150 ml tamari or soy sauce
3 cloves garlic
1.5 tablespoon ginger thumb-size piece
100 g brown sugar
2 tablespoon rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoon cornstarch

Optional to serve

3 spring onions chopped finely
2 tablespoon sesame seeds

Metric - American

Instructions

First make the teriyaki sauce:

Finely grate the garlic and ginger and add to the tamari/soy sauce. (You can use a blender if you want for this step)
150 ml tamari , 1.5 tablespoon ginger, 3 cloves garlic
Place the mixture in a pan with the sugar, and cook until the sugar dissolves. Allow it to gently come to simmer while stirring, cooking it for around 10 minutes.
100 g brown sugar
Combine the cornstarch with 4 tablespoon water.
2 tablespoon cornstarch
Turn the heat right down on the pan and add the cornstarch, mixing it in well. This will make the teriyaki sauce thicken.
Turn off the heat, then add the vinegar. The sauce is now ready to use!
2 tablespoon rice vinegar

Then make the teriyaki tempeh:

Cut the tempeh into rectangles that are about a centimetre thick (½ inch) and a few centimetres long (1½ inches). Alternatively, rip the tempeh into pieces for a more vegan ‘chicken’ kind of look. To be honest, any shape is fine!
250 g tempeh
Heat up a frying pan with the oil on a medium heat. Once hot, add the pieces of tempeh. Give them a cook on each side for a few minutes so they are browned and also cooked through.
1 tablespoon neutral oil
Add the tempeh pieces to the teriyaki sauce and coat them in it, or brush the sauce directly onto the tempeh while in the pan. Sizzle for a few seconds for a 'glazed' effect.
Take out each piece of coated tempeh and put on a serving dish. Any remaining sauce you can save for later, or have as extra for drizzling.

To serve:

Put rice or quinoa in a bowl, plus other delicious vegetables like steamed baby corn & mange tout.
Place the teriyaki tempeh on top of the rice.
Drizzle over extra sauce.
Add your extras for garnish; spring onion, sesame seeds and radish.
3 spring onions, 2 tablespoon sesame seeds

Notes

The sauce can be stored in the fridge for at least a week in an airtight container. When it cools, it will harden a little, but reheating it will loosen it up.

Gluten Free: Tempeh is naturally gluten free, but choose a gluten free soy sauce or tamari to ensure this recipe is completely free from gluten.
Other Proteins: Teriyaki sauce can be used on vegan chicken chunks (Like my Seitan Chicken or on commercial vegan meats) It can also be used on tofu steaks or on grilled veggies.
Mushrooms: grill a mushroom and brush with teriyaki sauce before serving. It's an umami flavour bomb!

Nutrition