Thursday, July 28, 2011

Easy breezy vegan dinner (inexpensive too)

Here is a quick and easy, but delicious dinner that everyone in my house loves - Hoisin-glazed tempeh with snap beans.  I serve mine over brown rice, and this meal can be ready in minutes.

adapted from Vegetarian Times

Ingredients
5 t hoisin sauce (plum sauce works well here too)
2 t rice vinegar
1 1/2 T soy sauce or tamari
1 t corn starch
1/2 cup water
1 T canola oil
1 T minced ginger (I keep some in the freezer so I have it on hand all the time)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-8oz package tempeh, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3 cups fresh snap beans, ends cut off (can use frozen too)
1/4 cup toasted cashews (I buy raw and toast them at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes).
Splash of sesame oil
2 cups cooked brown rice

Directions
1.  Whisk hoisin sauce, 2 t vinegar, soy sauce, cornstarch, and 1/2 cup water in a small bowl.  Set aside.
2.  Heat skillet over medium heat.  Add canola oil, then garlic and ginger.  Saute for 1-2 minutes until golden, but not burning.
3.  Add tempeh and sauce for 3-4 minutes.
4.  Add hoisin sauce mixture.  Stir to coat tempeh, cover and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 2 minutes until sauce begins to thicken. 
5.  Add green beans and stir sauce, cover and cook for another 4-5 minutes.
6.  Add in cashews and stir to coat again.
7.  Place brown rice on each plate, and splash a little sesame oil over rice then serve tempeh over rice.

I buy my beans fresh, and then bring them home and clean them up and place them in the fridge, so they are ready to go when it comes to dinner time.  If I have the time, I make the real brown rice, but if I don't have, I grab either the Minute rice (brown), kashi 7 grain rice pilaf, or frozen brown rice that can be ready in minutes.

This meal is a hit for everyone in the fam.  Hubs likes that tempeh tastes hearty and meaty like meat, and my toddler likes it, but she likes it to be separate.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

2 comments:

  1. Sounds good! I have so much trouble finding vegan dinners that my toddler will like. Maybe we'll give this a try.

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  2. I had to give it to my toddler a couple of times before she would eat it. She actually really likes the tempeh, but now will eat the fresh snap beans now too.

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