Thursday, December 3, 2009

lentil and tempeh stroganoff

stroganoff is one of those dishes i never had growing up... so my recipe mimics what i *think* it should taste like. luckily, i had a another tester who agreed that it was pretty similar to the traditional one. i've been on a major tempeh kick lately. i don't purchase it that often since it can become a costly ingredient, but i recently made my own homemade batch and have been swooning over some new recipe ideas.

  • 8 oz. tempeh
  • 1¼ veggie broth
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1¼ tablespoon lemon juice, divided
  • 1½ cups cooked green lentils
  • 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 6 oz. silken tofu
  • 2+ tablespoons reserved marinade
first break tempeh into smaller strips or cubes and steam for 12 minutes. mix vegetable broth, garlic and onion powders, paprika, black pepper and 3/4 tablespoons lemon juice in a flat bottom bowl or dish. marinate the steamed tempeh for several hours (at least 2).

after tempeh has marinated, drain and reserve liquid. in the magic bullet or food processor, combine tofu, apple cider vinegar, the rest of lemon juice and two tablespoons of reserved marinade. pulse until tofu mixture is thick and creamy... if needed, add a little more marinade by the teaspoon.

heat olive oil in skillet on medium and add cooked lentils. sauté until they start to brown and get a little crunchy, much like a lentil hash. after crunchy bits have formed, add in rest of the marinade broth (at least 1 cup) and simmer on low for 2-3 minutes. do not let all the liquid evaporate. finally, kick heat up just a notch and add in the creamy tofu mixture. cook for approximately 2-3 minutes, until it's a nice stroganoff consistency (like a thick gravy).

server over flat pasta noodles, or brown rice.

8 comments:

Laura said...

i looooove stroganoff! the idea of lentils sounds really great, too!
heyyyy you need to come over on sunday for the lunch during the kc vegan crawl! if you email me at peacebypastries@gmail.com, i will tell you time/place/etc. yay!

The Voracious Vegan said...

Oh this looks PERFECT for a cozy winter evening meal. This is definitely going on my 'to make' list. I've never had tempeh though, I can't wait to try some. They don't carry it anywhere here in Saudi but as soon as I get back to the states I want to try some asap. I've heard good things! ;-)

Bianca said...

Yum, I love stroganoff! When I ate meat, I'd only had the Hamburger Helper kind. But I love all the vegan variations of it that I've tried! Lentils and tempeh sound great together.

Jen Treehugger said...

Yeah - stroganoff is some seriously good shit.

Mike K said...

I love stroganoff too, and have only made it since I went vegan. I've never tried it with tempeh but it sounds like a good match - looks delicious.

jessy said...

i never grew up with stroganoff either & i've actually never had it before. yours look soooooo yummy, miss v.! so awesome on making your own tempeh! we're lucky in that we can get big blockes of local organic tempeh for just a smidge over $2.00 here - so i haven't tried making my own, but i would love to some day. totally gonna be making your lentil & tempeh stroganoff - i love me some creamy & tasty comfort foods. yum!

Usha said...

I have never tasted stroganoff either but the combination of lentil and tempeh is interesting and sounds like something I would like....

Anonymous said...

I love your veggie version of stroganoff, very unique!