Quite recently, I watched a vegan cooking video on Youtube. The chef was making a burger. Just as she began to prepare the condiments to go with the patty, she confidently said, “One of a vegan’s most favourite things is sauce.”
That line has resonated with me since. It encapsulates, in a simple sentence, the one thing that I believe will encourage all of us to try out more plant-based food.
Growing up as a meat-eater, I remember having so many delectable sauces with my meats. Butter Sauce Chicken. Assam Fish. Garlic Mushroom Steak. Sauce changes the game completely. Now as a vegan, I’ve thought to myself… There must be ways to keep sauces relevant to a plant-based palate too, but what can they possibly be cooked with?
Being one of the highest sources of plant-based protein there is (it consists of 20 percent protein), I feel extremely blessed to be a vegan in a country where tempeh is abundantly available, stocked fresh, and cheap as chips. Plus, with its chunky, hearty texture, tempeh has been the perfect meat substitute for me to experiment with when it comes to sauces.
To celebrate the Holy month of Ramadan, here’s a recipe with a dry rendang sauce – one of my favourite tastes from Malay cuisine. I’ve made my dish non-spicy to accommodate children and those with sensitive tummies, but fresh or re-hydrated dry chillis can always be added to the pulse mix. To make it a meal, this rendang can be enjoyed with a steaming hot plate of brown or red rice to boost the nutritional factor.
Mildly spicy and richly fragrant, this dry curry dish with tempeh re-invents a Malaysian classic, chock-full of plant-based protein and in a delicious concoction of coconut and spices.
[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:128]If you like this tempeh recipe, discover how else you can incorporate vegan food into your cooking regimen. Tempeh, tofu, and seitan are versatile vegan meat substitutes that all pack a heavy punch of protein.Vegan ribs can be made from a variety of plants and still deliver a meaty, juicy, rack of ribs. Start your courses with sticky vegan ribs, serve the tempeh curry as the main, then cleanse the palette with a gelatin-free panna cotta.
This recipe was republished with permission from Davina Da Vegan.
