Another One for Bourdain

I'm having more fun with this Hezbollah Tofu Project than I ever imagined. Converting recipes to make incredible food, while making fun of Bourdain and helping to raise money for charity, what could be better? Last night's dinner was this Tempeh Basquaise (originally made with chicken.) I used to think we vegans were obsessed about food, but clearly Bourdain is obsessed with meat. I can't believe how many different kinds of animals (and 'cuts') he uses in this book! Here is the better version. It looks like a lot of work, but it really isn't.

Tempeh Basquaise

Serves 3 - 4

1 8 oz package tempeh (steamed)

1/4 cup tamari

1 cup broth

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 smoked paprika

salt and pepper

2 Tbsp olive oil

I onion, cut in thin 1/2 moons

1 red pepper, sliced in thin strips

1 orange pepper, sliced in thin strips

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 14.5 oz can plum tomatoes

1/4 cup white wine

1/4 cup reserved marinade (after baking)

1 Tbsp capers

1 tsp herbes de provence

1/4 tsp cayenne

salt and pepper

2 - 3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)

After you've steamed your tempeh, cut it into thirds. Cut those thirds vertically, so the tempeh is split, then cut in triangles. You'll end up with 12. Or cut it however you want.

Make a marinade out of the first set of ingredients and marinate tempeh for an hour or overnight. Then cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 1/2 an hour. Keep the marinade. (See notes below if you don't want to do all this.)

Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil to medium high heat in a frying pan. Pan fry the baked tempeh, then set tempeh aside. Add sliced onions to the frying pan. Saute about 5 minutes, then add the sliced peppers. Saute another 5 minutes. Add the crushed garlic and saute another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, crushing them with your hand as you go. Add the liquid from the can, too. Let simmer about 10 minutes. Add the reserved marinade, wine, capers, herbes de provence and cayenne pepper. Check for seasoning, then add the tempeh back to the pan. Spoon some of the sauce over the tempeh and let simmer 10 - 15 minutes, or until the sauce is desired thickness. Garnish with chopped parsley.

We had this over parsleyed noodles and thought it was a lot like a cacciatore. The roasted green beans in the background are from Veganomicon.

Notes:
You can skip the steaming if you want and go straight to the marinating. Or you could even skip the baking and go to the panfrying, but the few steps involved with the tempeh are all really easy stuff that hardly requires your attention and will give you the best flavor.

Baking the tempeh in the marinade and then reusing the baked marinade is like using a reduction and really enhances the sauce.

If you wanted, you could go all the way up through baking the tempeh the day before. That way you can throw the sauce together lickety splickety and have a great dinner any time.

And this very special note: I have no idea why I can't get the right font on this post. It looks wacky and I can't fix it. Hopefully the next post will be back on track.