Tempeh and Green Bean Stir-Fry with Peanut Sauce

Cooking Light April 2011, p. 164

Peanut Sauce:
¼ cup water

1 tablespoon brown sugar

3 tablespoons natural-style, chunky peanut butter

1 teaspoon Sriracha (hot chile sauce)

1 teaspoon lower-sodium soy sauce

Stir-fry:

2 teaspoons brown sugar

5 teaspoons lower-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon Sriracha

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons sesame oil, divided

1 (8-ounce) package organic tempeh, cut into 1/3-inch strips

2 cups thinly sliced carrot

1 cup (2-inch) strips red bell pepper

1 pound green beans, trimmed

½ cup water

¾ cup thinly sliced green onions, divided

6 ounces mung bean sprouts

Bell peppers are less of a finger / eyeball hazard than chilies, but that doesn't mean you should handle them lightly.

Trim off those spiky little ends, there.

The main attraction: Tempeh. It's a cake of fermented soybeans. If you want to know more, Google that shit.

You get the idea. It looks like a really compressed Payday bar, but tastes nothing like one.

To prepare peanut sauce, combine ¼ cup water, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 3 tablespoons peanut butter, 1 teaspoon Sriracha, and 1 teaspoon soy sauce in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Set aside.

Sometimes, you just don't have a whisk.

To prepare stir-fry, combine 2 teaspoons sugar, 5 teaspoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon Sriracha, and garlic in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.

But you know what else has holes in it can can move around in a bowl really quickly? A FORK!

Heat in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon sesame oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add tempeh and half of soy sauce mixture; stir-fry for 5 minutes or until tempeh is golden brown. Remove tempeh mixture from pan, and keep warm. 

It shrinks a little. Nothing very dramatic. 

Add remaining 2 teaspoons oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add carrot, bell pepper, and green beans to pan; stir-fry 3 minutes. 

Yay pretty food!

Add ½ cup water; reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until beans are crisp-tender. Stir in remaining half of soy sauce mixture, tempeh mixture, half of onions, and bean sprouts; cook for 2 minutes or until sprouts are tender. Serve with peanut sauce and remaining half of onions. 

Peanut sauce aaannnddd...

...onions!

Served with a roll so we would stay full. 

My Rating 3/5 "This was my first tempeh experience, and I expected it to behave like tofu and take on the flavor of the sauce it was cooked in. It didn't really do that. But it had a nice consistency to chew and the sauce was yummy."