Tempeh “Bolognese”

This is a recipe, slightly tweaked by me, that I learned during my chef’s training at the Natural Gourmet Institute. The sauce is one of my favorite ways to consume tempeh, and it’s especially good served warm over whole wheat fusilli. One of the best qualities of this dish is that it’s even better reheated than it is on day one. Tempeh, by the way, is a form of fermented soy, and the fact that it’s fermented makes it more digestible, more nutritious and more protein-rich than soy that is not fermented.

Ingredients

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 (8 ounce) package tempeh, any variety, grated
1 onion, peeled and diced into 1/4″ pieces
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon each dried oregano and basil
1 cup red wine
1 28-ounce can tomato puree
fine sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
optional: 1-2 tablespoons of maple crystals or brown rice syrup

16-ounce package of whole wheat fusilli or other whole wheat pasta

Recipe

1. Pour 1/4 cup of olive oil into a medium-sized lidded pot.

2. Unwrap the tempeh and grate it over the pot using the large teeth of a box grater. Place the pot on the stove top over a medium-low heat and saute the tempeh until it becomes very brown and crispy, about 10-15 minutes. The cooked tempeh will leave a coating on the bottom of the pan, which is fine. This coating should become slightly brown, but should not burn. If it begins to burn, the heat is too high.

3. Add the remaining olive oil, along with the diced onions and sea salt, and cook until the onions are softened, about 10 minutes more.

4. Add the minced garlic, oregano and basil and cook a few minutes longer. Then add the red wine and simmer the mixture until nearly all the wine has cooked off. As it simmers, use a wooden spoon to scrape the coating off the bottom of the pot, adding flavor to the mixture as you do.

5. Pour the tomato puree into the pot and simmer, covered, for 15-20 minutes.

6. Season with sea salt, freshly-ground pepper and maple crystals or brown rice syrup, if needed. Serve over hot pasta.