Tempeh Bowls: Nutrition, Health Benefits & Recipe

Tempeh is a fantastic meat alternative that can add extra protein to your plant-based diet. Bowls are a great way to incorporate more healthful ingredients and pack more flavor into one meal. Tempeh bowls are also easy to prep ahead of time, so they’re ready to go when you’re ready to eat. 

Tempeh bowls are a mix of ingredients, including tempeh, put together in a bowl. Tempeh bowls can be made with ingredients you already have in your pantry, refrigerator, or freezer without having to add a lot of extras in. Tempeh bowls can be customized to fit your dietary needs and flavor cravings. 

If you are ready to try a tempeh bowl, you will want to keep reading. In this article, we will look at how easy a tempeh bowl is to make and give you some recipes that you can try today!

What Is a Tempeh Bowl?

A tempeh bowl is an excellent way to get all of your nutrients in one bowl. Just like other protein bowls, it combines everything you need to enjoy a tasty and healthy meal. 

Using ingredients that compliment each other well is a sure-fire way to keep you wanting more without the boredom of eating the same things and getting yourself in the meal burnout.

How to Make A Tempeh Bowl

Tempeh bowls are very easy to make, and the varieties of what you can do are endless. When you are in a hurry or do not feel like cooking a big meal but want to have something fulfilling and healthy, a tempeh bowl is a perfect option. 

Most tempeh bowls can be made in less than 20 minutes and will leave you satisfied and knowing that you still had a healthy meal. You can make a tempeh bowl as straightforward or as complex as you want, according to what flavors you’re after. 

Here’s a common way to make a tempeh bowl, but of course, you can customize your bowl to be precisely what you want:

  • Pick a bowl that’s big enough to hold all of your tempeh bowl ingredients. The bigger, the better.
  • Decide on your flavor profile and marinate tempeh accordingly; you can make your marinade or find one that’s ready to go.
  • Start with a base; common choices are noodles, rice, or greens, depending on your flavor profile and dietary needs.
  • Choose your veggies and prep using whatever method you want, or just slice and dice, then throw them in the bowl if you want to go raw.
  • Cook your tempeh and add it to the bowl.
  • Add a sauce or dressing if you want and throw in a little crunch on top (nuts are always a tasty treat here).

Tempeh Bowl Recipes

You can easily make a tempeh bowl without a recipe by adding the ingredients you want—the trial and error method of a bowl, making a fun way to learn. But, if you need a little inspiration to get you started, these recipes will do the trick.

Peanut Tempeh Bowl with Vegetables

Peanuts and tempeh are two excellent choices to fit more protein into your plant-based diet.  For this tempeh bowl, you’ll combine steamed veggies along with rice, tempeh, and crunchy peanuts on top. 

You can try a peanut marinade for your tempeh if you want to pack in the flavor. The recipe suggests broccoli, carrots, and peas for your steamed vegetables, but you can swap in whatever your favorites might be. 

For the full recipe, check out From My Bowl

Vegan Tempeh Bowl

Making a vegan tempeh bowl is easy and sure to satisfy your cravings. Tempeh, brown rice and vegetables make up this meal, and you will top it off with a tamari tahini dressing. 

You can use any vegetables you prefer, but if you want to add additional protein, you can add edamame or green peas.

For the full recipe, check out Running on Real Food

Chipotle-Inspired Tempeh Burrito Bowl

It is so easy to make your own at home, and since you are making it yourself, you can easily use ingredients that will fit within your plant-based diet. 

Using just rice, beans, and tempeh, you can have yourself a homemade chipotle bowl. You can add in any vegetables you would like and top with the easy marinade in this recipe, and you will have a dinner that surely will not disappoint your taste buds.

For the full recipe, check out Minimalist Baker

Sesame Tempeh and Quinoa Bowl

Do you love sesame? This is a recipe you have to try! The combination of sesame and honey in a fantastic sauce can put over your quinoa and carrots for a vegetarian dinner that will leave satisfied but wanting more. 

If you are also looking to be gluten-free in your diet, you can use gluten-free soy sauce.

For the full recipe, check out Eating Well

Crispy Tempeh Bowl with Turmeric Rice

Are you craving something crispy without it being deep-fried? This crispy tempeh bowl is just what you have been missing! This crispy and spicy combination will get your taste buds going, and you can add any vegetables you want in it. 

The crispy tempeh and spicy rice are a meal by themselves, but you add in the vegetables, and you have created your masterpiece.

You can also swap out things like the tahini with any nut or seed butter. The rice you can use any rice or grain of your choice can even use tofu instead of tempeh.

For the full recipe, check out The Healthy Maven

BBQ Tempeh Bowl with Rice

Who does not love a BBQ? Just because you are moving into a plant-based diet does not mean you should have to deny yourself all the flavors you love. This BBQ tempeh bowl will give you the tangy taste you are missing while knowing that you are still eating healthy. 

Only using rice, tempeh, and vegetables putting the dressing over this will be the BBQ taste you have been longing for but not letting yourself have.

For the full recipe, see This Savory Vegan

Teriyaki Tempeh Bowl

I love a sweet teriyaki sauce, so this recipe comes in handy. Using teriyaki as your marinade for your tempeh, you can put it over rice and add all the vegetables you want to create the sweet teriyaki meal of your dreams.

For the full recipe, see DIetician Debbie

In all of these recipes, you can modify any ingredients that you want to create the look and taste that you want. You will also see that the main ingredients you will always use are tempeh, rice, and vegetables. 

Adding in a simple dressing or marinade will help you to be creative and also keep the variety in your meals.

Just because you are choosing a plant-based diet does not mean that you need to give up the flavor that you love.

Conclusion

Tempeh bowls can be a healthy alternative to a standard protein bowl. With a tempeh bowl, there are endless options for creating a meal that will suit your tastes without using up a lot of your precious time and budget. 

You can easily create the tempeh bowl using what you already have on hand in your pantry, refrigerator, or freezer. You can also get as creative as you want and also choose the complexity of the recipe or time that will be needed to complete the meal. 

If you are short on time or do not feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen, you can have a meal prepared and be at your table to eat within 20 minutes.

“tempeh and bean bowl” by Stacy Spensley is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Author

  • Hi, I'm Marvin! In early 2019 I started fermenting sauerkraut, kefir, and kombucha and noticed the incredible health benefits that came with it. I was less irritated, had fewer allergies and my skin got better. I started this blog to share how fermented foods have helped me and how simple they are to prepare! Look around and see what speaks to you and all the best on your fermentation journey!

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