Top Chef, MasterChef, and Hell's Kitchen are some of my favorite reality TV shows. All the chefs competing on these shows have a signature dish. I recently met someone and they asked what my signature dish was...ummmm I don't have one?!? I still rely heavily on the recipes of others - so in order to create a signature dish I need some more practice and some knowledge of how to combine flavors, ingredients, and textures. Since I don't eat meat I'm considering using tofu or tempeh as the main ingredient in my signature dish. I decided to try out a new tempeh recipe tonight...
Cornmeal-Crusted Tempeh, Fire Roasted Tomato Sauce, Corn Hash, and Braised Kale
Vegan
Fire Roasted Tomato Sauce
Adapted from The Conscious Cook
Ingredients
Sea Salt
4 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 large onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 carrots, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
2 medium dried arbol chiles
2 cans (12 oz) cans fire roasted tomatoes, including juice
1/2 c water
3 T Earth Balance
Make The Sauce...heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for about 3 minutes. Add garlic, carrots, and celery and cook until softened and lightly browned. Add the chiles, tomatoes, and water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes. Pour the sauce into your Vitamix and blend on high. **Cover the lid with a towel because the hot liquid may erupt**. Return the sauce to the pan and stir in the Earth Balance. Set aside...you can always reheat it later...
Corn Hash
Adapted from The Art of Simple Food
Ingredients
2 ears sweet corn (about 1 cup kernels)
2 T Earth Balance
1 small red onion, diced
1/2 small serrano chile pepper, seeds and veins removed, diced very fine
Salt
Lime juice, just a squeeze or two
Cilantro, 1 T chopped
Make the hash...Shuck and remove the kernels from the 2 ears of corn. Melt the Earth Balance ina a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and chile...cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add salt to taste and cook for another minute or so. Turn up the heat and add the corn to the pan. Cook for a few minutes until the corn is cooked. Add a splash of water to moisten if necessary. Season with the lime juice and cilantro.
Cornmeal Crusted Tempeh
Ingredients
1 8 oz. block of Tempeh
1 T Shoyu
3 T Lime Juice
Cumin
Olive Oil
Beer
Cornmeal
Canola Oil
To Marinate the Tempeh...I didn't measure out all of the ingredients so just use your best judgement...whisk together the lime juice, beer, cumin, shoyu, and olive oil. Cut the tempeh into triangles and steam in the microwave for 5 minutes (place tempeh and 1/2 c water in covered bowl). Pour the marinade into a shallow baking dish, add the tempeh and set it aside for about 10 minutes. Dredge the tempeh in cornmeal. Heat the canola oil over medium heat and add the tempeh in batches. Cook for about 3 minutes on each side until browned.
Braised Kale
Ingredients
1 bunch Kale
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1/2 c vegetable stock
sea salt
To braise the kale...heat the oil over medium heat. Add the kale and saute until wilted. Add the stock, season with salt, and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
To assemble the dish...
Pour some of the tomato sauce on the plate. Add the kale, corn hash, and tempeh...top with additional sauce. Enjoy with a glass of wine...and maybe an orange cat...
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