Tempeh Satay

“Tempeh Satay” (page 40) is a delicious vegan adaptation of the popular Indonesian dish of seasoned, skewered, and grilled meat served with a sauce. Tempeh also happens to come from Indonesia, so there is actually an authenticity to this dish it might not otherwise have. In this recipe, tempeh strips are marinated in a sauce of coconut milk, soy sauce, lime juice and spices (sugar, coriander, cumin, turmeric, salt, and pepper), threaded onto skewers, and grilled or broiled. I avoid coconut milk because of the very high fat (and very high saturated fat) content, so instead of that, I use a mixture of almond milk and coconut extract (1 cup almond milk + ¼ teaspoon coconut extract = 1 cup coconut milk). I find this gives me all the flavor of coconut milk without the fat. If you do this, be sure to make an entire cup – the Satay only uses ¼ cup, but the Satay Sauce uses the other ¾ cup. And, the crowning glory is the Satay Sauce – food doesn’t get more fun or delicious than this!

Keeping it “McDougall Friendly” checklist:

• Instead of coconut milk, use almond milk flavored with coconut extract (1 cup almond milk + ¼ teaspoon coconut extract = 1 cup coconut milk).
• Omit the oil when grilling or broiling the tempeh strips. Instead, use oil free Italian style salad dressing or broth (if grilling), or broil on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or Silpat.