Orange Ginger Tempeh and Brown Rice Salad with Orange Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Yield 4 cups
Served as a side salad or main entree, this rice-and-vegetable medley is as versatile as it is delicious.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil, divided into multiple uses
- 3/4 cup tempeh, diced in small cubes
- 1 1/2 cups pre-cooked brown rice
- 3 1/2 to 4 cups diced vegetable medley (red cabbage, green cabbage, broccoli, carrots, radishes, jicama, green bell peppers, celery)
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Generous sprinkling of salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 orange, halved
Instructions
- To a large non-stick skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, add the tempeh and sear it over medium-high heat, flipping as needed. Searing will take about 2 minutes. Add tempeh to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- To the skillet (you don’t have to wash it), add 1 tablespoon olive oil and over medium-high heat warm the rice, stirring as needed. Warming will take about 2 minutes. Add the rice to the mixing bowl with the tempeh and set aside.
- To the skillet (you don’t have to wash it), add 2 tablespoons olive oil, add the vegetables, and sprinkle with ginger, cumin, salt and pepper, optional seasonings. Stir to evenly coat the vegetables. Cook over medium to medium high, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until softened but not mushy. Add the cooked vegetables to the mixing bowl with the rice and tempeh.
- Slice half the orange into bite-sized pieces and add to the mixing bowl.
- Pour Averie Cook’s Orange Balsamic Vinaigrette over everything that’s in the bowl and toss.
Substitutions and Suggestions
Use any vegetables you have on hand and need to be used; fresh, frozen, or canned
Use any seasoning or spice blend you enjoy such curry, garlic, onion powder, 21 Salute, Mrs. Dash, etc. and add these to either the vegetables while cooking or to the vinaigrette
Use tofu, beans, chicken or tofu nuggest, pre-cooked chicken strips, meatballs, in place of or in addition to the tempeh
Recipe courtesy of Averie Sunshine of AverieCooks.com. Averie has been writing a daily food blog for over three years and although she has an extensive collection of desserts and sweet treats on her site, this recipe is one of her healthy vegan options. When Averie is not in the kitchen cooking or taking pictures of the food she creates, she enjoys running, yoga, and can be found outside enjoying the sunny weather in San Diego where she resides with her husband and daughter.
