Fried Tempeh (recipe based on Tahu Goreng Kecap)

The other day I was looking through this great cookbook we have, The Complete Asian Cookbook (Charmaine Soloman), thinking about what to cook next.  While wanting to try every single recipe in the book (as I tend to do when looking through cookbooks), I found an Indonesian recipe called Tahu Goreng Kecap (or Fried Bean Curd with Soy Sauce).  Now for a while I had been wanting to try cooking something with tempeh, so I figured it'd be good to experiment with something based off of this recipe!

I had also gone to the Ithaca Farmer's Market when I returned to Cornell for homecoming weekend (scoring a snazzy alumni wine tumbler, and having no one ask if I was a freshmen all weekend!).  For those of you in the Ithaca area, or who plan on visiting at some point, I highly recommend you check out the farmer's market at some point.  I have always loved going to grab brunch (this time around it being a delicious breakfast burrito) and stock up on local produce.  From this visit I obtained two different varieties of garlic to try, one of which I will be using in this recipe.

The ingredients list for this week:

• Tempeh (8 oz)
• Fresh Bean Sprouts (about a handful)
• 4 Green Onions
•  1/4 Cup Mushroom Soy Sauce
• 1 Tbsp Molasses
• 1 Onion
• 2 Cayenne Peppers
• 1 Head of Garlic (Asian Tempest Fire, 6 Smaller Cloves)
• Red Bell Pepper
• Fish Sauce
• Lemon Juice
• Half & Half
• Brown Rice

First, start your preparations for the rice.  I used 'boil in a bag' rice, so I had water heating for it, but feel free to use what rice you have available.

Now it is time for cutting.  The tempeh I bought came in 4 oz cakes (as shown below), so I cut each cake in half and thinly sliced from there.

Thinly slice the green onions, and cut the red pepper into long strips.  Roughly slice the onion and cayenne peppers (you don't need to worry too much, this will be going in a food processor later).

Also, just make sure your garlic is peeled, because this is also going in the food processor.  This was my first time using the Asian Tempest Fire variety, which was a smaller head than what you normally see in the grocery store.  The cloves were surrounded by a dark husk, and it had a wonderful smell!  I had obtained this at the Ithaca Farmer's Market from Humble Hill Farm's stall, and when I saw it was supposed to be spicy, I knew this was one I had to try.

Add the soy sauce, molasses, cayenne peppers, onion, and garlic to a food processor and blend until it is like a puree.  Set this aside for later.

Add some olive oil to your pan and turn on the heat to medium-high.  Fry the tempeh until it is golden brown.  You may need to add some more oil if it absorbs it.  Once golden brown, remove the tempeh to a plate with a paper towel.

Add more oil to the pan and cook the red peppers.  Once cooked, turn the heat down and add the sauce from the food processor.  Now, add a few 'glugs' of fish sauce, lemon juice, and half and half.  Let the sauce cook for about five minutes once it comes to a boil.

After, add the tempeh back in.  When the sauce thickens, add the green onions and sprouts.  And with that, it is ready to serve!  With this being my first time trying tempeh, I absolutely loved it!  It had a somewhat nutty flavor, and seemed to absorb the sauce nicely.