I’ve been trying out new recipes for awhile but had so many busts that I was getting bummed out about trying anything new. And then I remembered I found a recipe from my Happy Herbivore book a million years ago that I never posted on my blog!

The stir-fry is surprisingly saltier than you’d expect (from the teriyaki, I’d presume), so if you want the pineapple flavor to really come out try adding the canned pineapple pieces to the stir-fry at the very end of the recipe. You can serve this with whatever stir-fry veggies you want, but I put some basic suggestions for it in the ingredient list. Recipe from Everyday Happy Herbivore.

Ingredients

Servings: about 3 bowls

Note: This recipe does require marinating the tempeh, so get that going several hours early or prep it to fridge overnight for the next day’s meal

• 1 8-oz. package tempeh
• ¼ cup teriyaki sauce (gluten-free if needed)
• 1 14-oz. can crushed or pineapple tidbits, juice reserved (Optional: including the pineapple in the stir-fry)
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 2 bell peppers, julienned or diced
• Optional: Broccoli
• 1 tbs. cornstarch
• Optional: low-sodium soy sauce, ground ginger
• Cooked brown rice (however much you want)

Directions

Cut the tempeh into slices about the length of your finger or shorter – I think cutting the slides into thirds would be best.

Mix the teriyaki sauce and pineapple juice in a bowl, add the tempeh, and marinate for several hours or overnight. 

When you’re ready to start cooking the rest of the stir-fry.…begin with cooking your brown rice. A rice cooker makes this easy! 

Pour in enough water to line the bottom of a large skillet and saute the onions and bell peppers (and broccoli if using) until the onion is soft and translucent. The bell peppers should be al dente. Transfer the veggies to a plate or bowl and set aside.

Use a fork, tongs, or whatever, to get the tempeh out of the bowl it’s been marinating in and transfer it to the skillet. Pour in just a little of the marinade. Cook it over medium heat until the tempeh pieces are warm and most of the liquid has cooked off. 

Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch into the remaining marinade, then pour it over the tempeh. 

Raise the heat to high to let the sauce thicken, stirring occasionally. It’s up to you how much of the sauce you want to cook off. I like to let it get pretty gooey and thick with a lot left in the skillet so I can add the veggies and coat them in the sauce. 

This is about the thickness and amount I like to have left over to cover the rest of the veggies

Do a taste-test on the sauce at this point. If it’s too sweet, add the tablespoon of soy sauce. If you want it to be a bit sweet and pineapple-y, add in as much of the crushed or tidbit pineapple pieces as you want. You can also sprinkle ginger over the tempeh to give it a little zing with the pineapple. I think it tastes way better with the added pineapple, but you can serve this with a heavier teriyaki flavor or a heavy pineapple flavor – choice is yours! 

I made a double batch and I really should have used a bigger pan!

Add the veggies from the bowl back to the skillet with the tempeh. Stir to combine. Serve over brown rice. Add pineapple (or more pineapple, if you added some already) to the top of the bowl, if desired.