Lemon-herb tofu with Mediterranean rice
Herb-roasted tofu with rice, courgette and parsley.
About 45 min · 470 kcal · 31 g protein per serving
Vegan
Tempeh braised in soy, ginger and garlic with rice
Tempeh braised until it takes on colour, with ginger, garlic and rice.
By The foodose editorial team. Nutrition calculated from USDA FoodData Central. Checked on paper on 20 September 2026; not yet cooked in a test kitchen or photographed, so the times and yield are estimates. How we develop our recipes
What still needs a real kitchen
- Confirm tempeh browns in 3 minutes a side over medium-high heat
- Confirm the braise reduces to a glaze in 8 minutes
- Photograph the finished plate
- Time
- About 32 min
- estimated
- Serves
- 2
- see below
- Energy
- 580 kcal
- per serving
- Protein
- 35 g
- per serving
Ingredients for 2 servings
Check off ingredients as you go.
Contains gluten, soya. Check the labels on packaged ingredients:
- soy sauce. Most soy sauce contains wheat. Tamari is the usual wheat-free alternative; check the label.
Cooking steps
Put the rice on to cook.
Slice the tempeh into slabs about 1 cm thick and pat them dry.
Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat and lay the tempeh in a single layer. Leave it for 3 minutes, turn, and give it 3 minutes on the second side, until both faces are properly browned.
Turn the heat down. Add the grated ginger and sliced garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then pour in the soy sauce and the water.
Braise for 8 minutes, turning the tempeh once, until the liquid has reduced to a syrup that coats it.
Steam the broccoli for 4 to 5 minutes and serve everything with the rice and the chopped chives.
The useful detail
Brown the tempeh before any liquid touches the pan. Tempeh is bland and slightly bitter raw, and it is the browning, not the soy sauce, that fixes both.
Make it work for you
One serving is 125 g of tempeh with half the rice and broccoli. You can switch to a smaller portion in the ingredients above; it is three quarters of this, and it contains correspondingly less energy and protein. It is an option, not a goal.
Firm tofu instead of tempeh
Softer and milder. Press it first and brown it harder.
Per serving: about 60 kcal less, about 4 g less protein, about 3 g less fat.
Tamari instead of soy sauce
The same flavour. Usually wheat-free, which soy sauce is not.
Allergens: Check the label if you avoid gluten.
Brown rice instead of white
Chewier and higher in fibre; it takes about twice as long to cook.
Estimated nutrition
Per standard serving, calculated from the ingredients above. Nutrition changes with substitutions, brands and how much oil stays in the pan.
A plant dinner where the tempeh alone carries around 25 g of protein a serving, which is more than most plant mains manage.
| Energy | 580 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 35 g |
| Fat | 21 g |
| of which saturates | 4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 69 g |
| of which sugars | not calculated |
| Fibre | 4 g |
| Sodium | 590 mg |
Show calculation notes
Each ingredient’s weight is multiplied by its USDA FoodData Central values per 100 g. The whole recipe is added up and divided by 2. Raw weights are used for meat, fish and vegetables; beans and lentils are drained weights. All of the oil is counted as eaten. Added salt is not included; sodium from stock, bread, cheese and tinned food is.
| Ingredient | Weight used | Source | Energy | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| white rice | 120 g | FDC 168877Rice, white, long-grain, regular, raw, enriched | 438 kcal | 8.6 g |
| tempeh | 250 g | FDC 174272Tempeh | 480 kcal | 50.7 g |
| rapeseed or other neutral oil | 14 g | FDC 172336Oil, canola | 122 kcal | 0.0 g |
| fresh ginger | 20 g | FDC 169231Ginger root, raw | 16 kcal | 0.4 g |
| garlic | 15 g | FDC 169230Garlic, raw | 22 kcal | 1.0 g |
| soy sauce | 30 g | FDC 172473Soy sauce made from soy and wheat (shoyu), low sodium | 17 kcal | 2.7 g |
| water | 100 g | No energy | 0 kcal | 0.0 g |
| broccoli | 200 g | FDC 170379Broccoli, raw | 68 kcal | 5.6 g |
| chives | 5 g | FDC 169994Chives, raw | 2 kcal | 0.2 g |
| Whole recipe | Divided by 2 | 1165 kcal | 69.1 g |
Per serving the energy is rounded to the nearest 5 kcal, grams to the nearest whole gram and sodium to the nearest 10 mg. of which sugars could not be calculated, because one ingredient’s record does not cover it; the row above says which. Calculation method 1.0, September 2026. How the calculation works.
Storage and reheating
- In the fridge
- Cool, cover and refrigerate within 2 hours of cooking. Eat within 3 to 4 days. The tempeh is good cold, sliced into a salad.
- In the freezer
- Freezing keeps food safe indefinitely; the texture is best if it is eaten sooner rather than later.
- Reheating
- Reheat until it reaches 74°C / 165°F, steaming hot throughout.
Checked against US Food and Drug Administration, Refrigerator and Freezer Storage Chart, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, Leftovers and Food Safety, FoodSafety.gov, Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures and FoodSafety.gov, Cold Food Storage Chart. UK guidance from the Food Standards Agency is shorter, at two days for most leftovers.
Try another recipe
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Pasta in a smooth roasted pepper and silken tofu sauce.
About 25 min · 355 kcal · 18 g protein per serving
Vegan