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image of three tempeh tacos with purple cabbage slaw on top

Vegan Asian Tempeh Tacos

These vegan sticky sweet tacos are sure to rock your tastebuds, with bold flavors like miso, garlic, and sesame!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Servings 2 people, makes 6 tacos
Calories 223 kcal

Ingredients
  

For slaw

  • 2 cups (120g) thinly shredded red cabbage
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 lime's juice
  • 1 teaspoon maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

For tempeh

  • 1 tablespoon cooking oil
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
  • 1 diced tomato
  • 8 oz (226g) tempeh

For sauce

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 ½ tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon mirin
  • 1 teaspoon gochujang
  • ½ teaspoon red miso (or any miso you have)
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

For serving

  • 6 tortillas of your choice (6-inch ones)
  • 1 chopped green onion (optional)
  • 2 cups salad greens (optional)

Instructions
 

Make the slaw

  • Combine the shredded red cabbage, salt, vinegars, juice of lime, maple syrup, and sesame oil in a small bowl. Let sit while you make the tempeh filling, tossing occasionally in passing.

Make the tempeh

  • Heat a medium sized pan over medium heat. When the pan is heated, add the oil and minced garlic.
  • Cook the garlic until golden brown, then use your hands to crumble your tempeh into the pan. Toss with a spatula occasionally.
  • When the tempeh starts to brown (3-4 minutes), add the chopped tomato. Toss together and let cook for about a minute.
  • Add the salt and sauce. Let the sauce simmer and reduce, stirring constantly, until the tempeh is sticky and there is no liquid on the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat.

Heat the tortillas

  • Follow the instructions on your tortillas' packaging. If there are none, heat the tortillas in a clean small pan over medium-high heat. Each side should take about 10-20 seconds. Watch carefully and flip when golden brown on the bottom.

Construct your tacos & plates

  • Drain the liquid from the slaw into a separate bowl. Add the sesame seeds to the slaw and toss to combine. The leftover liquid can be used as a salad dressing over the optional salad greens.
  • Top the 6 tortillas with the tempeh filling and slaw on top, being sure not to overfill each taco with filling. If using the salad greens tossed with the slaw dressing, plate the tacos with the salad. Add the optional green onions over top and serve.

Notes

Simply omit the mirin, gochujang, or miso if you don't have.
You can substitute a lemon for the lime.
This recipe can be doubled or tripled to serve 4 or 6 people.