Grilled Jamaican Jerk Tempeh with Veganomicon's Mango and Black Bean Quinoa Salad

We had a delicious dinner Sunday night, with the wonderful company of David's mom (eh-hem, a.k.a. Bella's grandma)! David and I decided we wanted to grill... but what to grill? Well, we love Jamaican jerk chicken, but since I haven't been in the mood for meat, I decided to try out this marinade with tempeh. Oh my goodness, it was DELICIOUS! I have to give a big thank you to a recipe contributor of Allrecipes who created this fabulous marinade! I wouldn't change a thing about it. It is so flavorful! 

This time I steamed the tempeh for 10-15 minutes before putting it into the marinade. The tempeh did not have the slight bitterness that I tasted from my first experience with tempeh when I boiled it. I'm not saying that boiling doesn't work, but that steaming the tempeh seemed to work out better for me. I marinated the tempeh in the Jamaican jerk marinade for 24 hours. The tempeh really soaked up all of the flavors so nicely! I had leftover Jamaican jerk tempeh tonight that I was craving all day!

Jamaican Jerk Tempeh

Ingredients

For the marinade (click for original recipe):

• 1 bunch (6-8) green onions, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 3/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons organic brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

For the tempeh:

• 1 (8-oz) pkg tempeh, quartered diagonally, steamed for 10-15 min and cooled

Directions

1. Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a food processor. Process for 15-30 seconds.
2. Place the tempeh in a ziplock bag, plastic container, or 8"x8" glass dish.
3. Pour approximately 1/3 of the marinade into the bag, container or dish (whichever you prefer). The remaining marinade can be saved for another use - it freezes well!
4. Marinate the tempeh, in the refrigerator, for at least 1 hr or up to 24 hrs. The longer the tempeh marinates, the more flavorful it will be!



I love the colors in this salad! Deliciously beautiful!



Since we planned on making such a great main dish, I wanted to find a fun side dish recipe. I took a look in Veganomicon and saw their recipe for quinoa salad. Yum! And geez-oh-man, was it ever so good!

Veganomicon's Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Mango (with a few minor changes!)

Ingredients

• 1 cup red quinoa, uncooked
• 2 cups water
• 1 mango, peeled and diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 bunch scallions, choppped
• 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp grapeseed oil
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1 (15-oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

Directions

1. In a small pot, bring the quinoa and water to a boil and simmer covered for 15 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the mango, red bell pepper, scallions, and cilantro.
3. Stir in the red wine vinegar, grapeseed oil, and salt.
4. Add the quinoa and stir until well-combined.
5. Fold in the black beans.
6. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. Best when served at room temperature for more flavor.
7. Serves 4-6. 

By the way, David and his mom both enjoyed the amazing Jamaican jerk chicken with delicious sides of Veganomcon's quinoa salad, my mom's famous roasted potatoes (which I need to blog about sometime), and grilled veggies with our favorite Bone Suckin' Seasoning! Yummy!!