Oven Fried Barbecue Tempeh Strips

There are a few buffalo tempeh wing recipes swirling around the internet. Although I like buffalo chicken wings, I like the spicy barbecue version better - though, I like pretty much everything covered in barbecue sauce. And since my husband and I are embarking on this vegetarian kick, the wing part was obviously out of the question. All the buffalo tempeh recipes I found called for boiling the tempeh before coating and baking it. I've never done this before, and figured I'd give it a try. In hindsight, I wish I'd just skipped the boiling and marinated the tempeh like I always do...


That being said, my husband LOVED this dish. Me? I didn't love it the first day, but due to the strange, mysterious science of leftovers, I loved it the second day. Thus, the mixed results/reviews made me wonder whether or not to even post this recipe. The hubster, however, thinks he should have a say in what goes on my blog - especially if it's a dish that he really liked. So I decided to concede rather than scrapping the post altogether.


If I did this over again, I would marinate the tempeh a few hours before coating it in the breading so that the flavor seeps in. Better still, I've made marinated barbecue tempeh in the oven before without the breading, and loved it everytime - I might just do that again and save on some calories. Well, here goes...


Oven Fried Barbecue Tempeh Strips


1 Package Tempeh (any variety)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup water
2 Tbs hot sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp italian seasoning
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp parsley
1 cup panko (japanese-style) bread crumbs (asian markets or whole foods should have this)
3/4 cup barbecue sauce (whatever brand you like)
1/4 cup water




Preheat oven to 400 degrees and Grease sheet pan. Cut tempeh into strips. Bring Saucepan of water to boil. Boil tempeh for 10 minutes. Drain in collander and set aside.


Prepare batter: Wisk flour, 1/4 cup water, and hot sauce in medium size bowl. Stir in herbs and seasonings.


Place panko bread crumbs on plate or in pie dish.


In assembly line fashion, dip a piece of tempeh in batter, then roll in bread crumbs and place on greased sheet pan. Continue process until all pieces are covered.


Bake in oven 20 minutes. Turn pieces over and bake 20 more minutes. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, heat barbecue sauce and 1/4 cup water on stove top over medium heat. Once tempeh has baked for forty minutes, remove from oven, toss in warm barbecue sauce and serve!