Tempeh and pickled cucumber sandwich
About the recipe
I’m lucky to live in The Hague. It’s dotted with beautiful Indonesian and Surinamese restaurants and cafes.
It’s in the little independent cafes of the city that I picked up the idea of tempeh goreng and pickled cucumber in a sandwich. This is my take on it - I hope I've done it justice.
Tempeh, like tofu, is made of soy. Unlike tofu, it uses the soy beans (rather than the milk). As a result, it has a much firmer texture and a beautiful nuttiness. It’s lovely paired with the spicy sambal goreng and pickled cucumbers and shallots in this recipe.
Making this requires a bit of planning, because you’ll have to pickle the cucumbers a couple of days in advance. But I promise it’s worth it.
Tempeh and pickled cucumber sandwich
For the pickled cucumber and shallots
- Half a cucumber
- 1 banana shallot
- Half a red chilli
- 50ml rice vinegar
- 25ml water
- 1.5 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
For the tempeh goreng
- 250g tempeh (you should be able to buy a block at the supermarket)
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil (I use sunflower)
- A small thumb-sized piece of fresh garlic
- 2 teaspoons sambal (an Indonesian chilli sauce – you should be able to find it in the supermarket)
- 4 tablespoons ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon white granulated sugar
- Up to four short (20cm) white baguettes (or one long one, cut into 4)
){kind=link}
Make the pickled cucumber and shallot
You need to do this a minimum of 2 days (or maximum 6 days) beforehand.
Start by chopping the vegetables.
You want to peel the cucumber, half it lengthways, remove the seeds with a spoon, and cut it into thin (about 0.5cm) slices.
For the shallot, go a thin as you can.
Finely dice the chilli.
Prepare the pickling liquid.
Combine all the other pickle ingredients in a small pan and warm them over a low heat, until the sugar dissolves.
Leave to cool.
Put your chopped vegetables into a plastic container
Or use a few sterilized jars if you plan to keep it for more than a week.
Pour the liquid over the veg.
Leave to marinade for at least two days.
Make the tempeh goreng
Chop the tempeh into thin slices.
Shallow fry the tempeh.
Put the oil into a large frying pan over a high heat and add your tempeh.
Stir occasionally until it’s golden brown all over.
In the meantime, peel and grate the ginger.
Add the ginger to the pan with the tempeh and leave to cook for about a minute, stirring.
Add the sambal, ketcap manis and sugar.
Continue to cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes.
It’s ready when the sauce is very sticky and forms a glossy layer around the tempeh.
Make your sandwiches
Stuff the baguettes with your sticky tempeh goreng, and top with slices of pickled cucumber and shallots.
Enjoy warm.
Tip:
You'll have lots of cucumber pickle left over. They're great to keep in the fridge, and they'll brighten up the simplest lunch. I love them as a side with fried rice, for exampe.
Or you could have them with saté, toss them through a cold soba noodle salad, or use them to top a Bánh mì sandwich.
Let’s be friends
I'd love to hear from you. Please reach out via email, Instagram or Facebook.