Tempeh Thai Pizza with Peanut Sauce
If I could eat this meal every day for lunch or dinner I’d be a very happy girl. Aaron would be a very happy guy, because this recipe combines each of our respective favorites: Thai food (for me) and pizza (for him)! Plus, anything involving peanut sauce automatically gets bumped up to crave-worthy status at our house.
This Thai Pizza uses a store-bought crust to save time, although if you’re up for making your own, go for it! From there, you top your pizza dough with a simple and protein-packed crumbled tempeh, onion, mushroom, and crunchy water chestnuts mixture. Next is a 5-minute peanut sauce made with only seven basic ingredients (nothing fancy!), and yet somehow it’s the stuff dreams are made of. If you follow my recipe as-is, you’ll have extra sauce leftover after you make your pizza, which is in part because I find my blender works better when I make a bigger batch, and also because I just like to use the extra peanut sauce for other meals throughout the week (for example, as a dip for summer rolls or to toss with veggies and soba noodles). That said, I’m sure you could get away with halving the sauce and just scraping down the sides of your blender once or twice.
And because I’m all about the toppings, I like to pile my Thai Pizza high with shredded cabbage and carrots, chopped peanuts, thinly sliced green onion, sesame seeds, and sriracha (I like mine spicy). It’s a great way to work in some raw veggies and lots of textures and flavors. Pro tip: save time prepping your veggies by picking up some pre-shredded cabbage and carrots!
Tempeh Thai Pizza with Peanut Sauce
Tempeh Thai Pizza with Peanut Sauce
Serves: one 12-inch pizza
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 25 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
Two of my favorite foods in one crave-worthy meal! This Tempeh Thai Pizza is topped with a protein-packed tempeh and mushroom mixture, lots of bright, crunchy toppings, and a 5-minute peanut sauce that's so good you'll want to put it on everything!
Cuisine: Vegan Servings: one 12-inch pizza
Prep Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 25 mins Total Time: 45 mins
Two of my favorite foods in one crave-worthy meal! This Tempeh Thai Pizza is topped with a protein-packed tempeh and mushroom mixture, lots of bright, crunchy toppings, and a 5-minute peanut sauce that's so good you'll want to put it on everything!
Instructions
- Place a pizza stone (or baking sheet) on the lowest rack of your oven. Pre-heat the oven to 450° F.
- While the oven pre-heats, prepare the tempeh and vegetables: Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the sesame oil, followed by the crumbled tempeh and onion. Stir to coat with the oil. Cook, stirring every so often, until the onions are translucent and the tempeh is golden brown (about 7-8 minutes). Stir in the mushrooms and water chestnuts and season with sea salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 more minutes, stirring a couple of times, until the mushrooms are tender. Remove the pan from the heat.
- Line your counter with a piece of parchment paper and sprinkle it with flour. Roll the pizza dough into a 12-inch circle of even thickness. Trim the parchment so that there is just enough border around the dough to lift it.
- Leaving a 1/2-inch border, top the pizza dough with the tempeh and vegetable mixture. Using a pizza peel (or un-rimmed baking sheet), transfer the pizza and parchment paper to the pre-heated pizza stone (or baking sheet) and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the crust is turning golden brown and crispy on the bottom.
- While the pizza cooks, make the peanut sauce: Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. If you find that your dressing is on the thicker side (this varies depending on the brand of peanut butter you use), feel free to blend in 1-2 tablespoons of water to thin it.
- Remove the pizza from the oven. Cut it into slices, then top with red cabbage, carrots, peanuts, and green onions. Drizzle with peanut sauce, then garnish with sesame seeds and sriracha, if you like it spicy.
Notes [3]
A quick word on peanut butter: I’ve been checking ingredient labels more diligently lately and I’ve noticed that most peanut butters have all sorts of junky oils and sugars added to them. I use and recommend the 365 Unsweetened & No Salt Organic Peanut Butter at Whole Foods. The only ingredient: peanuts (as it should be!), plus it isn’t outrageously expensive.
You’ll have lots of leftover peanut sauce, which for me is a very good thing! You can try halving the recipe, but I find my blender (a Vitamix) works better when I make a bigger batch. I like to use the extra peanut sauce as a dip for summer rolls, or toss it with veggies and soba/udon noodles.
Recipe inspired by my Vegan Thai Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce.
Copyright © 2023 Amanda Maguire for Pickles & Honey
