Tempeh Larb Salad with Toasted Rice Powder and Fresh Herbs
ThaiVegetarian Vegan Low-carb One-pan High-protein

Tempeh Larb Salad with Toasted Rice Powder and Fresh Herbs

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4.8 · (50 ratings)
restaurant4 servings — best eaten fresh; see freeze note below.
scheduleHands-on 25 min | Total 25 min
bolt310 kcal
Yield4 servings — best eaten fresh; see freeze note below.
Calories310 kcal
Total Time25 min
Cost/Serving

~$4.80 CAD per serving (estimate)

Ingredients

  • 400 gtempeh (crumbled into small pieces by hand)
  • 3 tbspuncooked jasmine rice (dry, for toasting)
  • 3 tbspfresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
  • 2 tbspsoy sauce (use a good-quality tamari for fully gluten-free)
  • 1 tbspolive oil
  • 1 tsptoasted sesame oil
  • 1 tspmaple syrup
  • 3 mediumshallots (thinly sliced into rings)
  • 2 clovesgarlic (minced)
  • 2red bird's eye chillies (thinly sliced; use 1 for less heat)
  • 1 tbsppumpkin seeds (from the bulk bag)
  • 1 tbspsunflower seeds (from the bulk bag)
  • 20 gfresh mint leaves (torn)
  • 20 gfresh cilantro (roughly chopped, leaves and tender stems)
  • 3 stalksgreen onions (thinly sliced)
  • 1 headbutter lettuce (leaves separated and washed)

Nutrition / serving

  • Calories310 kcal
  • Protein22 g
  • Carbs18 g
  • Fat16 g
  • Fiber5 g

Cost Estimate

~$4.80 CAD per serving (estimate)

Larb is a Lao and northern Thai salad built on a sharp balance of lime, heat, and toasted rice — a dish where texture does as much work as flavour. Here, crumbled tempeh stands in for the usual ground meat, crisping in a dry pan until it smells faintly nutty. The toasted rice powder, made in the same skillet in under two minutes, gives the dressing a dusty, slightly smoky grip that no other ingredient can replicate. Serve the whole thing spooned into butter lettuce cups and eaten with your hands.

Instructions

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Toast the rice powder

Set a dry skillet over medium heat. Add the jasmine rice and toast, stirring constantly, for 90 seconds to 2 minutes until the grains turn pale gold and smell like popcorn. Tip immediately into a spice grinder or mortar and grind to a coarse powder — not dust, you want a little texture. Set aside.

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Crisp the tempeh

Return the same skillet to medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Add the crumbled tempeh in a single layer and press it gently with a spatula. Cook without stirring for 3 minutes until the underside is golden, then stir and cook another 2–3 minutes until most pieces are crisp and nutty-smelling. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

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Soften the aromatics

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the shallots and garlic to the same pan with a splash of water (about 2 tbsp) and cook for 2 minutes until the shallots are just translucent and the water has evaporated. Scrape into the bowl with the tempeh.

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Make the dressing

In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and maple syrup until combined. Taste — it should be sharp, salty, and just barely sweet.

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Toast the seeds

In the same dry skillet over medium heat, toast the pumpkin and sunflower seeds for 1–2 minutes, stirring, until they start to pop and colour lightly. Add to the tempeh bowl.

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Dress and toss

Pour the dressing over the tempeh mixture. Add the sliced chillies, green onions, mint, and cilantro. Sprinkle in the toasted rice powder. Toss everything together and let it sit for 2 minutes so the rice powder absorbs the dressing and the flavours settle.

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Serve in lettuce cups

Arrange butter lettuce leaves on a platter or individual plates. Spoon the larb into each cup and serve immediately — the lettuce wilts quickly once filled.

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Freeze & Reheat

Larb doesn't freeze well — the fresh herbs turn black and the lettuce is non-negotiable fresh. If you have leftover tempeh filling (without herbs), refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3–4 minutes, then add fresh herbs and a squeeze of lime before serving.

Chef's Cool Facts

Toasted rice powder is a living ingredient

Khao khua — the Thai name for this powder — isn't just a thickener. As it sits in the dressing, it absorbs liquid and swells slightly, giving the salad a cohesive, almost meaty texture. Grind it too fine and it turns pasty; keep it coarse and it stays pleasantly gritty.

Tempeh fermentation changes the protein

During fermentation, Rhizopus mould binds soy beans into a dense cake and partially breaks down the proteins into shorter peptides. This makes tempeh's protein more digestible than whole soybeans, and it's why tempeh browns so readily — the surface is drier and denser than tofu, so it crisps rather than steams.

Lime juice as a 'cooking' agent

The acid in lime juice doesn't just season — it denatures some surface proteins on the tempeh the same way citrus 'cooks' fish in ceviche. That brief marinade after tossing is enough to slightly firm the exterior of each crumble and mellow the raw sharpness of the shallots.

Bird's eye chillies punch above their weight

At 50,000–100,000 Scoville units, bird's eye chillies are roughly 20 times hotter than a jalapeño by weight. In larb, they're used raw and sliced thin so the heat hits fast and fades quickly — a different sensation than a slow-building dried chilli paste.

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