High Protein Vegetarian Ground Beef

Servings

Ingredients

8 oz. tempeh
½ cup walnuts pecans, or other nuts
2 tablespoons TVP textured vegetable protein
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon pepper
⅛ teaspoon cayenne

Instructions

In a food processor, combine all the ingredients. You may need to do this in a few batches depending on the size of your food processor. If you do, first stir together the soy sauce, tomato paste, olive oil, and all the spices so you can more evenly distribute that between batches.
You want to pulse, not puree. You are looking for a soft and crumbly mixture and not processed so it becomes a paste. Spread evenly on a baking sheet lined with a baking mat or parchment paper.
Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes, removing from the oven halfway through baking to stir up the mixture a little.
Now you can use this right away in a recipe. Or you can store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week (maybe more, but this feels safe as I’ve tried it). Or you can store in an airtight container and freeze until you need it.

Notes

As indicated, you can change up the nuts you use here pretty easily and I know nut allergies are pretty prevalent, so don’t be afraid to change this based on what you need. Pretty much any nut will do as it’s mainly there to add texture. But this can change the overall protein content a little. I believe walnuts offer some of the highest protein, but many other nuts are good options too.