Soft tempeh & rice bowl

Name: Soft tempeh & rice bowl
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 3 servings
Cuisine: Tempeh · an Indonesian staple
Ingredients: 200 g plain tempeh, cut into small cubes; 150 g uncooked rice; 1 carrot (80 g), peeled and finely diced; 1 tablespoon neutral oil; 150 ml water for the tempeh, plus water to cook rice; 1 teaspoon reduced-salt soy sauce, optional

Tempeh · an Indonesian staple · Tempeh · an Indonesian staple

Soft tempeh & rice bowl

Small tempeh pieces simmered until tender, served with rice and carrot. Keeping the ingredients in separate sections makes the bowl easy to explore.

10 minPreparation

25 minCooking

35 minTotal time

3Servings

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MyAutismHub · 4 September 2026
Separate components · Portions are a guide; appetite and needs vary.

Illustration of soft tempeh & rice bowl — AI-generated serving illustration

For 3 servings

What you’ll need

200 g plain tempeh, cut into small cubes
150 g uncooked rice
1 carrot (80 g), peeled and finely diced
1 tablespoon neutral oil
150 ml water for the tempeh, plus water to cook rice
1 teaspoon reduced-salt soy sauce, optional

Allergens
Soy. Soy sauce usually contains wheat; some tempeh contains other grains. Check labels.

One step at a time

Let’s make it

Cook the rice according to its packet instructions.
Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the tempeh, carrot and 150 ml water. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 15–20 minutes until the carrot is tender and the tempeh is cooked through; follow the pack's cooking guidance.
Stir in the optional soy sauce and simmer for another minute. Add more water if it starts to dry out.
Serve the rice, tempeh and carrot in separate areas of the plate. Mash or crumble the tempeh if needed and cool the serving before eating.

Preparation and cooking times are estimates. Use the doneness checks in the method.

Make the texture work

Tempeh has a distinct flavour and visible bean texture. Offer a tiny portion alongside a safe food; it may not suit every child.

Season it properly

Taste before adding salt. Keep pepper, chilli and strong sauces as optional adult table add-ons.

Simple swaps

Use firm tofu if tempeh's flavour is unfamiliar, cooking according to its pack. Plain rice is fine; wholegrain rice is an optional gradual change.

Keep it safely

Cool rice quickly, ideally within 1 hour, and refrigerate. Use the assembled dish within 24 hours and reheat once until steaming hot throughout.

Food education

What the ingredients bring

These are practical food-group notes, not a laboratory nutrition analysis. Portions and brands change the numbers.

Provides a mix of protein or energy foods, plus vitamins and minerals from its vegetables, fruit or grains.

Before serving: supervise eating and adapt size and texture to your child’s chewing skills. These are ordinary family recipes, not a treatment for autism or a prescribed swallowing diet.

Soft tempeh & rice bowl

Soft tempeh & rice bowl

What you’ll need

Let’s make it

Make the texture work

Season it properly

Simple swaps

Keep it safely

What the ingredients bring

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