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This vegan mustard tempeh Buddha bowl is loaded with quinoa, roasted sweet potatoes, silky avocado, crunchy apple, marinated tempeh, and tossed with a creamy mustard dressing. It’s a hearty filling vegan buddha bowl that’s oil-free and gluten-free.

For more tempeh recipes, try a peanut tempeh bowl with a spicy peanut dressing. For more sweet potato recipes vegan Southwest sweet potato bowl with a cilantro cashew dressing or roasted sweet potato nourish bowl with a smoky tahini dressing.
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Tips
- Kale only needs to be massaged with a little of the dressing, just long enough to start to break down some of the fibers and reduce in volume.
- Save a dish and reuse the one you used to toss the sweet potatoes and vinegar with for massaging the kale.
- Use gluten-free tamari to keep the dish gluten-free.
- The vinegar taste dissipates while cooking, so don’t worry your sweet potatoes won’t be sour.
Substitutions
- The quinoa in this tempeh Buddha bowl can be substituted with brown rice, millet, or any grain you prefer. For more recipes with quinoa try zesty quinoa salad.
- If you substitute with spinach or baby kale, no need to massage to break down the fibers.
- Use low-sodium soy sauce if you don’t have tamari.
- If you do use oil, then the vinegar for the sweet potatoes can be substituted with oil.
- The tempeh can be substituted with crispy oil-free oven-baked tofu or the tofu from my tofu Buddha bowl recipe.
Time-Saving Tips
- The tempeh can be steamed in advance, and marinated overnight.
- Preheat the oven and get the prep work done for the sweet potatoes while the tempeh is marinating. Steaming the tempeh before marinating lets the tempeh puff up slightly and soaks up the marinade better.
- Plenty of times I’ve just tossed un-steamed cubed tempeh with half of the marinade ingredients, let them marinate while the oven preheats, and baked them as per the instructions in the recipe. I’ve seen that my un-steamed tempeh doesn’t soak up as much marinade, so I use half the amount.
- I think the maple mustard tempeh tastes better steamed and marinated, but if you choose not to it will be covered with a flavorful mustard dressing. (And sometimes we just need to save time and dishes in the kitchen)
Oil-Free Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes don’t have much moisture so they need some in order to have the salt and other seasonings stick. If you do use oil, then the vinegar for the potatoes can be substituted with oil.
Vegetable broth can also be used instead of apple cider vinegar. Don’t worry the vinegar dissipates and the potatoes don’t taste sour. If you’re transitioning to using less oil, just a quick spray of oil can work to get the salt to stick.
Instructions
Place the tempeh in a pan with water coming halfway up the blocks of tempeh, and simmer on medium to medium-high for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Or use a steamer basket and steam it for 10 minutes.

While the tempeh is steaming, whisk together the tamari, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar. Once steamed, let it cool until you’re able to handle it, then cut your tempeh into ½-inch cubes.

Place the tempeh in a shallow dish and pour the marinade over it, toss the cubes around to ensure they’re covered. Let it marinate for about 15-20 minutes. Toss the cubes around about every 5-10 minutes, to ensure even marinating. (It can also marinate overnight)
Preheat the oven to 425 F (220 C). For oil-free roasting, toss sweet potatoes with apple cider vinegar and salt. Don’t pour them onto a baking tray, lift them out of the bowl to leave excess vinegar behind. If you're not oil-free use a neutral-tasting oil.

Bake the sweet potatoes on a silicone mat or parchment-lined baking tray for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through.

Bake the marinated tempeh on a silicone mat or parchment-lined baking tray for 20 minutes, stirring halfway through.

While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the quinoa according to the package instructions. Then whisk the ingredients together for the dressing.
Massage the kale with 2 tablespoons of dressing, and tear it into bite-size pieces if needed. The volume of kale should reduce in size. (I just reuse the bowl from the sweet potatoes)

To serve: portion off the quinoa, cooked potatoes, tempeh, diced apples, and sliced avocado into bowls, and add the mustard dressing.
Meal Prepping
If you’re using this tempeh Buddha bowl for meal prep, the sweet potatoes and tempeh can be stored together. I store the rest separately, although the kale and apple may be fine together.
Depending on the type of apple, if pre-cut it might brown overnight in the refrigerator, a splash of lemon juice may help but it will taste a little like lemon. If you have leftover avocado, store it with the seed still intact in an airtight container.

More Tempeh Bowl Recipes
Related recipes
- Butternut Squash Buddha Bowl
- Vegan Taco Bowl
- Roasted sweet potato nourish bowl
- Vegan Deconstructed Sushi Bowl
- Chickpea Vegetable Rice Bowl
- Tofu Buddha Bowl
- Vegan Peanut Noodles
I hope you enjoy this recipe for the mustard tempeh buddha bowl! If you like the recipe, feel free to rate it and leave a comment.
PrintRecipe

Mustard Tempeh Buddha Bowl
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4-5 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This vegan mustard tempeh Buddha bowl is loaded with quinoa, roasted sweet potatoes, silky avocado, crunchy apple, marinated tempeh, and tossed with a creamy mustard dressing.
Ingredients
Tempeh
- 2 (8 ounces each) packs of tempeh,
- 2 tablespoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Sweet Potatoes
- 1 medium ((1.2 lb) 578 g) sweet potato, cubed
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or a neutral-tasting oil
- Salt to taste
Dressing
- ⅓ cup spicy brown mustard
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup
- 3 tablespoon tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
For the Bowls
- 3-4 cups of kale, stem removed and torn into bite-size pieces
- 1 avocado, deseeded and sliced
- 1 apple, diced
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
Instructions
- For the Tempeh: Place the tempeh in a pan with water coming halfway up the blocks of tempeh, and simmer on medium to medium-high for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Or use a steamer basket and steam it for 10 minutes.
- While the tempeh is steaming, whisk together the tamari, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar.
- Once steamed, let it cool until you’re able to handle it, then cut tempeh into ½-inch cubes.
- Place the tempeh in a shallow dish and pour the marinade over it, toss the cubes around to ensure they’re covered. Let it marinate for about 15-20 minutes. Toss the cubes around about every 5-10 minutes, to ensure even marinating. (It can also marinate overnight)
- Preheat the oven to 425 F (220 C).
- For the Potatoes: For oil-free roasting toss sweet potatoes with apple cider vinegar and salt. Don’t pour them onto a baking tray, lift them out of the bowl to leave excess vinegar behind. If you're not oil-free use a neutral-tasting oil.
- Bake the sweet potatoes on a silicone mat or parchment-lined baking tray for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- Bake the marinated tempeh on a silicone mat or parchment-lined baking tray for 20 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- For the Quinoa and Dressing: While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the quinoa according to package instructions. Then whisk the ingredients together for the dressing.
- For the Kale: Massage the kale with 2 tablespoons of dressing, and tear it into bite-size pieces if needed. The volume of kale should reduce in size (I just reuse the bowl from the sweet potatoes).
- To serve: portion off the quinoa, cooked potatoes, tempeh, diced apples, sliced avocado into bowls, and add the mustard dressing.
Notes
Steaming the tempeh before marinating lets the tempeh puff up slightly and soaks up the marinade better. Plenty of times I’ve just tossed un-steamed cubed tempeh with half of the marinade ingredients and baked it as per the instructions. I think the tempeh tastes better steamed and marinated, but if you choose not to it will be covered with a flavorful mustard dressing.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: main course
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: american
Keywords: tempeh buddha bowl, tempeh bowl, vegan tempeh bowl
Kate
My family and I really enjoyed the recipe! We loved the apples and mustard sauce, thank you for the recipe.
★★★★★
Allie
I'm glad you liked the recipe and thank you for leaving a comment.