So you have relatives and/or friends visiting for the weekend and you want to whip up something a little different from stew. Seitan is a wonderful and versatile meat substitute that is easy to prepare and has a variety of uses. Here is how you can prepare a decent-sized (and delicious!) batch of seitan, as well as how to use it in a yummy recipe!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of vital wheat gluten flour
- 3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast (or “nooch” if you consider yourself hip!)
- ½ cup of cold vegetable broth
- ¼ cup of soy sauce (feel free to substitute tamari here)
- 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic either pressed or grated on a microplane grater
For the simmering broth:
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 4 cups of water
- ¼ cup of soy sauce or tamari
Now onto the part where you get your hands dirty!
- Fill a stock pot with water, broth, and soy sauce. Cover and bring the mixture to a boil.
- While that is going, in a large bowl, mix together the wheat gluten and nooch flakes.
- In a smaller bowl, whisk together your soy sauce/tamari, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and the cold veggie broth.
- Pour this mixture into the larger bowl while stirring with a wooden spoon, ensuring that most of the moisture has been absorbed and is partially clumped with the dry ingredients.
- Knead for about 3 minutes until what you have resmembles a large, sponge-like ball of elastic dough.
- Divide this into three equal pieces with a knife and then knead again, stretching them out just a little bit. Let these rest until your broth has come to a full boil. Then, slowly and carefully, place the uncooked seitan into the pot.
- Bring your broth down to a light simmer.
- Partially cover the pot and simmer for 45 minutes, turning occasionally.
- Turn the heat off and remove the lid, and let it sit for 15 minutes
- Remove (with tongs, preferably) from broth and place in a strainer or collander until the seitan is cool enough to be handled.
- Slice and use as desired.
TIPS:
- If the broth came to a boil during your mixing and kneading, feel free to bring it down to a simmer for the time being, then return it to a boil before you place the three pieces of seitan into the pot.
- Do NOT boil the seitan unless you are planning on making fake brains.
- It’s always a good idea to saute whatever you’re planning to use for around five minutes in a skillet. This will ensure that your seitan will have a texture that is crispy on the outside, but tender on the inside. Also, if you use a cast-iron pot, even better, because that will give the seitan a great charred flavor to it.
Here are some great uses for your seitan:
- Seitan Wellington With a Creamy Spinach Sauce
- Seitan and Mushroom Bourguignon
- Vegan Spetsofai (Greek Stew With Seitan Sausage and Peppers)
- “Chicken”, Green Chili and Hominy Posole
- Moroccan Potato Salad with Corn and Kale
Help keep One Green Planet free and independent! Together we can ensure our platform remains a hub for empowering ideas committed to fighting for a sustainable, healthy, and compassionate world. Please support us in keeping our mission strong.
Comments