VEGAN COOKING TIPS
Quick and Easy Ideas for Seitan
By Chef Nancy Berkoff, EdD, RD
Seitan is plant-based "meat" made from wheat gluten, unlike tofu or tempeh, which are both made from soybeans. Seitan is higher in protein than most other wheat products like bread and crackers, and is a good source of selenium and phosphorus. Seitan has a remarkably chewy texture and can withstand moist, high heat for searing, braising, and stewing beautifully. Next time you think about vegan burgers, meatballs, steaks, ribs, deli slices, or long-simmering pho or curries, think seitan.
The easiest way to use seitan is to purchase it prepared and refrigerated, frozen, or canned. It's even easier to take the plunge by purchasing pre-seasoned seitan that's ready to use right out of the package. Depending on your local market, you may find seitan with Italian herbs and spices, smoky bacon-like flavor, barbecue, and even roast turkey seasoning. For the most versatility when using seitan for several different dishes, you'll want to look for unseasoned seitan. You can also start from scratch and make your own seitan at home if you have the time for making and cooking the raw dough.
Seitan works best when kept moist. If you purchase unseasoned seitan, you might want to try slicing or dicing some and storing it in a basic marinade made with vegan Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, red wine or vinegar, miso, soy sauce, or garlic or onion powder, depending on your flavor preference.
If you are using moist heat cooking methods, such as stewing, steaming, braising, adding to soups, or slow-cooking, you can let the seitan cook for a long time. If you are using dry heat cooking methods, such as grilling, pan-frying, air-frying, or broiling, then you'll want to cook quickly. This will help to prevent the seitan from becoming too tough. If you would like to roast or bake seitan, it's a good idea to include a gravy or sauce to keep the moisture in.
If you have the time, you can add chunked seitan to a food processor and process until you have created your own meatless grounds that approximate lean ground beef. This can be used in chili, spaghetti sauces, stroganoff or soups, or saut&233;ed for a burrito, taco filling, or pizza topping.
Seitan can be breaded and fried or air-fried to create your own fried chik'n, too. You can coat a long piece of seitan with barbecue sauce and roast or grill for seitan ribs. Seitan can be sliced very thin, seasoned with soy sauce and maple syrup, and roasted for vegan bacon. Seitan can be thickly sliced; marinated in wine or vinegar, mushroom broth, or liquid smoke and sliced mushrooms; and then grilled for a seitan steak. Marinate seitan in liquid from pickles or sauerkraut; slice as you would with deli meat and roast. Allow to cool; and you have seitan deli slices for hot or cold sandwiches, including Reubens!
Quick Seitan Serving Suggestions
- Chop or grind seitan, sautée with onions and garlic, and add to tomato sauce for spaghetti sauce; or add to cooked beans with barbecue sauce for chili beans; or add to vegetable or tomato soup for extra flavor and texture; use as a pizza topping or a calzone filling; or add to a creamy mushroom sauce to create a stroganoff.
- Cut seitan into small cubes and sautée with black or white pepper, a small amount of vegetable oil or spray, and chopped bell peppers or chilies of your choice. Add to a package of homemade curry sauce to create a green, yellow, or red curry; add to heated leftover mashed potatoes with ssautéed onions and green cabbage to create an Irish-inspired colcannon or a shepherd's pie; or use as a focaccia topping.
