Basic Seitan Recipe (Vital Wheat Gluten Method)
Aloha! Today I’ll show you how to make seitan from scratch, using vital wheat gluten.
What is Seitan?
Seitan, or gluten, is a plant-based meat alternative derived from gluten, the protein found in wheat. It originates from Buddhist monasteries in China, and has made its way across Asia. It is meaty, high-protein, and… very expensive, if you buy it from the store. It really boggles my mind how expensive this can get. But not anymore. You will have the scrolls for this delicious ingredient!
Vital Wheat Gluten vs. Washed Flour Methods
There are two ways to make your seitan: with vital wheat gluten (VWG) or with the washed flour method (WTF). Vital wheat gluten is dried gluten that has been processed into a powder. In the WTF method, you make a bread dough first, before washing the starches away, leaving you with the gluten. In this post, we will go over the VWG method.
Key Ingredients:
Vital Wheat Gluten - the star of the show.
Nutritional Yeast - used for adding umami & softening the dough
Chickpea Flour - helps to soften the dough, and provides additional amino acids to make seitan a complete protein
Miso - adds umami and a pleasant color to the dough. I recommend using red for beef-y seitan, and white/yellow for chicken-y seitan.
Soy Sauce - adds umami, seasons the dough, and can add a nice color to your seitan
Olive Oil - helps to add richness and tenderize the dough
Chef Tips for Success:
Use a food processor to get a better texture. The blades break down the gluten in a way that kneading can’t.
Whenever you are finished working your dough, allow it to rest to settle down the gluten and allow it to reform.
Generally, use a low temperature when simmering seitan. Keep it at a gentle simmer. If the temperature gets too high, the seitan can become spongy.
Just like bread, allowing seitan to rest overnight in the fridge after cooking will dramatically improve its texture.
Searing the seitan before simmering it (the fry-simmer method) will improve flavor and texture by preventing overexpansion.
Knotting the dough will improve the texture, but it’s completely optional!
Basic Seitan (Vital Wheat Gluten Method)
Seitan Ingredients:
1 ¼ cups water
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup nutritional yeast
¼ cup chickpea flour
2 Tablespoons miso paste
2 Tablespoons olive oil, plus extra if pre-frying
3 cups vital wheat gluten
Broth:
1 gallon water
½ cup soy sauce (or 1/4 cup vegan broth bouillon)
Method:
Mix all seitan ingredients except for gluten in the food processor or mixing bowl.
Add the gluten flour and process/mix until you have a smooth mass. Rest for 5 minutes.
Cut seitan into small chunks. If desired, season the cubes with salt and pepper, then heat some oil in a pan and fry the chunks until golden brown on all sides.
Heat your broth in a large pot until it is simmering.
Add your seitan cubes to the broth and cook for 1 hr, keeping the broth at a simmer. You’ll know the seitan is done when it is firm to the touch.
Remove from heat. For best results, let the seitan rest overnight in its liquid in the fridge.
