Quick Vegan Seitan Steak

This quick 30-minute vegan seitan steak with barbecue sauce has vital wheat gluten, whole wheat flour, and spices. No simmering required.

Makes 4 servings.

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Vegan Seitan Steak with Honey Barbecue Sauce

I am pretty sure that no one will mistake this for a beef steak. But for some vegans, it has a meaty texture and flavor that they would like to add to some of their meals. For me, it is an excuse to have barbecue sauce. Since becoming a vegetarian, I miss barbecue sauce more than I expected.

For a long time, making seitan was a time consuming and complicated process. You would make a dough from white or whole wheat flour, salt, and water. You would let it rest for at least 20 minutes to allow the gluten to develop. Then you would wash the dough in cold water to remove the wheat starch. This washing by itself could take at least another 20 minutes. The resulting product was gluten or seitan dough. But in recent years, the widespread availability of Vital Wheat Gluten has simplified the process considerably.

Is it Gluten steak or Seitan steak?

It has always been a mystery to me as to when gluten becomes seitan. In many of the older recipes you would simmer the gluten in vegetable stock in order to add flavor and make the resulting seitan more tender. For a long time I did not think gluten became seitan until it was simmered in water or vegetable stock. Nowadays, I think that you have seitan as soon as you stir the water into the vital wheat gluten. In this recipe, we do not simmer the gluten in anything, yet we still call it seitan. The addition of the whole wheat flour and instant dry yeast helps to make the seitan tender. This means that you do not have to simmer the gluten in a vegetable stock. Another advantage to this recipe is that you will not need a steak knife or a barbecue grill.

If you are looking for something with a texture that is more like ground beef, then I highly recommend our recipe for Vegan “Ground Beef” Tofu.  For something a little more tender, you may want to try Tofu Fish Sticks.

Warning: Since the major ingredient here is vital wheat gluten, this is not for people who are gluten intolerant.

Vegan Seitan Steak Ingredients:

3/4 cup vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon instant dry yeast (about 1/2 packet)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ginger powder
3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet® Browning Sauce
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil, I use canola oil.

 

Instructions for making vegan seitan steak:

1. In a large bowl combine the 3/4 cup vital wheat gluten, 1/4 cup whole wheat flour, 1 teaspoon instant dry yeast, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon ginger powder. Mix together until well blended.
2. Stir the 1/2 teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet® Browning Sauce into the 3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons water in a measuring cup. Stir this mixture into the dry ingredients in the bowl.
3. Continue to stir everything together to create the seitan dough.
4. Turn out onto a cutting board and knead a few times. Shape into a ball of dough. 
   

   1- Combine vital wheat gluten, whole wheat flour, and spices in a large bowl.

   

   2- Add the water and Kitchen Bouquet to the dry ingredients in the bowl.

   

   3- Stir and mix well until everything sticks together and creates the seitan dough.

   

   4- Turn out onto a cutting board and knead a few times. Shape into a ball of dough.
5. Cut the ball of dough into 4 equal size pieces.
6. Place one piece of dough on a cutting board.
7. Place a small cutting board on the seitan steak and press gently to give it an even thickness.
8. The finished steak should be about 1/4-inch to 3/8-inch thick when done. Repeat for remaining pieces of seitan dough.
9. Place the 3 Tablespoons of vegetable oil in an electric skillet set at 325°. If you are using a frying pan, place over medium-high heat. Add the prepared seitan steaks. Cook the steaks for about 6 to 8 minutes or until browned on the bottom side. Turn the steaks and repeat for the second side.
10. Remove from pan and place on a plate. These seitan steaks are ready to use just as they are. My favorite way of using these steaks is to cut them into strips about 3/8-inch wide and add them to stir fry vegetables. Space does not allow us to get into making stir fry here, so I will show you how to serve the seitan steaks with barbecue sauce.
    

    5- Cut the ball of dough into 4 equal size pieces.

    

    6- Place one piece of dough on a cutting board.

    

    7- Press the seitan with a small cutting board to give it an even thickness.

    

    8- The finished steak should be about 1/4-inch to 3/8-inch thick when done.

    

    9-Fry in oil in an electric skillet for 5 to 6 minutes on each side

    

    10-Place seitan steaks on a plate when done cooking.

These steaks take about 20 minutes to prepare. Fixing the barbecue sauce adds about another 10 minutes to the preparation time.

Honey Barbecue Sauce

One of the easiest ways to serve seitan steak is with barbecue sauce.  These seitan steaks are very tender and are briefly cooked under a broiler. So you will not need a grill.

Ingredients for honey barbecue sauce:

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup honey
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce (1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons white wine or water
1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke

Instructions for Honey Barbecue Sauce:

1. In a small saucepan, cook and stir over medium heat the 1/4 cup chopped yellow onion in the 1 Tablespoon olive oil until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the minced garlic and continue to cook for an additional 1 minute.
2. Stir in the 1/4 cup honey, the 8 ounce can tomato sauce, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper, 2 Tablespoons white wine (or water), and 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke.
3. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 2 minutes.
4. Place the seitan steaks on a baking sheet. Spread about 2 Tablespoons Honey Barbecue Sauce over each steak. Set aside the leftover barbecue sauce. You will use it when it comes time to serve the seitan steaks.
5. Place the baking sheet with the steaks under the preheated broiler. Broil the steaks until the barbecue sauce begins to bubble.
6. Remove the seitan steaks from oven and serve. Spread some of the reserved barbecue sauce over each seitan steak when serving.
   

   1-Cook and stir the onion and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat.

   

   2-Stir in the honey, tomato sauce, seasonings, white wine, and liquid smoke.

   

   3- Reduce the heat and simmer for about 2 minutes.

   

   4- Place the seitan steaks on a baking sheet and spread Honey Barbecue Sauce over top.

   

   5- Place the seitan steaks under a broiler until barbecue sauce begins to bubble.

   

   6- Remove the seitan steaks from oven and serve.

We frequently serve mashed potatoes and carrots with the barbecue seitan steak. During the summer we will serve them with Pickled Beets and/or Classic Macaroni Salad. However, you can use whatever your favorite side dishes may be.

Notes:

• Prep Time: You can reduce the amount of time to prepare this recipe by starting to make the barbecue sauce while you are frying the gluten steaks.
• Can I freeze seitan steaks? Absolutely yes. Seitan steaks freeze very well. Do not broil the steaks or add barbecue sauce before storing in the freezer. Use a microwave oven or let stand on a kitchen counter for about 2 hours to defrost.
• Do I really need to use the white wine? No. Using water will work just as well. The wine is added for a little additional flavor so it is not mandatory. I do not usually use alcohol, but this wine evaporates during the cooking so it is not an issue.

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This recipe combines three recipes from The Joy of an Empty Pot cookbook; Fresh Raw Gluten Made from Vital Wheat Gluten Flour, Fried Gluten Steaks, and Honey Barbecue Sauce for Broiled Gluten.

Rev. McKinney