My favorite go to seitan “chicken” recipe on a weeknight for a family dinner or to share with company. The meaty cutlets are steamed until tender then marinated in a tropical teriyaki sauce before being pan seared or grilled until perfectly caramelized. Serve in tacos with spoonfuls of mango avocado salsa or drizzles of my favorite mango basil sauce.

Seitan

Or vegan meat, is a food made from vital wheat gluten flour that can be combined with other ingredients like tofu or jackfruit to create healthier meatless cutlets or steaks that have a lean meaty texture without any saturated fat and cholesterol.

Today’s version is my favorite homemade vegan meat recipe for a weeknight dinner that is incredibly easy to make in less than an hour with a fabulous tropical vibe from a teriyaki marinade. You can take it In a few different directions with different sauces, salsas and salads. I love it sliced thin and piled up high in tropical style street tacos with mango and lime; you can pack it into vegan gyros with Tzatziki and some oven fries, or serve alongside mashed potatoes with chimichurri and a tomato cucumber salad. Broil any leftovers and fancy up your next bowl of vegan ramen, garlic noodles and even pizza. The possibilities are endless!

About the Dough

A perfect mixture of vital wheat gluten, all purpose flour, tofu and spices that comes together in the food processor in a couple of minutes. The addition of silken tofu here will yield a stickier dough but the final cutlets will be perfectly tender, not tough or rubbery. If you have an extra large steamer basket this is your moment to use it and cook them all at once, otherwise you can just work in batches making sure the cutlets don’t touch each other. They will puff up during steaming so you wan to give them space for that. At this point they can be marinated and grilled or pan seared or refrigerated for later use. For a chewier steak-like texture you can cook the cutlets directly in broth or water, just do it at a gentle simmer to avoid a rubbery texture.

The Marinade

Any teriyaki sauce will work just fine, I’m really into the Kona Coast Island Teriyaki which is like a thick glaze that caramelizes beautifully in a skillet yielding that unique burnt sugar flavor that makes one go back for seconds and thirds. The Soyaki from TJ’s is also great and it seems easier to find nowadays. If you find yourself in the mood for barbecue feel free to swap the teriyaki for your favorite BBQ sauce and serve it up with some of my popular green apple coleslaw and dill potato salad.

Storage + Reheating

If I have any leftovers of these sliced up little meats in the fridge I love to reheat them under the broiler for a couple of minutes, the caramelization that happens at the edges is absolutely heavenly. If desired you could even toss the leftovers with a little extra teriyaki before broiling just to be extra delish and then pile on top of a tortilla with your favorite sauces.

Easy Seitan Recipes

how to make the best seitan recipe

5 from 2 votes

Easy Seitan

My favorite go to seitan "chicken" recipe on a weeknight for a family dinner or to share with company. The meaty cutlets are steamed until tender then marinated in a tropical teriyaki sauce before being pan seared or grilled until perfectly caramelized. Serve in tacos with spoonfuls of mango avocado salsa or drizzles of my favorite mango basil sauce.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:10

Cook Time:25

Total Time:35

Ingredients

3/4 cup vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup all purpose flour (whole wheat pastry flour or chickpea flour)
1/4 cup silken tofu
2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp fine sea salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
2/3 cup water

Marinade

1/3 cup Island Teriyaki marinade

Instructions

Prepare your largest steamer with a couple of inches of water in the bottom pan. Bring to a boil and place the steamer basket/ pan on top then cover with a lid. Once you see steam getting trapped inside the pan you are ready to go.
To the bowl of a food processor add all the seitan ingredients. Press the pulse button a few times until a dough forms and comes together into a ball.
3/4 cup vital wheat gluten, 1/4 cup all purpose flour, 1/4 cup silken tofu, 2 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 3/4 tsp fine sea salt, Freshly cracked black pepper, 2/3 cup water
Divide the dough into 4 pieces and using your hands stretch each piece into a cutlet about 1/2 inch thick.
Brush the steamer basket with a little oil and place the cutlets inside of it without touching each other. Cover with the lid and steam for 18 minutes flipping them half way.
Prepare a shallow container with the marinade. Transfer the steamed cutlets into the marinade making sure to coat them all over. Marinade on the kitchen counter for 20 minutes flipping them half way making sure the marinade covers everything.
1/3 cup Island Teriyaki marinade
Preheat a large cast iron skillet or griddle over medium high heat. Lightly coat the bottom with oil to make sure nothing sticks. Transfer the cutlets to the hot skillet and pan sear for 3 to 5 minutes on each side until golden brown and the sugars from the marinade start to caramelize. Before flipping the cutlets baste them with some of the marinade and drizzle a few drops of olive oil, this will help prevent sticking and the sugars from burning. Adjust heat as you see fit.
Transfer the cutlets to a cutting board and slice them into thin slices. Serve in street style tacos topped with mango avocado salsa or my favorite mango basil chimichurri sauce.

Video

Nutrition

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: seitan

Servings: people

Calories: 146kcal

Author: Florentina

2 Comments