Seitan from Wheat Gluten

Making Seitan may sound daunting, but it’s actually incredibly quick and easy and I was hugely impressed with the end result, which is satisfyingly chewy, really tasty and massively versatile!

The quantities I give made four ‘steaks’, each weighing approx 150g and giving enough for two people as part of a meal. Seitan is very high in protein and makes a perfect meat substitute. You can cube it, slice it or bash it up in a food processor to make ‘mince’ and then proceed as you would with any meat-based recipe.

Picture 1
The finished product. It’s tasty, so you could use it just like this in sandwiches, with chutney or salad and mayo.

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Ingredients:
1 cup Vital Wheat Gluten (FL)
1/4 cup wholemeal bread flour (FL)
1/3 cup soy sauce (FL)
2 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (FL)
1 cup cold water

Method:
Mix dry ingredients. Stir soy sauce into the water and gradually add this to the flour. Form into a ball and knead for a minute or two. It will feel wet, but not at all sticky.

Picture 3
Put the ball of dough on a plate, cover (wax wraps are good for this) and leave for 15 minutes.

Picture 4
Cut the ball into four sections, mould into ovals and flatten out. It’s quite springy.

Picture 5
Make a stock in a saucepan from 1 pint cold water, 2 teaspoons Bouillon powder, 1 tbsp soy sauce and a bay leaf. Add other herbs and spices if you like. Put in the four pieces of dough; they will swell, so choose a big enough saucepan. Bring slowly to the boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. It’s ready! Use what you need then keep the rest in its liquid in the fridge, or freeze.

Picture 6
Here it is cut into small strips and used in a stir-fry with vegetables and noodles. Do you have any favourite ways of using it?