Seitan - General Guidance
Well friends, I girded my loins and tried making my own seitan yesterday. I had trawled the Net for info and some of it was contradictory, others were confusing, but I did find out how to make it with gluten powder and when to freeze it--after the initial cooking.
I always follow the easiest recipe thru the way it says the first time and go from there. NOW I understand why they recommend you add seasonings, herbs, mushroom powder etc. to the gluten mix...it tastes of absolutely nothing, as is. I mean, imagine eating an eraser. OK as a chewing exercise...flavour, not so much! LOL I also understand why they suggest you work it very little (mine was almost as dense as me!) and if it weren't 100º out I might have tried baking instead of boiling it.
BUT...and it's a big but...after I had laughed at the way it swells up when you boil it and looks like something out of a biology lab, and tasted it and found it...well, completely tasteless...I sliced it up and marinaded it in an African barbecue sauce. And DH the carnivore tasted it and did NOT go "Gross!" or laugh at me about it. We agreed the recipe and method need "tweaking" and that I need to print out the instructions and follow them closely, but that we are definitely onto something, at less than a dollar a pound for pure food, no waste. No bones, no fat, no cholesterol...and cheap! He ate some and said maybe we should put it in a curry etc.
10 years ago or even 5 he would have laughed at me and made "cute" remarks all the time I was trying to eat it. Now he agrees we need to eat less meat and things like this will help that. From his point of view it is purely economic (he is facing disability retirement) but hey, any start is a good one. Now if I could just get him to eat things with leaves and roots... ::)
I bought some White Wave brand Seitan on sale yesterday. I've read some seitan threads on here, but I've never had it. Since it is premade, should I just throw it in with veggies as a stir fry or do I need to bake it first? Thanks!
Ohhhh let me know how it turns out. I have yet to try seitan (except for some seiten jerky from the health store that was gross).
No need to bake. The texture is better if you shred it with a fork instead of cutting it into cubes.
Shredded like people shred meat for bbq sandwiches?
No need to bake. The texture is better if you shred it with a fork instead of cutting it into cubes.
Shredded like people shred meat for bbq sandwiches?
I believe so.
I sliced mine, it was good, I used the BBQ Seitan recipe on here somewhere, but I've heard good things about shredding it.
No need to bake. The texture is better if you shred it with a fork instead of cutting it into cubes.
Shredded like people shred meat for bbq sandwiches?
I believe so.
I sliced mine, it was good, I used the BBQ Seitan recipe on here somewhere, but I've heard good things about shredding it.
Iiiiiinteresting! I have never liked pre-packaged seitan (though I love homemade!), but I wonder what shredding would be like... I am definitely trying that! :)
No need to bake. The texture is better if you shred it with a fork instead of cutting it into cubes.
Shredded like people shred meat for bbq sandwiches?
i am so confused. how do people shread meat for bbq sandwiches? is this sad that i don't know that?
i ve never had white wave seitan, but i do buy from a different brand... i simply like to saute up some shallots and sear the seitan (cut thinly or chunky, depending on my whim) on a med-hi heat...then i add the seitan broth that came in the package w/ a splash or two of aminos.
its easy, fast and delicious!! :P
I prefer stir-frying it myself. Gets it nice and crisp.
No need to bake. The texture is better if you shred it with a fork instead of cutting it into cubes.
Shredded like people shred meat for bbq sandwiches?
i am so confused. how do people shread meat for bbq sandwiches? is this sad that i don't know that?
Not sad, but rather that you're a healthy long-term veg*n who may never have had the experience. One less trauma for you! ;)
I finally cooked my seitan. I cut it into cubes and simmered it in bbq sauce. My omni friend (andI) liked it a lot! Yay! So, now that I know exactly what seitan is, I want to make it myself. There are so many recipes on here. What are your favorites? Also, I remember hearing about Seitan O'greatness...where can I find that recipe?
I finally cooked my seitan. I cut it into cubes and simmered it in bbq sauce. My omni friend (andI) liked it a lot! Yay! So, now that I know exactly what seitan is, I want to make it myself. There are so many recipes on here. What are your favorites? Also, I remember hearing about Seitan O'greatness...where can I find that recipe?
My favorite that I have tried (so far) is the recipe from The PPK, but I don't add lemon zest.
I have heard baked seitan is great, but I haven't made it yet!
My favorite that I have tried (so far) is the recipe from The PPK, but I don't add lemon zest.
I have heard baked seitan is great, but I haven't made it yet!
im making that very recipe right now, seitan is cooling as I type
Thanks! I may try that one this weekend!
My favorite that I have tried (so far) is the recipe from The PPK, but I don't add lemon zest.
I have heard baked seitan is great, but I haven't made it yet!
im making that very recipe right now, seitan is cooling as I type
It is yumyumyumyum! :D It also makes AWESOME breaded "chicken" fingers. Not healthy, but delicious! And, I think this Country Fried Seitan Steak & Gravy recipe is one of my favorite things to do with seitan! Soooo good!
I just wish seitan didn't take so long to make... I always crave it when I don't have any on-hand. I should make some each Sunday just to have throughout the week.
Oh neat! I have never had seitan, but now I think I will try the PPK recipe.
What does seitan taste like?
It is yumyumyumyum! :D It also makes AWESOME breaded "chicken" fingers. Not healthy, but delicious! And, I think this Country Fried Seitan Steak & Gravy recipe is one of my favorite things to do with seitan! Soooo good!
I just wish seitan didn't take so long to make... I always crave it when I don't have any on-hand. I should make some each Sunday just to have throughout the week.
it turned out well, but Id like it a little firmer, any tips?
It is yumyumyumyum! :D It also makes AWESOME breaded "chicken" fingers. Not healthy, but delicious! And, I think this Country Fried Seitan Steak & Gravy recipe is one of my favorite things to do with seitan! Soooo good!
I just wish seitan didn't take so long to make... I always crave it when I don't have any on-hand. I should make some each Sunday just to have throughout the week.
it turned out well, but Id like it a little firmer, any tips?
I've heard baking it makes for firmer seitan! (Almost like a salami-type texture.) I'm not sure if that can be done through boiling...? Seitan o' Greatness Recipe <-- That's the "famous" one I've heard about... There's a good picture of the texture on that site I linked to, also! I've been meaning to try it because it looks & sounds delicious!
P.S. I am totally LOLing at work while reading this note from that blog author I linked to above:
OMG. I am dying of laughter! ;D I wonder if the seitan is worth it...?
JessaCita, that Country Fried Seitan Steak & Gravy sounds delicious. I've had this recipe saved in my box for a while, but haven't got around to trying it yet. (JessaCita, this may sound like a silly question, but how do you make your words into actual links like you have? I've done this on other sites, but for some reason, I'm not sure how to do this here.)
Adamcrisis, one thing that may make your boiled seitan a little firmer is wrapping the seitan logs in cheesecloth before putting them in the cold broth and bringing to a boil. I've seen several recipes that call for this step. From what I've read, I believe that you also want to make sure that your seitan is gently simmering after bringing to a boil, rather than boiling rapidly.
I've never made boiled seitan, but I have made the baked Seitan O' Greatness. It's really tasty and much firmer than any boiled seitan I've eaten before. (Years ago, I tried my first boiled seitan at a veg Chinese place, and the texture was so fatty and gelatinous--really gross--pretty much scared me away from seitan for a while. I really like the firmer texture of the baked seitan. I do want to try Isa's seitan, as I've been wanting to try a couple seitan dishes from her cookbooks. For anyone who's interested, here's a link to the original (and now quite lengthy) Seitan O' Greatness thread over on the PPK (The thread is really helpful as it's got tons of comments and ideas on how people have tweaked their own versions.):
http://www.postpunkkitchen.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=15959&p=1
Also, Susan from www.fatfreevegan.com has several baked seitan dishes on her site that sound and look super:
Veggeroni (Seitan Pepperoni) http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/04/veggeroni-seitan-pepperoni.html
Barbecued Seitan Ribz http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/05/barbecued-seitan-ribz.html
Seitan Baked in Sweet and Sour Orange Sauce http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/05/seitan-baked-in-sweet-and-sour-orange.html
sietan o greatness for me came out sort of "bready"....and while i really liked it at first, after a bit it sort of grossed me out
maybe ill have to try the cheesecloth, I wonder if boiling them longer or letting them simmer longer might toughen them up a bit more
the vegan place I love out here does something to theres here its really firm, i need to finagle (sp) the recipe somehow
Pages