How to make Seitan from scratch

Seitan is one of my favorite vegan meat substitutes. And in this blogpost I’m going to show you exactly how to make Seitan from scratch. It tastes so much like the real thing and you can use it as a vegan meat substitute for almost every type of recipes. But when I first switched to a plant based diet I didn’t know how to make Setan from scratch. I bought all my vegan meat substites from the stores…and alhough that was a great transition to a plant based diet, I found myself wanting to make them myself.

The thing is, I like to know exactly what I eat. It allows me to stay clear of too many food additives – plus there’s just something really satisfying about making everything myself.

There’s basically 2 ways to make Seitan:

• You can use Vital Wheat Gluten
• or you can use whole wheat flour (much less expensive but takes a little longer)

Both are great and you can season as you like. I love using Seitan in stews, casseroles and even on the grill. It may just be the best vegan meat substitute you will ever find. Not only does it look pretty much like the real thing (it will fool most meat lovers), it also tastes like the real thing.

So here’s How to make Seitan from scratch:

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Easy Seitan Recipe

prep time 10 minutes
cook time 40 minutes

For the Seitan
4 tbsp peanut putter or almond butter
3 tsp smoked paprika
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
½ cup chickpea flour
1½ cup vegetable broth
1½ vital wheat gluten plus 2 tbsp

• Heat the oven to 350F.
• Place peanut butter, smoked paprika, tomato paste, soy sauce, nutritional yeast and chickpea flour in a bwol and mix together. Pour in the hot vegetable broth and stir together until everything is blended.
• Pour in the Vital Wheat gluten and mix together until it forms a dough. Knead the dough for 5 minutes to really activate the gluten.
• Next, line a 9×11 inch pan with aluminium foil and leave extra aluminium to use to fold over and cover the dough. Lightly oil the foil and pour the dough into the pan. Press the dough out evenly. Cover with the extra aluminium foil and bake in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes.

You won’t believe how amazing these Seitan recipes are until you try them! Use the Seitan in stews, casseroles, for BBQ’s or try out my delicious Seitan ribs. The possibilities are endless.

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Here’s how to make Seitan from whole wheat flour

prep 5 minutes
cook 45
total 8 hours and 45 minutes

4 servings

For the Dough

• 6 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 cups cold water

For the Broth

• 4 cups water
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• ½ onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp miso paste
• 3 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine flour and cold water and mix until it’s fully combined. You want the dough to be combined but not stiff.

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Shape the dough into a ball and put it into a large bowl. Cover with cold water and put in the refrigerator for 4-8 hours.

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• Next, place the bowl with the dough in it in the sink and begin kneading the dough. Pour out the water and continue kneading the dough while letting the water run over it. This will begin to seperate the flour from the gluten.
• Keep kneading and rinsing the dough until the water runs clear – it should take 8-10 minutes.
• Squeeze the dough to press as much liquid out of it as possible.
• Pour the broth and all its ingredients into a large pot and heat it up (alternatively, you can use a store bought vegetable broth. Cut your dough into chunks and pour them into the boiling broth. Let it cook at a simmer for about 30 minutes or until the vegetable broth is mostly absorbed. Turn the seitan over occasionally.
• Once cooked, you can either use the onions for a casserole like dish or simply discard them and the remaining broth.

The seitan is ready to use immediately, or you can let them cool and keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They can keep for about 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.