Well here we are late September in Anchorage, Alaska! Thee was termination dust halfway down on the mountains yesterday and the daytime temperatures are cool with the night temperatures at or near freezing. I had been in Washington State for a visit - Seattle and Everett - and they have had a beautiful summer and the week I was there was absolutly wonderful! The first day was 83 degrees and the rest of the week was in the high 70's. I almost hated to come home. I was visiting my son who is a vegetarian and he made me a dish using what he called wheat meat. It was very good - he served it as though it was a meat cutlet with mashed potatoes and gravy, a veggie. I liked it so much I decided to try it. Here are the recipes he sent me.
Seitan
INGREDIENTS
2 cups pure gluten powder (vital wheat gluten)
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup cold water
1/2 cup hot water, mixed with
2 teaspoons vegemite or other yeast extract
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons kitchen bouquet or other gravy browner (optional)
Cooking Broth
4 cups water
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons marmite
4 teaspoons kitchen bouquet
METHOD
To make the gluten mix, mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the liquid ingredients. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well until it forms a ball.
To make cutlets, divide the uncooked gluten mixture into 12 pieces and flatten them with your hands and / or a rolling pin as thinly as you can (they will expand). For stew chunks, cut into very small pieces.
Place gluten into a casserole dish and cover with the cooking broth. Cover and bake at 180C/350F for 30 minutes, then at 150C/300F for 30 minutes. Cool and store in cooking broth. You can also just simmer (do not boil! This makes it spongy) the gluten pieces in the cooking broth on the stove top for an hour.
NOTES
From 'Nonna's Italian Kitchen', by Bryanna Clark Grogan.
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Chicken-Style Seitan
Makes four cutlets
1 1/2 Cup Vital Wheat Gluten
2 Tbs Nutritional Yeast
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
3/4 Cup Cold Water
1 Tbs Tamari or Soy Sauce (low sodium)
3 Tbs Soymilk
1 Tbs Olive Oil
Braising Broth
2 Cups Water
1 Vegetable Bullion Cube
Mix the dry ingredients together. Combine the wet ingredients and stir well. Add wet to dry and knead until a dough is formed. Add more liquid if needed. The gluten will develop very quickly. Knead a few times on your counter, forming a ball. Cut the ball in quarters, forming four triangular wedges. Squish/Pound/Pull the wedges into 1/2? thick cutlets. Take your time shaping, letting them rest if needed.
Once they’re the right thickness, put a large, high-walled skillet on medium heat, adding the water and bullion cube to make a braising bath. Once it starts simmering, add cutlets and turn down the heat and cover. It’s important that you DO NOT boil the cutlets. Check several times to make sure the broth is just barely simmering. Boiling isn’t a disaster, but it will change the texture of the cutlets, making them spongier and rubbery.
Simmer, covered for 20-30 minutes, flipping halfway through. You can now refrigerate the cutlets in their broth for later, or fry immediately. I think cutlets that have been refrigerated over night before frying have a better texture, but you can use them right away.
Fried Seitan
For four cutlets
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Not So Evil: Seitan a versatile vegetarian option
May 29, 2007 - 4:20PM
Kate Lohnes
Seitan is a culinary favorite in vegan and vegetarian cuisine, not “Satan,” the red guy with the tail and pitchfork.
While it might sound strange out loud, seitan (pronounced SAY-tahn) is a meat substitute used primarily in vegetarian or vegan dishes. Also known as “wheatmeat” or “wheat gluten,” seitan is similar to tofu — it shows up in a variety of entrees in lieu of meat.
Seitan is the product of only two ingredients: wheat flour and water. The dough created from these ingredients is kneaded under cold water, which leaches the starch from the dough. Extensive kneading ultimately results in a lump of wheat gluten that is 70 to 80 percent protein. From there, seitan can be anything you want — pork chops, chicken fingers, ground hamburger and more, depending on preparation methods and added spices.
“It’s just really versatile,” said John Cunningham, consumer research manager for The Vegetarian Resource Group in Maryland. “It’s pretty much only limited by your imagination, by what you can do with it.”
According to Ellen Tisdale, who runs the cooking Web site Ellenskitchen.com, seitan was first created by Buddhist monks in seventh-century China. The monks, who adhered to a strict vegetarian diet, set out to create suitable substitutes for meat, along the way creating tofu and seitan. With the spread of Buddhism, seitan spread from China to Japan, and from there to the United States. During the Great Depression, some families used seitan in faux meat loaves, calling the dish “End of the Month Loaf.”
In the Internet age, seitan has grown even more popular than before, Tisdale said.
“Over the last few years, it has seen a big increase (in use),” she said. “There are groups of blogs now that have wonderful pictures of the chunks people have made.”
Consumers interested in eating seitan have two options: they can either make it themselves or buy it already-prepared at the supermarket or specialized markets. Tisdale prefers to make her own using “vital wheat gluten,” which has already been purged of starch. Once Tisdale makes her wheat gluten dough, she mixes it with flavorful spices and simmers the dough in vegetarian broths. Depending on the broth’s flavor, seitan can take on the taste of any type of meat, from pork to chicken to shrimp. Seitan picks up any flavor remarkably, Tisdale said, and with fairly convincing results.
“If you’ve ever had imitation shrimp or crab legs, the little crab legs don’t taste exactly like crab, but a pleasant, chewy alternative,” she said. “That’s kind of what you would say about the seitan. It’s very much like imitation crab legs are to real crab. It’s a very pleasant substitute.”
Seitan is not the perfect solution for vegetarians everywhere. Cunningham said seitan sometimes digests poorly, giving a select few cramps and gas.
Oddly enough, seitan’s biggest attribute might sometimes be its downfall: it is almost too good at imitating meat, said Sara Alvarado, president of the student organization the Association for Vegan and Vegetarian Awareness at the University of Texas-Pan American. Alvarado, a vegan, said the more seitan looks like meat, the less comfortable she is with eating it.
“My favorite way (to eat seitan) is to have it mixed in with other things that don’t make it look like real meat,” she said. “If people are first making the switch to veganism, I think they are a lot more attuned to something like seitan. I think that it would be more like meat if someone is still trying to let go of that. It’s actually chewy. You can’t do that with tofu very well.”
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Kate Lohnes covers features and entertainment for The Monitor. You can reach her at (956) 683-4427. For this and other local stories, visit www.themonitor.com.
RECIPES
QUICK HOMEMADE WHEATMEAT CUTLETS
2 c. vital wheat gluten
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 ¼ c. water or vegetable stock
3 Tbsp. tamari, Bragg’s liquid aminos or soy sauce
1-3 tsp. toasted sesame oil
Simmering broth:
4 c. water
¼ c. tamari or soy sauce
2 Tbsp. molasses (optional)
3-inch piece of kombu or 2 Tbsp. other sea vegetable
2 Tbsp. fresh ginger (optional)
Add garlic (optional) and ginger to gluten and stir. Mix liquids together and add to flour mixture all at once. Mix vigorously with a fork. When it forms a stiff dough, knead it 10 to 15 times. Let the dough rest 2-5 min., then knead it a few more times. Let it rest another 15 min. before proceeding.
Cut gluten into 6-8 pieces and stretch into 1-inch or thinner cutlets, or the desired shapes (cutlets, drumsticks, ribs, etc). Bring the broth to a boil. Add cutlets one at a time or they stick together. Simmer in broth for about 45 minutes with the pan covered and the heat very low. Once cooked and flavored the wheatmeat or “Seitan” may be used, refrigerated under water or in an airtight plastic bag, or frozen.
— Recipe courtesy of www.ellenskitchen.com.
ELLEN’S BEST UNCHUCK ROAST: ROOIBOOS-SIMMERED SEITAN/GLUTEN
Note: you can make the dough on the dough cycle of a large automatic bread machine.
Cook covered in 6-quart crock pot on low heat for approximately six to eight hours. Doubles in size as it cooks.
Place in the bread machine in this order:
2 ¼ c. vital wheat gluten
½ c. sesame butter, unhulled (4 ounces)
½ c. minute tapioca
½ c. Kal nutritional yeast flakes
1/3 cup dried onion flakes
½ c. soy flakes (not grits) OR flake tvp/tsp
2 Tbsp. Italian herb blend
Mix together, and pour on:
1/3 c. vegetarian mushroom oyster sauce
2 c. water
1 Tbsp. tamari soy sauce
1 Tbsp. rice syrup (optional)
Simmering broth for crock pot:
4-5 c. warm rooiboos tea (you may substitute Chinese black tea)
½ c. vegetarian oyster sauce
1 Tbsp. tamari soy sauce (optional)
¼ c. nutritional yeast flakes
Fill the mixing bowl of the bread machine with the dry ingredients, blend and pour on the wet mix and run the dough cycle - two kneads with a long rest in between. When complete, turn out the rather soft dough and knead by stretching and folding at least 6 times, until the piece has strong smooth edges and is the size of the bottom of the 6 quart crock pot- for best cooking and flavor, it should start about 1 inch thick or a little less. Mist with oil spray and let rest while you prepare the crock pot.
Mist the inside of the crock pot with non-stick oil spray. Mix the simmering broth, pour about 1 cup into the pot. Place the roast, then pour on the rest of the broth. It should just cover the roast, but if not make a little more broth using the same proportions.
Cover and simmer on low about 6 hours, up to 8 if you started cold or it is an old crock pot. Turn once. When done, there is no stretch to the edges; almost all the broth is absorbed.
Cool in the remaining broth, store in a zippered plastic bag with the remaining broth for up to a week. Good hot or cold, can be sliced very thin for sandwiches, pepper steak or fajitas, or cut into chunks for “stewing,” or diced or ground for hash, burgers, etc.
— Recipe courtesy of www.ellenskitchen.com.
QUICK HOMEMADE GLUTEN
2 c. gluten flour
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 ¼ c. water or vegetable stock
3 Tbsp. light tamari, Braggs liquid amino acids, or soy sauce
1-3 tsp. toasted sesame oil (optional)
Add garlic powder and ginger to flour and stir. Mix liquids together and add to flour mixture all at once. Mix vigorously with a fork. When it forms a stiff dough knead it 10 to 15 times.
Let the dough rest 2 to 5 minutes, then knead it a few more times. Let it rest another 15 minutes before proceeding.
Cut gluten into 6 to 8 pieces and stretch into thin cutlets. Simmer in broth for 30 to 60 minutes.
Broth:
4 cups water
¼ c. tamari or soy sauce
3-inch piece of kombu (a type of seaweed)
3-4 slices ginger (optional)
Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring broth to a boil. Add cutlets one at a time. Reduce heat to barely simmer when saucepan is covered. Seitan may be used, refrigerated, or frozen at this point.
— Recipe courtesy of www.vrg.org.
SEITAN AND SHIITAKE MUSHROOM STROGANOFF
Vegetable cooking spray
1 Tbsp. oil
1 onion, chopped
8-12 ounces seitan cutlets, cut into chunks
1 carrot, finely cut or shredded
1 clove garlic, minced
1 c. sliced button mushrooms
6 to 10 dried or fresh shiitake mushrooms (If dried they need to be soaked for at least 30 minutes and then drained), sliced
1 Tbsp. Bragg liquid amino acids, lite tamari, or soy sauce
5 ounces silken light firm or extra firm tofu
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. arrowroot
1 tsp. sweetener
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
¼ c. chopped parsley, for garnish
Spray a wok or large sauté pan with cooking spray. Add the oil and heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and seitan and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the carrot, garlic, and mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms release their water. Add liquid aminos and cook until almost all absorbed.
While the mushroom mixture is cooking blend the tofu, lemon juice, arrowroot, and sweetener in a blender or food processor until smooth.
Turn off heat and add the tofu mixture. Stir to combine. If heat is too high the tofu mixture will break apart and curdle. Add freshly ground pepper. Top with parsley and serve over hot noodles.
— Recipe courtesy of www.vrg.org.
BARBECUED SEITAN
Vegetable cooking spray
1 medium onion, diced
8-12 ounces seitan cutlets, cut into strips
¼ c. barbecue sauce
4 whole wheat buns, optional
Spray a skillet with cooking spray. Add the onion and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time if onion begins to stick. Cook until onion is translucent. Add the seitan strips and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes. Add barbecue sauce and stir to combine. Sauté until barbecue sauce is hot. Serve on whole wheat buns, if desired.
— Recipe courtesy of www.vrg.org.
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Seitan (Beef Flavor)
I have purchased packages of Seitan at the health food store, but have always wondered how to make it myself. I found a great recipe from Vegan Lunch Cast and decided to try it. It is simmering in the pot at the moment, so I don't know how it tastes, but I'll bet it's better then store bought.
by Chef Joey Z.
1½ hours 30 min prep
SERVES 10
For the Dry Ingredients
2 cups vital wheat gluten (Bob's Red Mill)
2 tablespoons spelt flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
For the Wet Ingredients
1 1/2 cups cold water
1/2 cup tamari, soy sauce (I used Bragg's Amino Acids)
1 tablespoon ketchup (or tomato paste)
1 tablespoon oil (I used olive)
2 finely chopped garlic cloves
1 teaspoon lemon zest
For the Broth
12 cups cold water
1/2 cup tamari or soy sauce (I used Bragg's)
Combine the dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. I used my Kitchen Aid and it worked perfectly.
Using the paddle attachment on the mixer slowly combine the dry ingredients.
In a smaller bowl combine the wet ingredients and mix well with a whisk.
Stop the stand mixer and add the wet ingredients to the dry all at once and slowly incorporate the wet into the dry.
I added about 4 more tablespoons of spelt flour to the mix as I thought it was too wet. Mix for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes turn the dough out onto a cutting board and form it into a loaf shape and let it sit until broth comes to a boil. Turn the heat down to low at this point.
Cut the loaf into 6 equal pieces and lower each one gently into the simmering broth and let it simmer covered for about 1 hour. Remember DO NOT LET THIS BOIL! It will create holes in your Seitan.
The Seitan will be spongy and holes will make it even more so. You want to avoid that.
After the hour is up remove the Seitan from the pot and place on a dish to cool. If you have room in the fridge this would be a good place to cool it down.
Remember, it has to be thoroughly cooled before its ready. Don't be temped to dig in until it's cold.
You can use this immediately, or store it in it's broth in the fridge for about 5 days. You can even put the big chunks in a zip lock bag and freeze.
The Seitan can be used in place of any meat product, you can even grind it in the food processor and use it for burger if you wish.
Another way to use this is to take a few big pieces and dip in flour, soy milk and bread crumbs and fry or bake it, then top with your favorite gravy.
Bon Appetit!
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OK - I tried the first recipe and I must say it is a lot of work, and it is something I would need to do some more experimenting with, but all in all it was very tasty!
2 days ago
