Easy Seitan ‘Chicken’
Published on March 15, 2019 by Sharon
Today’s recipe for Seitan ‘Chicken’ is a new favourite of mine. It’s easy to make, has a succulent, chewy texture and tastes great. It can be torn into chunks and used as a meat substitute in dishes that traditionally use chicken (such as Butter Chicken), or it can be sliced and used for sandwiches. I especially love to slice it into discs and pan-fry it in a little olive oil for a warm sandwich filling.
Seitan has a super high protein content. Today’s recipe contains a wopping 52% of the protein RDA per 100g. It’s also high in B vitamins and a range of minerals, especially iron, selenium and zinc. It’s low fat and contains zero cholesterol so, providing you’re not gluten intolerant, this recipe makes a tasty, healthy, cruelty-free alternative to chicken.
As an added bonus, home-made seitan tends to work out much cheaper than the store-bought meat alternatives. Today’s recipe makes 457g / 16 oz of seitan (which serves four as a main meal), and cost me just £1.77 to make.
If you’re new to making seitan, rest assured it’s easy to do… especially this recipe! It has three key steps – combining the ingredients, kneading for seven minutes, then steaming for thirty minutes. Job done!
The inspiration for today’s post was a recipe I spotted in March’s Vegan Life magazine for ‘Butter Chicken’. The dish looked so appetising and I was totally intrigued as to how a vegan version of Butter Chicken would taste, considering it contains no butter or chicken!! The creator of the recipe – Sasha Gill – is an absolute genius as this veganised ‘Butter Chicken‘ is utterly delicious! It makes a wonderful alternative to the original dish, and I’m confident it will appeal to vegans and meat eaters alike!
I’m really excited to try this seitan ‘chicken’ in other traditional chicken dishes. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes!
Easy Seitan ‘Chicken’
This seitan ‘chicken’ is new favourite of mine. It’s easy to make, tastes great and has a succulent, chewy texture. It can be torn into chunks and used as a meat substitute in traditional dishes that call for chicken (such as ‘Butter Chicken’), or it can be sliced and used for sandwiches. I especially love to slice it into discs and pan-fry it in a little olive oil for a warm sandwich filling. It’s so delicious!
Recipe lightly adapted from Sasha Gill’s Butter ‘Chicken’ from her debut cookbook Jackfruit & Blue Ginger: Asian Favourites, Made Vegan, featured in Vegan Life magazine, Issue 48
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Hands-on time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins
Ingredients
- 180ml / ¾ cup vegetable stock (broth) (I use water and 1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder)
- 95g / ½ cup cooked butter beans (or chick peas)
- 4 TBSP nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp garlic paste
- 2 tsp chicken-style seasoning (I use 1 tsp dried sage, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp dried oregano)
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 TBSP light tahini
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp salt
- 135g / 1 cup vital wheat gluten*
Instructions
In a blender or food processor, whizz all the ingredients except the vital wheat gluten, until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a large bowl. Add the vital wheat gluten and stir with a wooden spoon until it forms a wet dough.
Knead for about 7 minutes. It is ready once the dough appears drier, has defined strands, and bounces back when stretched.
Set a steamer basket over a pan of simmering water.
Divide the dough in half and shape into logs. Roll each log tightly, first in non-stick baking paper, followed by foil. Twist the ends to seal it tight, like a sweet wrapper.
Steam the seitan for 30 minutes, then remove from the steamer and leave to cool for 30 minutes (I find it firms up as it cools). Tear into chunks and add to any dish that traditionally uses chicken (like ‘Butter Chicken’). Alternatively, cool completely and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.
Notes
* The key ingredient in seitan is a type of flour called ‘vital wheat gluten’. It’s this flour which provides seitan with its characteristic firm, chewy consistency. In the UK, vital wheat gluten is currently available from independent health food shops, as well as online.
Keyword Meat Alternative, Seitan, Vegan
Products used in this recipe:
– Suma Vital Wheat Gluten (available in the UK from independent health food shops and online)
– Marigold Swiss Vegetable Vegan Bouillon Powder
– Suma Organic Light Tahini, available from independent health food shops. (Tahini is also widely available in UK supermarkets)
– Onion powder – available in the UK from independent health foods shops and online
– Marigold Engevita Nutritional Yeast Flakes with B12, available from health food shops, some supermarkets (I found it in my local Waitrose and Aldi recently!) and online
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Big thank you to Sasha Gill and Vegan Life magazine for the inspo! ✨
If you make this Seitan ‘Chicken’ (or any other recipes on my blog), I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations!Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media and they’ll find their way to me. You can also connect with me on my social media channels here:
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With love,
