Seitan is an easy, inexpensive, and soy-free meat alternative that can be used in a wide variety of recipes. For my Christmas dinner, I cooked seitan in the style of a pot roast, but luckily, I had plenty of leftovers to slice up for sandwiches the next day.
Whether you want to make a roast or just skip ahead to the sandwich of leftovers, this recipe for homemade seitan is all you’ll need to get started. Enjoy!
Seitan
3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
3 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
3 1/2 cups cold water
7 cups vegetable stock
- Place the whole wheat and unbleached flour in a large mixing bowl and stir well to combine both types of flour.
- While stirring, gradually pour enough water into the flour to form a sticky dough that can be kneaded. Knead for 15 minutes.
- Cover the dough with cold water, place in the refrigerator, and keep submerged for at least 30 minutes.
- Transfer the dough from the bowl to a colander and place it in the sink.
- Under cold running water, carefully knead the dough, rinsing out the starch and bran.
- After several minutes of cold water rinsing and kneading, the gluten will start to stick together. Alternate between room temperature water and cold water rinses while continuing to knead the dough until it has a firm, rubbery texture.
- In a large pot, bring the stock to a boil.
- Pull pieces of gluten into small billiard-size balls. Drop the gluten into the liquid, one piece at a time, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Cover and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, depending on the size of the pieces.
- Store in the refrigerator or freezer, submerged in the broth.
Makes 1 1/4 pounds