Seitan, Anyone?

A traditional Asian food used as a meat substitute, you may have encountered seitan in dishes like “Buddhist’s Delight” in Chinese restaurants. Dense and chewy, this product of cooked wheat gluten is almost pure protein—you can see that by observing the high protein content of the dishes in this section. Clearly, though, seitan is not for anyone with gluten sensitivity. Store-bought seitan usually comes in 8-ounce packages or 16-ounce tubs.

Seitan’s “meaty” texture lends itself to numerous preparations. It’s great as a substitute for beef chunks in stews, stir-fries, salads, wraps, and for fajitas and kebabs. Explore the use of seitan if you’re looking for ways to add more protein to your family’s diet other than, or in addition to, soy foods. Obviously, this food is not for those with gluten sensitivity, as it is pure gluten.

Making homemade seitan is not difficult or time-consuming in terms of hands-on time, though you do need to allow time for the various steps and cooking time. If you are so inclined, the recipe below yields greater quantity and economy than store-bought. If the kneading, resting, and cooking go just right, the resulting seitan can be quite tender and tasty. Still, if you’d rather buy your seitan ready-made, natural foods stores and ccops usually offer several options, from locally made to national brands. Try a few and see which you like best, as they are all a bit different in flavor and texture.

Recipes adapted from The Vegetarian Family Cookbook.

Homemade Seitan

Makes about 2 pounds, about 10 servings

Store-bought seitan can be excellent, or it can be disconcertingly tough. Either way, though, it’s expensive. Making seitan completely from scratch (which involves making a whole wheat dough and then rinsing and rinsing to get rid of the starch) is time-consuming and messy. Using pure gluten flour provides a clever shortcut to a great homemade version that is not difficult to make. This may be idiosyncratic, but it works well and with practice produces seitan that is chewy but not overly so. Whenever I make this, I freeze half and am always happy to come across and use it 2 to 3 weeks later.

• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 1/4 cups gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Broth:

• 2 vegetable bouillon cubes
• 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
• 3 to 4 slices fresh ginger

Combine the soy sauce with 1 cup of water in a small mixing bowl. Place the gluten flour and paking powder in a medium mixing bowl and stir together. Gradually add the liquid to form a stiff dough, stirring with a spoon at first, and then working together with your hands.

Turn out onto a floured board and knead 30 times, then return the dough to the bowl, cover with a clean tea towel, and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring 10 cups water to a simmer in a large soup pot. Add the bouillon cubes and ginger.

Once the water is close to a simmer, divide the dough into two pieces and pull into long, narrow loaves the shape of miniature French breads.

With a sharp, serrated knife, cut each section of dough crosswise into approximately 1/2-inch sections. When the water comes to a simmer, insert each slice. Simmer gently and steadily for 30 minutes. Drain (if desired, save the tasty stock to use for soup or other purpose) and let cool. Use in recipes calling for seitan.

Seitan and Broccoli Stir-Fry

4 to 6 servings

This simple stir-fry showcases seitan’s unique flavor and texture.

• 2 tablespoons light olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced, optional
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 2 large broccoli crowns, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds seitan or Homemade Seitan (see above), cut into bite-sized chunks
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, plus more for seasoning
• 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon natural granulated sugar

Heat the oil plus 2 tablespoons water (or broth from the seitan) in a stir-fry pan or wok. Add the garlic and broccoli. Turn the heat to medium-high and stir fry for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the broccoli is bright green.

Add the remaining ingredients and continue to stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes, until everything is sizzling hot. Add a small amount of additional water or seitan broth to the pan if it gets dry.

Serve at once, passing around additional soy sauce for seasoning individual portions.

Hearty Seitan Salad

6 servings

Here’s a delectable main-dish salad featuring strips of high-protein seitan.

• 1 pound seitan or Homemade Seitan (see above)
• 1 tablespoon light olive oil
• 1 small head thinly shredded dark green lettuce, or as desired
• 1 medium green or red bell pepper, cut into narrow strips
• 2 medium firm, ripe tomatoes, diced
• 1 medium avocado, pitted and sliced
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives
• 2 scallions, sliced, optional
• Natural bottled or homemade dressing of your choice (see Note)

Cut the seitan into strips, about 1/2 by 2 inches. Heat the oil in a wide skillet. Saute the seitan strips until golden, stirring frequently, then remove from the heat.

Combine the lettuce, bell peppers, tomatoes, avocado, and olives in a mixing bowl and toss together. Add the seitan strips and toss again.

Seitan “Meat and Potatoes” Stew

6 to 8 servings

Seitan, a high-protein food made of wheat gluten, gives this stew a “meaty” texture. Prepared seitan is readily available in most natural foods stores as well as a growing number of well-stocked supermarkets. If you’d like to try making your own seitan, see the recipe (as well as more information on this fascinating food) on page 000.

• 2 tablespoons light olive oil
• 1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• 1 teaspoon salt-free all-purpose seasoning (like Spike or Mrs. Dash)
• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds seitan or Homemade Seitan (see above), cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 cup frozen green peas, completely thawed
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Minced fresh parsley for garnish

Heat half of the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion and garlic and saute over medium heat until the onion is golden.

Add 3 cups of water along with the potatoes, carrots, bouillon cube, and seasoning. Bring to a simmer, then cover and simmer gently for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the potato and carrots are tender.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a large skillet. Add the seitan pieces and saute over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until most sides are nicely browned and crisp.

Once the vegetables are done, use the back of a wooden spoon to mash enough of the potatoes to thicken the base of the stew. Stir in the sauteed seitan and peas. Add a bit more water if necessary. The consistency should be thick and moist, but not soupy. Cook over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes longer.

Season with salt and pepper (use salt sparingly, if at all, since the bouillon cube and seitan add a salty flavor), then serve in shallow bowls. Pass around the parsley for garnishing individual portions.

Seitan “Peppersteak”

Serves 4 to 6

• 16 ounces fresh seitan or stir-fry strips
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large green bell pepper, cut into 2-inch strips
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut to match green pepper
• 1/4 cup dry sherry or red wine
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
• 1 cup snow peas, trimmed
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger, or more to taste
• Hot cooked rice or noodles
• Extra reduced-sodium soy sauce, optional

Cut the seitan into chunky, bite-sized strips. Slowly heat half the oil and half the soy sauce slowly in a stir-fry pan. Add the seitan, stir quickly to coat, and turn the heat up to medium-high. Stir-fry until most of the sides are lightly browned. Transfer the seitan to a plate until needed.

Heat the remaining oil in the pan. Add the onion and sauté over medium heat until golden. Add the garlic and bell peppers, turn the heat up, and stir-fry until the peppers are tender-crisp. Add the mushrooms and continue to stir-fry until they wilt.

Combine the remaining soy sauce and sherry in a measuring cup. Add about 1/4 cup water, then stir the cornstarch in until it dissolves. Add enough additional water to the cup to make 1 cup liquid. Pour into the pan.

Stir in the the snow peas and ginger; cook until everything is well heated through, just unother minute or so. Serve at once, passing around extra soy sauce if desired.