Easy vegan chicken

Seitan chicken

The best vegan chicken recipe made from seitan. Easy to make, one bowl and high in protein. You won’t believe how delicious and versatile this plant based chicken is.

This recipe is

• healthy
• vegan and vegetarian
• high in protein
• cholesterol free
• soy free
• easy to make

Ingredients and directions

This chicken seitan recipe is amazingly flavorful and can be used in many different ways, including as vegan chicken alternatives. It’s made up of:

• Vital wheat gluten flour – this is a high protein flour made entirely of gluten (the protein in wheat). It’s separated from the starchy part of the flour, so it’s actually pretty low in carbs. Gluten is what gives bread its chewy texture.
• Chickpea flour – You can also use all purpose flour if you don’t have this on hand. This adds a little more texture and protein to the vegan chicken.
• Vegan chicken broth – I usually use Edward & Sons vegan un-chicken bouillon. dissolve a ½ of a bouillon cube in the water then pour it in. You can also use any vegetable broth that you have.
• Spices: Garlic powder, onion powder and poultry seasoning.
• Soy sauce – This adds an umami taste and depth to the seitan. It also adds a nice saltiness.
• Nutritional yeast – This also adds an umami flavor to the vegan chicken, as well as a good dose of vitamin B12.
• Tahini – The tahini adds a nice bit of moisture to the seitan, as well as a depth of flavor.
• Sea salt

First, mix all of the dry ingredients in a bowl. Then mix in the wet ingredients into the dry mixture.

Stir it up until it comes together as a ball of dough. It will be a bit mushy at first. Knead it until the gluten strands start to develop a fibrous texture

and stretchy. Wrap tightly in aluminum foil and steam in a steamer basket for an hour.

Helpful tips

The dough will be a bit mushy at first. You have to knead it to get the gluten to develop.

Make sure to knead the dough for at least 2-5 minutes. The longer you knead it, the tougher and chewier it will get.

Wrap up the seitan cutlets tightly in the aluminum foil before steaming it. If it’s too loose, it could puff up too much and become spongy, instead of more firm and chewy.

If you don’t want to use aluminum foil, you can also use cheese cloth, or parchment paper.

What is seitan?

This vegan chicken is made from seitan. Sometimes called wheat meat. Seitan is what is made when you mix vital wheat gluten (the protein in wheat, that makes bread chewy) with a liquid and then cook it.

It has a lovely meaty texture and is a great vegan meat substitute. It’s been around for centuries and is said that Buddhist monks were the first to have eaten it as part of their meat-free diet. (1)

Seitan is high in protein and has 75 grams of protein per 100 grams.

Storing tips

This will last in the fridge in an airtight container for about a week, or the freezer for 3 months. Make sure to thaw it before.

This tastes amazing if you marinate it before frying it up in a large pan. It really soaks up flavors well. I use just store bought marinades from grocery stores to make it easier.

How to serve

You can serve this vegan chicken just like you would chicken. Tear it into small pieces and bread it up and air fry it and turn it into vegan chicken nuggets.

Throw it in stir fries, fry it up in a pan and serve with some vegan gravy and mashed potatoes or white rice.

Put it in a soup or a curry. It also tastes great grilled with some barbecue sauce. It’s extremely versatile.

Alternate cooking methods

If you have a pressure cooker, you can also pressure cook this for 45 minutes. Make sure to put in a steaming basket and 2 cups of water. Don’t let the seitan sit in the water.

Why do some recipes boil seitan?

Some seitan recipes call for you to boil the seitan. Since we’re aiming to make this a similar texture to seitan, we’re steaming it wrapped tightly in foil. When you boil the seitan, it makes for a more spongy, lighter seitan. When you steam it, wrapped up, it makes it more dense and chewy, like chicken or meat.

FAQ’s

Is this gluten free?

Definitely not. Vital wheat gluten flour is pure gluten. Don’t eat this if you’re allergic to gluten.

What if I don’t want to use aluminum foil?

I’ve used cheesecloth instead of aluminum foil and it came out fine. Just make sure to wrap it up tightly and maybe double wrap it. Make sure no water is touching it and that it’s in a steaming basket. You can also use parchment paper.

Ways to use vegan chicken

• Vegan chicken noodle soup
• Vegan butter chicken recipe
• Vegan tikka masala
• Meaty vegan ribs
• Vegan chicken salad

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Soy free plant based chicken recipe