Need a wicked high protein, low fat, low carb option? Well, hail seitan. The macros are damn near on par with chicken breast! <—and no soy is required. We love seitan!
I’ve been making neutral seitan sausages every week since our last meal prep video. It’s essentially like the perfect meal. And by making vegan sausage neutral in flavor I can add any kind of sauce on top. 99% of the time I use teriyaki and 1% of the time I’ll use vegan buffalo wing sauce.
Why do I mention this? It’s because making neutral seitan sausages arethe easiest basicrecipe. 330 grams (2.75 cups) gluten flour + 60 grams chickpea flour, vegan chicken broth. Start with 2 cups of liquid then keep adding more until your dough forms into a FIRM MASS. If it’s sticky add more gluten flour, if it’s dry add more water. EASY! Then I divide into 8, wrap in foil and steam for 45 minutes. DONE.
If you just add different spice flavors then you could totally make specialty vegan sausage! In my mind this is a no brainer simple recipe but…….
When looking into seitan sausage & pepperoni recipes they all suggested things like tomato paste and sh*t. I didn’t have any paste so I just used tomato sauce. I also tried barbecue sauce. And I added oil. And sugar. Before I knew it my dough was wayyyyyy mushier than anticipated. It made me nervous because I felt like a f*ck up. But adding additional gluten flour fixed my problem.
What am I saying? If you’re not a seitan sausage pro then anticipate using additional gluten flour after mixing everything together. Maybe 1 TB more or less. No big deal.
EACH RECIPE BELOW MAKES ONE LARGE SAUSAGE
Italian Vegan Sausage – Seitan
2 ts of poultry or Italian herb blend, 1/4 ts salt, 1/4 ts sugar, 1/4 ts ground thyme, 1/4 ts ground fennel, 1/8 ts garlic powder, 1/4 ts onion powder, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1 TB tomato sauce, 1/4 cup water
- Mix dry ingredients
- Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
- Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
- Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
- Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
- Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY
Mesquite Brown Sugar Vegan Sausage – Seitan
1.5 ts mesquite barbecue powder blend (bought from whole foods) + 2 ts brown sugar, 2 TB BBQ sauce, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1/4 cup water
*I think those first two ingredients were over powered by my impulsive use of BBQ sauce. You might be able to skip the sugar & powder blend. Maybe BBQ is all that’s needed for a sweet mesquite sausage flavor.
- Mix dry ingredients
- Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
- Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
- Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
- Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
- Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY
Maple Breakfast Vegan Sausage – Seitan
1 ts sage powder, 1/2 ts salt, 1/2 ts onion powder, 1/8 ts garlic powder, 2 TB maple syrup, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1 TB tomato sauce, 1/4 cup water
- Mix dry ingredients
- Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
- Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
- Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
- Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
- Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY
Chipotle Cajun Vegan Sausage – Seitan
2 ts Cajun blend 1/2 ts garlic powder, 1 ts onion powder, couple drops of adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers, 2 ts soy sauce, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1/4 cup water
- Mix dry ingredients
- Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
- Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
- Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
- Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
- Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY
FAQs
Ingredients to make Seitan Sausage
Vital wheat gluten: the main ingredient to make seitan. This ingredient is responsible for the elastic texture and the high protein content of seitan. Chickpea flour: vital wheat gluten is very dense, and chickpea flour lightens up the texture of the seitan dough.
Is seitan sausage good for you? ›
In general seitan sausage is pretty damn healthy. They're packed full of protein, just two sausage will give you a whopping 38g of protein. Furthermore there's no weird over-processed ingredients in the sausages.
What is vegan sausage made from? ›
The key ingredient in vegan sausage is typically either pea protein or soy protein, along with one or more oils (canola, coconut, sunflower), spices and other plant-based additions. Nutritional value varies depending on the manufacturer's precise recipe.
How healthy are vegan sausages? ›
By simply avoiding processed meat, the plant-based option seems to be slightly healthier, but when it comes to unhealthy salt, vegan sausages can be just as bad as their animal containing counterpart, the Metro reported.
Who should avoid seitan? ›
While seitan is a versatile plant-based protein, people with celiac disease, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, or gluten allergy should avoid it. Premade seitan can also be high in sodium, so it's important to read the nutrition label if you monitor your sodium intake.
What are the disadvantages of seitan? ›
What are the cons?
- Not suitable for those with gluten-sensitivities or coeliac disease.
- Doesn't absorb much flavour.
- High amounts of sodium (salt) in the packaged product.
- Seitan is hard to source unlike other vegetarian protein alternatives meaning you may have to venture to a specialty vegetarian “butcher”
The answer is, yes! —as long it's part of a well-rounded diet. A 100g serving of seitan has about 141 calories and 25 grams of protein, making it comparable to the amount of protein in chicken or beef. Because the starches are removed from the wheat when seitan is made, it has very little fat and carbs.
What is healthier seitan or tofu? ›
However, while seitan is an excellent plant-based protein alternative, tofu is a complete protein (seitan lacks the amino acid lysine). Unseasoned tofu is typically lower in sodium than store-bought seitan, which can be processed with salt, sugar or other flavors added.
Is seitan 100% gluten? ›
In other words seitan is basically 100% gluten. A serving of seitan (3.5 oz) has around 118 calories, 3 grams of carbs, 24 grams of protein and is almost completely fat and cholesterol free.
What is the healthiest sausage? ›
Extra-lean chicken or kangaroo sausages tend to be the healthiest sausage option. Leaner sausages are also often lower in calories and salt.
Vegan eggs can be made using various everyday ingredients. One of the most popular ingredients is tofu, rich in healthy nutrients. Vegan eggs can also be made with flax seeds, aquafaba, starch, etc. Commercial vegan eggs are made of a combination of such ingredients.
What are the disadvantages of fake meat? ›
Con #1: Plant-based meat can be more heavily processed than animal meat. As some plant-based meat and mock meat products are created to replicate animal meat, they may undergo more processing. This leads to a high content of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar.
Why are vegan sausages so expensive? ›
Why is Vegan Meat Currently More Expensive? According to Specht, vegan meat is currently more expensive for a number of reasons. It's partly due to the fact that brands are operating in a “free market.” They must maximize their profit, and this means charging consumers more.
Is vegan food heavily processed? ›
More people are cuttng out meat in favour of plant-based diets for ethical, environmental and health reasons. But not all plant-based foods - either vegetarian or vegan - are as healthy as we think they are. In fact, some are classed as ultra-processed foods, which have been linked to heart disease and cancer1.
Is seitan better for you than meat? ›
While seitan provides similar protein and iron content as meat, animal meat is a complete protein, and seitan is not. In addition, iron found in animal-based products is generally more easily absorbed than iron from plant-based foods. Meat typically also has more fat than seitan.
Is seitan a highly processed food? ›
The Drawbacks Seitan
“To make it complete, you'll have to pair this food with other plant proteins such as legumes, grains, and nuts,” she says. Additionally, she points out that, since seitan is a processed food, it contains preservatives such as sulfites, which you may not want in abundance in your diet.
What does seitan actually taste like? ›
Seitan has a savory taste, probably closest to bland chicken or a portobello mushroom. Seitan has a mild flavor on its own but can take on many more flavors from different recipes. It can be hot and spicy as in seitan "chicken wings " or savory in a succulent Indian or Thai massaman curry.
Is seitan full of gluten? ›
Seitan, another name for wheat gluten, is not gluten-free. Seitan (pronounced say-tann) is made by washing wheat flour dough until all the starch is removed and only the gluten protein remains. The protein is then cooked and served, often as a meat substitute in vegetarian and vegan dishes.
