Dave: Well, it seemed about time to make our own seitan. Now, don't get me wrong, we still love Upton's Naturals and their fine family of products (www.uptonsnaturals.com). It just seemed that we should take matters into our own hands when it came to things like...steak. Why has no one made a decent vegetarian steak?
Lauren: I 100% agree. Cutlets? Check. Roasts? Check. Nuggets? Wings? Burgers? Check, check and check. Steak? *cue crickets*
Seitan seemed the logical medium for a vegan steak, but I'd always heard how hard it was to make one's seitan (took forever, hard to do, etc.). As it turned out, all it took was an hour and a medium amount of attention.
Dave: Honestly, I'm a bit surprised just house easy it is to make faux meat. This could mean the creation of our own vegan honey roast ham...our own vegan prosciutto, even.
Now, the seitan doesn't have the exact consistency of steak; it's much closer to chicken. The people over at Edward & Sons have made a perfect vegan beef bouillon which gives the seitan an excellent flavor. With the addition of a little Liquid Smoke the whole thing tastes like it was cooked over a nice coal fire.
Lauren: Incidentally, I did need a steak knife to eat it...but in a good way. The consistency was definitely that of seitan (and definitely not that of steak - at least, from what I remember), but I bet it'd hold up to a real grill. Plus, it tasted divine.
Dave: I can't help but admit that the addition of fried onions and mushrooms helped.
Seitan Steaks:
1 Cup Vital Wheat Gluten
3/4 Cup Warm Tap Water
Mix the gluten and water by hand in a large bowl. Knead the dough well, until it is rubbery and easy to shape. Separate the gluten into two steaks and place on a lightly floured surface.
Simmer (not boil!) in broth for 40 minutes or until liquid has evaporated.
Broth:
3 Cups Water
2 Edward & Sons "Not-Beef" Bouillon
1 Tsp Liquid Smoke (Note: If using an outdoor grill, omit Liquid Smoke.)
Boil the water and dissolve the bouillon in it. Add the liquid smoke and reduce to a simmer.
Grilled Steaks:
Grill the steaks on an indoor grill until they turn uniformly brown and grill marks appear.
Steak toppings:
1 Red onion, diced
6 Button Mushrooms, sliced
Cook the onion and mushrooms in the same dish used to boil the seitan. Cook until mushrooms and onion are soft.
Serve with green beans, or veggie of choice.
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