Vegan BBQ Seitan"Pork"
We made our faux meat from Bob's Red Mill Vital Wheat Gluten. Vital wheat gluten is about 75% protein and is a nice alternative to soy products.
Wheat gluten, is also referred to as seitan, wheat meat, gluten meat, or simply gluten. It has a firm texture and takes on the flavor of the spices and other ingredients. Of course, this is not a viable product for those who are gluten intolerant.
It is surprisingly simple to make, but takes a little time. I made the seitan on the weekend. Tonight it came together as a very quick and simple meal with the addition of BBQ sauce.
Many thanks to my son, Thomas, for photographing tonight's dinner.
Now for the recipe:
6 cups water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dark molasses
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
Bring to a boil in an 8 quart pot while you prepare the seitan. The seitan will expand when it cooks, so be sure to use a large pot.
2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups water
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
In a large mixing bowl, mix the dry ingredients together.
Add the liquid smoke to the water. Add the water mixture to the dry mixture. Stir quickly. It comes together in a gelatinous, wet glob very quickly.
Sprinkle about a tablespoon of vital wheat flour on a clean dry surface. Dump the mixture on to the surface and knead for 1-2 minutes.
Cut into 8 pieces and flatten as much as you can. It is very elastic so don't worry about the shape very much.
Place the pieces into the boiling pot. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for one hour.
Remove from the pot, drain and refrigerate over night. A plastic zipper bag work great for this.
The flavors will develop while refrigerated. At this point it is great cut up on a salad, in a sandwich or stir fry.
This makes 8 generous servings. Each serving has 120 calories, 23 grams of protein and 3 net carbs.
For our BBQ 'pork' version, cut into narrow (1/4-1/2 inch strips) and heat in your favorite BBQ sauce.
We had this with coleslaw on a piece of Dave's Killer Bread. Yum!
