This beef style seitan is richly flavoured with a chewy, meaty texture. Made with vital wheat gluten and tofu, it is an excellent vegan protein source in place of meat.
Use this mock meat to make vegan beef stew, beef and broccoli, pot roast, Mongolian beef, tacos, stir fries and deli style sandwiches.
What Is Seitan?:
Seitan (pronounced "say-tan") is a high-protein meat substitute made from gluten, the protein found in wheat. It is often referred to as "wheat meat" for this reason.
It is low in fat and contains around 75g of protein per 100g of seitan. Wheat gluten has been eaten as an alternative to meat for centuries in China, it is not a new thing!
It can be prepared in so many different ways and takes on flavours really well so you can easily customise it to suit you, and use it to replace pretty much any kind of meat you want! Hail seitan!
The original method of making seitan is "wash the flour", where a dough of flour and water is rinsed until the starch has separated and left behind a ball of protein. It isn't difficult to do, but an even easier way of making seitan is just to buy vital wheat gluten, which is what I use here.
This "beef" version of seitan has a really rich, deep flavour and a fibrous, chewy-yet-tender texture. It is the perfect vegan substitute for beef in loads of different dishes and it is easy to make too!
What Do I Need To Make Seitan Beef?:
Vital wheat gluten: This is essential for making seitan. It is basically the protein from wheat flour, in a fine powder form. It can be found online or in many health food stores. It cannot be substituted.
Extra firm tofu: I much prefer the texture of seitan when it is made with some added protein in a different form, such as beans, tofu or chickpea flour. Here I use extra firm tofu, which is blended up with the wet ingredients to make the dough.
Red wine: This adds flavour, colour and richness as well as some acidity which helps to balance the flavour and reduce any "gluteny" flavours. Make sure that you get a vegan red wine, as not all of them are, and you can use alcohol free red wine if you prefer.
Oil: Adding a bit of oil improves the texture of the seitan, making it more tender. I use olive oil but any kind of neutral oil would be fine.
Tomato puree (paste): Adds colour as well as flavour.
Black treacle: Treacle or molasses adds rich flavour and colour.
Soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce: For umami and saltiness. Worcestershire sauce is not usually vegan, but there are some brands that make a vegan version, I use Henderson's Relish.
Seasonings: You can vary these to suit you, but I like to add nutritional yeast, garlic and onion powders, smoked paprika, cumin, porcini mushroom powder and msg which all help to build a rich, deep flavour.
How To Make Seitan Beef:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
- Step 1: Blend the tofu together with the red wine, water and all of the spices and seasonings until smooth.
- Step 2: Pour this mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and add the vital wheat gluten, mix to form a dough.
- Step 3: Knead for 5-10 minutes until the dough is stretchy and stringy.
- Step 4: Divide the dough in half and flatten one half out into a rough rectangle.
- Step 5: Roll it up into a fat sausage shape.
- Step 6: Roll the dough up inside a sheet of baking paper and fold the ends under.
- Step 7: Roll the paper covered dough up inside a sheet of tin foil, twist the ends to seal it. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
- Step 8: Place the foil covered logs in a steamer basket inside a large pan. Fill with boiling water, place the lid on the pan and steam for 2 ½ hours.
- Step 9: Allow the cooked seitan beef to cool then unwrap.
- Step 10: You can split the cooled logs open to reveal the grain, then tear into chunks, or cut it into slices.
Top Tips:
I highly, highly recommend weighing out the ingredients using a digital scale rather than using the cup conversions. You will get a far better, more consistent result. Cups are a very innaccurate measuring system and you may end up with dough that is either too wet or too dry.
You can knead the dough by hand but you are unlikely to get as good a texture and you will need to knead it for quite a while, until it has a firm, very stretchy, stringy texture.
You can also knead the dough in a food processor until it has a stringy, fibrous texture. You will need to do this in batches to avoid overloading the motor.
The recipe makes quite a large quantity of seitan beef, it freezes well so I like to stock up the freezer with it. You can easily halve the recipe and just make one log of seitan if you prefer though.
FAQ's:
Store the seitan beef in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.
Yes, the cooked seitan beef freezes really well. Allow it to cool then shred or cut it into pieces. Spread them out in a single layer on a tray, then freeze until solid before transferring them to a freezer bag or container.
This seitan beef cannot be used as a mince substitute, so you can't use it to make things like burgers or ground meat, but you can use it anywhere you would use chunks, slices or strips of beef.
Why not try it in a beef stew, in a stir fry with noodles, to make beef tacos, or just in a delicious sandwich. You can tear it into chunks, or slice it thinly into strips or deli style slices.
When adding it to sauces like stews or curry, make sure to add it just in the last few minutes of cooking so that it doesn't become too soft.
You can swap the red wine for two Tablespoons of balsamic vinegar plus 150ml water or beetroot juice (so a total of 450ml water). The seitan beef won't have quite the same depth of flavour as one made with wine however.
No. The vital wheat gluten is THE necessary ingredient to make seitan, it cannot be substituted for anything else.
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Seitan "Beef" (Vegan)
Equipment
- stand mixer
- steamer pan or basket
- baking paper
- tin foil
Ingredients
- 280 g (10 oz) extra firm tofu (I use Tofoo brand)
- 180 ml (¾ cup) red wine
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) water
- 6 Tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Henderson's Relish or vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 4 Tablespoons olive oil
- 4 Tablespoons tomato puree (paste)
- 2 Tablespoons black treacle or molasses
- 4 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 Tablespoons porcini mushroom powder
- 2 Tablespoons onion granules
- 2 Tablespoons garlic granules
- 4 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon msg
- 500 g (4 cups) vital wheat gluten
Instructions
- Place the tofu, red wine, water, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, tomato puree, treacle, nutritional yeast, mushroom powder, onion and garlic granules, smoked paprika, cumin and msg in a blender and blend until very smooth.280 g (10 oz) extra firm tofu (I use Tofoo brand), 180 ml (¾ cup) red wine, 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) water, 6 Tablespoons dark soy sauce, 2 Tablespoons Henderson's Relish or vegan Worcestershire sauce, 4 Tablespoons olive oil, 4 Tablespoons tomato puree (paste), 2 Tablespoons black treacle or molasses, 4 Tablespoons nutritional yeast, 2 Tablespoons porcini mushroom powder, 2 Tablespoons onion granules, 2 Tablespoons garlic granules, 4 teaspoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1 teaspoon msg
- Place the vital wheat gluten in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and pour in the blended wet ingredients.500 g (4 cups) vital wheat gluten
- Mix to form a dough then knead on medium speed for 5-10 minutes until the dough is very stretchy and stringy looking.
- Divide the dough in half and flatten one half out into a rough rectangle. Roll it up from one of the long edges into a fat sausage shape.
- Roll the dough up inside a sheet of baking paper and fold the ends under.
- Roll the paper covered dough up inside a sheet of tin foil, twist the ends to seal it. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
- Bring some water in a steamer pan up to the boil then add the wrapped logs to the steamer basket. Place the lid on the pan and steam for 2 ½ hours, checking halfway through and adding more boiling water to the pan if necessary.
- Once cooked, the logs should feel firm. Allow to cool before unwrapping and serving as you like. If you want to tear it into chunks, first split the log open to reveal the grain, then it will be easier to tear it into pieces. Alternatively you can cut it into chunks, strips or slices. The seitan beef can be eaten as it is, or used in recipes. Keep refrigerated.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- I highly, highly recommend weighing out the vital wheat gluten using a digital scale rather than using the cup conversion. You will get a far better, more consistent result. Cups are a very innaccurate measuring system and you may end up with dough that is either too wet or too dry.
- The recipe makes quite a large quantity of seitan beef, it freezes well so I like to stock up the freezer with it. You can easily halve the recipe and just make one log of seitan if you prefer though.
Natasha
Have made this recipe twice now, and it's the best "beef" we've ever had! The flavor and texture are spot on, and it makes for amazing beef kebab. It also freezes really well. I'm so glad I found this page. I've made the chicken and pepperoni as well, and the seitan recipes here are infinitely better than anything else I've tried. Thank you!!!