I've been on a seitan roll!!! First with my vegan seitan steaks, then my seitan tenders, followed by sticky garlic & buffalo seitan bites. It took me a while and a whole lot (like a really a whole lot... (like I'm talking years)) of recipe testing before I got the hang of making my own seitan. But now that I've nailed the technique, I just can't stop making vegan meaty deliciousness! Luckily, you guys seem to be loving it too, as my steak recipe has become one of my most popular recipes on the blog, and the tenders are quickly catching up. All hail seitan!
Next up, my Easy Vegan Pepperoni recipe. I had a craving for a classic pepperoni pizza, and normally my go to would be my Smoky Sun-Dried Tomato Pizza in Fuss-Free Vegan cookbook, which is a super easy recipe where the sun-dried tomatoes are soaked in a marinade to make them taste like pepperoni. Perfect for if you are gluten-free or for a quick vegan pepperoni hack. But for a classic pepperoni taste, texture, and look, it was time to make vegan seitan pepperoni.
This recipe is my easiest seitan recipe yet, no food processor involved and no need to marinate. Just mix everything together in a bowl, roll up in foil, steam, cool, and enjoy! This can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to two weeks, or freeze them to save for another time.
It's sensational on a pizza, but it's also great to enjoy as a snack on a vegan cheese board or even just with some crackers.
To make easy vegan pepperoni:
Mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl. This recipe makes 2 vegan pepperoni logs, but feel free to half or multiply the recipe as needed to make however many pepperoni logs you like!
Once the mixture starts to come together, finish mixing by hand, kneading the dough for 2 - 3 minutes to make sure it's combined well. Kneading will also make the seitan have a chewier texture which works well with this pepperoni recipe.
Divide the dough into two pieces then roll the dough pieces into two logs about 6 inches long each. Roll each log up loosely in a piece of aluminum foil then twist the ends closed.
Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil. Steam for 30 minutes. Oil may release during steaming and appear in the steamer basket and water, and that's ok. After 30 minutes, remove the logs from the steamer and allow to cool completely in the fridge. The logs will have puffed up in the foil and become tight. Once cooled, remove the foil and they are ready to slice and enjoy as you like!
This vegan pepperoni works great on a pizza or served on a snack board.
Common Questions:
- Is Vegan Pepperoni Available Gluten-Free? Vital wheat gluten is essential to this recipe, and there is no substitute. Therefore this recipe cannot be made gluten-free. For a vegan gluten-free chicken inspired recipe try my Baked Tofu Bites recipe.
- How Long Can Vegan Pepperoni Last? Make these pepperoni's ahead and store them in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for longer.
- What is an alternative method to making Vegan Pepperoni? If you prefer to avoid aluminum foil, roll the pepperoni up in parchment paper, and then roll the parchment paper wrapped pepperoni up in cheesecloth and tie the ends closed.
Easy Vegan Seitan Pepperoni
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten
- ⅓ cup tomato paste
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup refined coconut oil, cooled so that it's solid
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tablespoon whole fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (reduce or omit for less spice)
Instructions
- Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil.
- In the meantime, mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Once the mixture starts to come together, finish mixing by hand, kneading the dough for 2 - 3 minutes to make sure it's combined well. Kneading the seitan will also give the vegan pepperoni a chewier texture.
- Divide the dough into two pieces then roll the dough pieces into two logs about 6 inches long each. Roll each log up loosely in a piece of aluminum foil then twist the ends closed. Steam for 30 minutes. Oil may release during steaming and appear in the steamer basket and water, and that's ok. After 30 minutes, remove the logs from the steamer and allow to cool completely in the fridge. The logs will have puffed up in the foil and become tight. Once cooled, remove the foil and they are ready to slice and enjoy as you like.
Notes
Nutrition
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
Lillian B. says
Beyond 5 stars rating! Me being quarantined at home and finding this recipe-your blog is quite possibly the ONLY good thing to come out of the coronavirus pandemic! I made only half of the recipe in case it was not successful and oh boy, it is phenomenal! Thank you! This recipe is a complete game changer!
Sam Turnbull says
Aww so happy you love it, Lillian 🙂
Deanna says
Thank you for this recipe. It's delicious, so much better than any store bought stuff. My family asks me to make it every week. We put it on pizza, in sandwiches, and on top of vegan mac and cheese.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful!! Thrilled you love it, Deanna 🙂
Stephanie says
when you say let it cool completely in the fridge, do you mean to put it ik the fridge while its still hot? Is that safe? Or should i let it cool a bit before?
Jay Fogelman says
Made it this morning. So easy, I had everything in the cupboard. I've made all kinds of vegan sausages; this is one of the best.
Sam Turnbull says
So thrilled you think so, Jay! 🙂
Mother says
I have made this recipe so many times. A few things I've learned along the way. I wrap it really tight, comes it more like pepperoni. Cut slices and let them dry out in it fridge. Extra spices! More fennel for me.
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you love it!
Sophie says
I was surprised that this tasted so good given how little time it took to make! I served mine on a snack board with some crackers, hummus, and apple pear chutney and it was super yummy!
I rarely comment on recipes but I wanted to comment on this one to suggest to others that if you have the time to do so, it's worth refrigerating the pepperoni overnight to improve the texture. When cooled, mine was still a little too bready in texture to be pepperoni-like, but refrigerating overnight made the seitan firm up and get nicely chewy.
My only issue with this recipe was that mine came out a little bit stretchy. I've only made seitan a few times and have never steamed it so I'm not sure how to troubleshoot. Should I just have kneaded it for longer or is there something else I should be doing?
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Sophie, glad you enjoyed it! If it was a bit stretchy it was likely undercooked a but. Try steaming it for an extra 10-15 minutes next time. You can't really over steam it so you're safe 🙂
Cindy says
Made this and your melty mozzarella this morning and had pizza tonight. OMG it was so good! I have missed a good pepperoni pizza and this just made me so happy!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! Thrilled you loved it, Cindy 🙂
Alex-Maude says
I was a bit scared since the last (and my second) time I made seitan, I failed. But this recipe is AWESOME. Friends (both vegetarian and meat eaters) ended up putting these on their pizza!!! We also ate all what was left and couldn't stop! I will redo for sure.
Wendy says
What cheese recipe went along with this pizza in the pictures?
Sam Turnbull says
I believe that was store-bought, Follow Your Heart brand.
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! So happy you loved it, Alex-Maude 🙂
Jamari says
Hi Sam! This recipe looks absolutely amazing and I can't wait to try!! One question: will it still taste good when eaten without slicing, like a hot dog? Thank you in advance and again, it looks amazing!!
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Jamari, it will taste good no matter how you choose to eat it, but it will be too firm to eat as a hot dog. You can try my sausage recipe or my carrot dogs in my cookbook. Enjoy! 🙂
Shilpa Sharma says
This was so delicious! The flavours continued to strengthen after a few days. Quick question- I froze one of the logs. Can I slice it directly from the freezer? How long would it last if I take it out of the freezer and refrigerate?
Has anyone tried slicing this thin in a food processor?
Thank you!
Sam Turnbull says
You can definitely slice it straight out of the freezer but it might be a bit difficult to do when frozen solid. If it was frozen freshly made, once thawed it should store in the fridge for 1 - 2 weeks
Michala says
This is seriously so good, the taste and texture is so much like real pepperoni I couldn't believe it. Great umami flavor, I didn't love it cold sliced off the log because it had kind of a lingering bready taste to me, but I never liked cold regular pepperoni either. Warmed up in a pan it was AMAZING!
Trying it on some Detroit style pizza with the gratable tofu mozzarella tonight and can't wait.
Sam Turnbull says
Awesosme!!! I'm so thrilled you loved it so much, Michala! I hope you love your pizza 🙂
Mike says
Hi Sam!
I just put this in the fridge to properly cool. Made it to go with your vegan mozzarella, which I have in the freezer to shred tonight for homemade pizza (I use a Lavash bread crust...easy to make crispy). The mozz - btw - also a big hit!
I wanted to let you know that I tasted it (couldn't resist) and it was GREAT! I did substitute for apple cider vinegar for the water - I've found it greatly cuts down the "doughy" flavor from vital wheat gluten.
Now I'm just waiting for your baloney recipe to finish steaming. It smells heavenly in my house!
Sam Turnbull says
That's amazing, Mike! So thrilled you are enjoying so many of my recipes!! Your fridge is going to look like mine! 🙂
Jo Schaefer says
I was using a pepperoni recipe adapted from various other recipes over the years. It was good..no problem there...but it took many more ingredients and a few more steps than yours. I then tried your pepperoni recipe and it was MUCH more simple to make and SO exceptional in flavor! A friend of ours (who is a meat eater) loves this stuff! I share some with him whenever I make it. It's fantastically good, Sam! Thank you! If we ever went back to eating meat, I would still make this recipe! It's THAT good!
Sam Turnbull says
Haha, that's so awesome Jo! Thrilled you enjoy it so much 😀
Connie Sawatzky says
Followed everything but had to sub out the coconut oil. I'm allergic. I used Earth Balance - straight exchange. Totally worked. I didn't eliminate the water.
Sam........my 19 year old son (both of us are vegan), gave me a slow clap and said "congrats Mother".
Sam Turnbull says
Hahaha! Love that!!!! Thanks so much, Connie 🙂
Veeps says
Great site, great book. great recipes, Sam! Only problem I'm having with seitan is it always seems to have a strong gluten smell and flavor in the finished product, no matter HOW much I increase the spices.
Wondering if you (or any others who wanna chime in!) have experienced this and found a solution? Maybe a particular blend of herbs and spices?? Any help much appreciated!
PS I'm using Red Mill VWG
Sam Turnbull says
Thanks, Veeps! Have you tried making my seitan recipes? Or is this just with other recipes you have tried?
JP says
Sam, you are a genius! I love your recipes and this one is no exception. Even knowing your recipes are fab, I was still amazed by this pepperoni: it turned out even better than expected. We had some on pizza last night, and I even added some to my toasted lettuce and tomato sandwich today. I had to put it away as I kept nibbling little slices of it. It's GREAT! Thank you so much for all your inspiring recipes (and your infectious enthusiasm). I have your book and use it a lot too.
From a Canadian living in the UK.
(p.s. I threw everything in my food processor for a couple of minutes instead of mixing and kneading by hand and the pepperoni turned out perfect - so easy!)
Sam Turnbull says
Aww shucks, thank you so much, JP! Thrilled you love the pepperoni so very much!! So happy you are enjoying so many of my recipes 🙂
Christina says
Any chance of a seitan turkey recipe on the horizon? It would be great to have a good vegan roast as a center piece for Thanksgiving!
Sam Turnbull says
Yes I love that idea!!! I will work on it 🙂
Kate says
666 - NUMBER OF THE BEAST(less pepperoni)
I'm sorry.. I had to
Sam Turnbull says
Hahaha, love it!
Joe says
Hi Sam, I was surprised at how quickly this came together and that I didn’t screw it up LOL. Most of the first half went to a vegan pizza but the rest, I’m surprised to say I ate by itself. It’s kinda addicting! I’m very impressed how well the texture matches ‘real’ pepperoni. And the taste was awesome too. Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
That's so awesome, Joe! Thrilled you enjoyed it so much 🙂
Ginny says
Hi Sam. I am whole food plant based no oil. I have made your recipes before and I love them! I always just substituted something else for the oil. Do you suggest leaving out the oil or maybe using some mashed avocado to replace it in this recipe?
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Ginny! So happy you are enjoying my recipes. Pepperoni is traditionally very fatty which is why I use oil in this recipe. I haven't tried replacing it so I am not sure what to recommend. Seitan is pretty finicky stuff so I wouldn't want to recommend anything without testing it first. Sorry I can't be more help! You could try my seitan steak recipe which is oil free tho. 🙂
Katie says
Did you find a substitute for the oil?
Jenn says
Hey Sam,
I tried this, came out awful. Not sure where I messed up 🙁 🙁
Was not edible at all. Followed the recipe, only change was less soy sauce. I wasn't able to roll it like the picture either. So sad
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Jenn, it's difficult to know what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you. Making seitan is like science so small changes like less soy sauce could reduce the liquid ratio and change the consistency of seitan which could make it difficult to roll. In future, I would always recommend following seitan recipes exactly as written before making changes. Hope that helps!
Jenn says
Hey Sam
Thanks! I’m a new seitan maker and was concerned on the salt with the amount of soy sauce. I will take your advice and follow the recipe exactly until I perfect it which might take forever..LOL. BTW, your tofu marinades are on point! I love them
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoy them Jenn! I was very careful about how I wrote all the seitan recipes, so make sure you read and follow them exactly and that should yield you great results 🙂