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    Home » Recipes » Recipes

    May 13, 2020 191 Comments

    The Best Vegan Seitan Burger

    5.7K shares
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    It's finally here: the best vegan seitan burger ever!!!!!!!!!! To say I'm excited is an understatement. This girl, loves a good veggie burger, and when I say good I mean it. In my opinion a good veggie burger has certain requirements. It need to have a nice bite and chew (no mushiness!), it needs to be juicy and packed full of flavour, and it has to be strong enough to hold up on the grill. These vegan seitan burger patties are all that and more!

    The Best Vegan Seitan Burger! Just 10 ingredients to make the best homemade burger patty ever. Juicy, chewy, meaty, and holds up on the grill! Make these ahead of time and store in the fridge or freezer until ready to serve. Then toss them on the grill or in a frying pan when ready to serve. #itdoesnttastelikechicken #veganrecipes #veggieburger

    To make this recipe, I decided to combine my very popular beet burger recipe with my seitan steak recipe to make the most perfect homemade vegan burger there is. And it worked!

    The secret to making these burgers the best ever is the combo of ingredients.

    The beets in this recipe add a deep earthiness that really makes these burgers taste authentic. Now if you aren't a beet fan, don't be scared, my Adam is a beet hater but is obsessed with these burgers! Lentils add heartiness, soy sauce adds salt and umami, peanut butter (trust me on this) adds just a bit of richness and good fat, liquid smoke enhances the meaty taste, and the vital wheat gluten is the key that gives these vegan burger patties the meatiest texture.

    The Best Vegan Seitan Burger! Just 10 ingredients to make the best homemade burger patty ever. Juicy, chewy, meaty, and holds up on the grill! Make these ahead of time and store in the fridge or freezer until ready to serve. Then toss them on the grill or in a frying pan when ready to serve. #itdoesnttastelikechicken #veganrecipes #veggieburger

    As with all of my setian recipes, these vegan seitan burgers require a few steps to make, but each step is super easy to follow. These burgers need to be prepared at least one day in advance, so this is the perfect recipe to meal prep and have ready to go for later. They will keep fresh when covered in the fridge for up to 5 days, or they freeze beautifully as well. So whip these up when you have time and then when burger time comes, just fry them up or grill them!

    To Make The Best Vegan Seitan Burgers:

    mix the ingredients to make a beet mush mixture.

    Add all of the ingredients except for the vital wheat gluten to a food processor. Pulse, stopping to scrape the sides until everything is mixed together into a mush.

    add the vital wheat gluten to make a dough.

    Add the vital wheat gluten and pulse, stopping to scrape the sides as needed until combined into a crumbly dough.

    Divide the dough into six and use your hands to form six burger patties. You could alternatively make mini patties for sliders!

    divide the dough into 6 and steam the patties for 25 minutes

    Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the burger patties to the steamer basket, cover and steam for 25 minutes.

    How to Shape Seitan Burgers:

    The seitan burgers patties can become funny shapes if they are piled on top of each other so steam the patties in a single layer without overlapping, working in batches if needed. Or you could use layered bamboo steamer baskets if you have them.

    once steamed remove from the steamer basket and allow to cool overnight in the fridge.

    Once steamed, the burgers will look kind of funny at this stage, but don't worry! Allow the burgers to cool completely, then cover and chill in the fridge overnight before serving. Chilling overnight ensures the best burger texture.

    when ready to serve fry them or grill them until heated through

    How to Serve Seitan Burgers:

    Steaming the seitan is what gives it the perfect texture. Once the patties are steamed and chilled overnight, you can basically treat them as if they were raw burger patties. Pan-fry them or grill them for a couple minutes per side until browned and heated through.

    The Best Vegan Seitan Burger! Just 10 ingredients to make the best homemade burger patty ever. Juicy, chewy, meaty, and holds up on the grill! Make these ahead of time and store in the fridge or freezer until ready to serve. Then toss them on the grill or in a frying pan when ready to serve. #itdoesnttastelikechicken #veganrecipes #veggieburgerPlace the seitan burger patties on a burger bun and top with lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle or whatever your favourite vegan burger toppings are. And then... prepare to bite into the BEST vegan seitan burger ever!!

    Common Questions:

    Can you freeze seitan burgers?

    Yes, these freeze beautifully. For best results, freeze after steaming (prior to cooking). If kept wrapped tight or in an airtight container, they should last 2-3 months. To defrost, take them out of the freezer and let them defrost either in the fridge or on the counter. Once defrosted, grill or fry and enjoy!

    Can these be made gluten-free? 

    As seitan is essentially gluten, the answer is no.

    Bon appetegan!

    Sam Turnbull

    Print Recipe
    4.95 from 76 votes

    The Best Vegan Seitan Burger

    Just 10 ingredients to make the best homemade burger patty ever. Juicy, chewy, meaty, and holds up on the grill! Make these ahead of time and store in the fridge or freezer until ready to serve. Then toss them on the grill or in a frying pan when ready to serve.
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time25 mins
    Total Time35 mins
    Course : Main Course
    Cuisine : AmericanCanadian
    Servings: 6 Burger patties
    Author: Sam Turnbull • It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken

    Ingredients

    • 1 large raw beet (200g) (about 1 cup), peeled and cut into chunks
    • ½ cup cooked lentils (I used canned brown lentils)
    • ¼ cup soy sauce
    • 3 tablespoons water
    • 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter (sub any other nut or seed butter)
    • 1 ½ teaspoon onion powder
    • 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder
    • ½ teaspoon liquid smoke
    • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
    • 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten
    US Customary - Metric
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add all of the ingredients except for the vital wheat gluten to a food processor. Pulse, stopping to scrape the sides until everything is mixed together into a mush.
    • Add the vital wheat gluten and pulse, stopping to scrape the sides as needed until combined into a crumbly dough. Divide the dough into six and use your hands to form six burger patties. You could alternatively make mini patties for sliders!
    • Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the burger patties to the steamer basket, cover and steam for 25 minutes.
      For the best shape: the burgers can become funny shapes if they are piled on top of each other so steam the patties in a single layer without overlapping, working in batches if needed, or you could use layered bamboo steamer baskets if you have them.
    • Once steamed, the burgers will look kind of funny at this stage, but don't worry! Allow the burgers to cool completely, then cover and chill in the fridge overnight before serving. Chilling overnight ensures the best burger texture. They will keep fresh when covered in the fridge for up to 5 days, or they freeze for up to 3 months.
    • To serve: steaming the seitan is what gives it the perfect texture. Once the patties are steamed and chilled overnight, you can basically treat them as if they were raw burger patties. Pan-fry them or grill them for a couple minutes per side until browned and heated through. Place on a bun and top with your favourite vegan burger toppings.

    Notes

    Oil-free: for the oil-free version, cook the burgers on the grill or in a good non-stick pan without added oil.
    Freezing tips: once cooled completely in the fridge, transfer the burgers to an air-tight freezer container and toss in the freezer for up to three months. Before using, allow them to thaw completely and then cook with them as you like.
    Vital wheat gluten is essential to this recipe, and there is no substitute. Therefore this recipe cannot be made gluten-free. 
    Food Processor: if you do not have a food processor, you could follow step one and make the beet and lentil mush in a blender. Pour the beet mixture into a large bowl and then add the vital wheat gluten and mix by hand to form a dough. 
    Steaming tips: I recommend getting a steamer pot if you plan to make seitan often, or you can use a DIY method if you do not have a steamer. The burgers can become funny shapes if they are piled on top of each other so either steam the burgers in batches or use layered bamboo steamer baskets.
    Cleaning tips: vital wheat gluten is very sticky and can destroy dish brushes and cloths. So what I like to do is save old clothes, sheets, or towels that are too shabby to donate, and cut them into rags. I use these rags to clean up after preparing a seitan recipe and discard the rag once finished.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1burger patty (recipe makes 6 patties) | Calories: 170kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 589mg | Potassium: 246mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 11IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 55mg | Iron: 3mg
    Did You Make This Recipe?Tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram and Hashtag #itdoesnttastelikechicken
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Carrie Xie says

      March 23, 2023 at 5:18 pm

      5 stars
      The title doesn’t lie! Literally the best and easiest recipe ever! VWG is usually difficult for me to work with because I either make it too tough/chewy or too mushy but this one turned out perfect!

      Do you have any tips on how I can keep more “juices” /moisture within each patty?

      Thanks for the great recipe!

      Reply
    2. Jari says

      March 22, 2023 at 12:05 pm

      5 stars
      This was really quick and easy. But expensive as had to get a new, larger machine to mix the stuff with. BUT I got a shredder with the new machine. 10 sec to grate the beets, 5 mins to make the mis-en-place, 5 min to get the dough and patties ready.
      The taste and feel is just 100%.
      I recommend -as Sam does- you to make the recipe as is before trying any tweaks.
      I am moving over to Sam's place as soon as she tells me the address! I really love these meatless meats. So does The Darling Wife, too.

      Reply
    3. Otter says

      March 19, 2023 at 9:29 am

      5 stars
      Here to comment on time estimates! I clocked myself from the beginning, which included measuring everything and peeling the beets, and the prep before steaming took 30 minutes. I got the water boiling while measuring out the patties so that once they were ready I could steam. Had to go in two batches because of space so in total it took me 1.5 hours, though with a single steamy sesh (heheh) it would have been just an hour. In case anyone has a husband who’s waiting on them to “get the prep out of the way” and gets progressively grumpier with every minute beyond the announced ETA ;-P

      All that aside, EXCELLENT recipe!!!!

      Reply
      • Jess @ IDTLC Support says

        March 21, 2023 at 3:04 pm

        Thanks for sharing your experience, that's wonderful! 🙂

        Reply
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