Author: It finally happened. I've posted my first ever seitan recipe. And it isn't just any old seitan recipe either, I decided that if I was going to post a seitan recipe, it should be THE seitan recipe. It's go big or go home time, so I went all the way to the top of the seitan game, straight to a VEGAN SEITAN STEAK.
Yes, Vegan Seitan Steak! Mouth-watering, flavor packed, tender, chewy, juicy, flavourful, meat-like texture. You can BBQ, skillet, or pan fry. Then serve whole or slice and put on top of salad for a steak salad or in a vegan steak sandwich. So delicious and satisfying!
YES, THAT IS VEGAN!!!!! Caps lock on. So much excitement. Can't help it. Yes, I made this vegan steak from scratch in my kitchen, and you can too! I know, it's mind-blowing.
What is Seitan?
OK, let's talk about seitan. Unfortunately, in the vegan world, there are a lot of unappetizing named foods. Nutritional yeast, tempeh, quinoa, and then you have seitan. If I could re-brand some vegan foods I totally would, but what can you do?
Seitan (not satan 😈) is a chewy, protein-packed, meat-like food made from vital wheat gluten (another horrid name for a food).
Vital wheat gluten is a flour made by removing the starches from wheat, leaving behind just the gluten. Gluten is the main protein in wheat and it's also the part of wheat flour that makes dough stretchy and chewy, which is why it's difficult to make gluten-free baked goods that have that same bouncy, chewy texture.
So, vital wheat gluten can be used to make seitan which has this amazing, chewy, meat-like textured dish that wows. A lot of the vegan meat substitutes you see in grocery stores or in restaurants are often seitan. If you've ever had a vegan meat and asked: "are you sure this is vegan?" you were likely eating seitan.
Despite the weird name seitan can be pretty dang healthy too (assuming you don't deep fry it). One of my vegan seitan steaks contains: 295 calories, 42g protein, 22g carbohydrates, 4g fat, 5g fiber, 27.7% iron. Pretty cool right?
Ok but now, let's get to the real meat of the matter (tee hee), DOES IT TASTE GOOD?
The answer: silly rabbit, surely you know I would never post a recipe on my blog that isn't (in my opinion) straight up delicious. It took a LOT of experimenting, but I finally nailed the texture and flavours to be incredibly mouth-watering scrumptious. This vegan seitan steak has the perfect chew, is juicy, a little smoky, umami, satisfyingly yum for each and every bite.
How To Make Vegan Seitan Steaks:
Add all of the vegan seitan steak ingredients to a food processor and pulse to combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed until everything is well mixed. Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor you can first mash the cooked lentils with a fork or potato masher, then add everything together in a large bowl and mix well.
Now you know I'm not a fan of hard to find ingredients, but for this recipe, vital wheat gluten is crucial and it's worth the search. If you're lucky, your local grocery store may carry vital wheat gluten, but if not you will be able to find it in a health food store or here on Amazon.
Once mixed, it will look something like this.
Turn the mixture out onto a clean work surface and begin to knead it together. It may be a bit crumbly at first, but keep kneading it for a few minutes until it comes together into a tight ball.
Cut the ball into 4 sections, then use a rolling pin to roll out each section into ½" thick steaks. The dough will be very tough and stretchy, but just keep working at it until you get your desired steak shapes.
Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil. Put the steaks in the steamer basket and cover with a lid. It's ok if they are overlapping a bit. Steam for 25 minutes, flipping the steaks halfway through so they steam evenly. They will double in size.
Steaming the seitan first, cooks the dough through, and makes it juicy and tender. In my experimenting, I also tried boiling and baking the seitan, but steaming it was by far the best method for the ideal texture for a vegan steak.
In a large ziplock bag or air-tight container, mix together all of the marinade ingredients. The oil won't really combine, but that's fine. Remove the steaks from the steamer and coat in the marinade. Let marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes before cooking, or for as long as several days when kept in the fridge.
I love that I can make these in advance and let them hang out, ready to be grilled up when I desire. They also freeze well pretty well. Just pop the steaks in the marinade and freeze the entire thing, marinade and all. I have found that after frozen and thawed the steaks might suck up more of the marinade so you might want to whip up extra marinade for brushing on when cooking.
How To Cook Vegan Seitan Steaks:
Bon Appetegan!
Sam Turnbull
(click stars to vote)
Vegan Seitan Steak
Servings: steaks
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Ingredients
For the vegan seitan steaks:
- 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten
- 1 cup cooked lentils, (I used canned)
- 6 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon liquid smoke
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For the vegan seitan steak marinade:
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or agave
Instructions
To make the vegan seitan steaks:
- Add all of the vegan seitan steak ingredients to a food processor and pulse to combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed until everything is well mixed. Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor you can first mash the cooked lentils with a fork or potato masher, then add everything together in a large bowl and mix well.
- Turn the mixture out onto a clean work surface and begin to knead it together. It may be a bit crumbly at first, but keep kneading it for a few minutes until it comes together into a tight ball. Do not over-knead the dough, the more you knead it, the tougher the steaks will be, so knead it just until it comes together. Cut the ball into 4 sections, then use a rolling pin to roll out each section into ½" thick steaks. The dough will be very tough and stretchy, but just keep working at it until you get your desired steak shapes.
- Fill a large pot with several inches of water and place a steamer basket inside. Bring the water to a boil, then add the steaks to the steamer basket, overlapping them if needed, and cover with a lid. Steam for 25 minutes, flipping the steaks halfway through, or until their internal temperature reaches at least 160°F (71°C) when tested with an instant-read thermometer. If the temperature goes higher, that's perfectly fine—you can't really oversteam seitan. The steaks will double in size as they cook.
- In a large ziplock bag or air-tight container, mix together all of the marinade ingredients. The oil won't really combine, but that's fine. Remove the steaks from the steamer and coat in the marinade. Let marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes before cooking, or for as long as several days when kept in the fridge.
To serve the vegan seitan steaks:
- When you are ready to enjoy the vegan steaks, heat a frying pan, grill pan, or barbecue. When hot, fry or grill the steaks a couple of minutes on each side until grill marks form. Brush the steaks with leftover marinade while cooking to keep them juicy, and also right before serving. Serve however you desire. I like mine served with a potato and some greens. I also enjoy mine sliced and put on salad. So many possibilities! * Learn my secret tricks to making perfect seitan in my free masterclass. Click here to learn more and register.
Notes
Nutrition
⭐ Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love if you left a rating and comment, it helps others find the recipe and makes my day! 💕
More vegan seitan recipes you might enjoy...
Deborah says
Ciao bella in questi giorni la replicheró sicuramente! Solo a guardarla è un capolavoro, ho già comprato tutti gli ingredienti e anche i misurini americani perché qui in Italia usiamo i grammi.
Mi serve solo un'ultima informazione 1 Cup di lenticchie sono secche o cotte?
Allicia says
Cooked (cotte).
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Deborah, the lentils are cooked. Enjoy!
David says
Came across your recipe today and definitely plan on trying it. I love reading the comments where I can get additional information and I like how you pay attention and respond to the comments. I'll definitely be checking out the rest of your recipes. i do have a question. Here where I live, there is no nutritional yeast. I could order it online but most online sources here always seem to be out of stock and ordering from Amazon or some other source outside the country is just too expensive. Do you know of anything I can use instead? I've read a bit of miso works and miso is easy to find here. Obviously that changes the liquid ratio but I'm not sure it would change it too much. Any other suggestions? Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
Thanks so much, David! In this recipe, nutritional yeast is just a little flavour booster and it would be fine if you just skipped it. You may want to bump up the flavours a tad to make up for it, but it won't make or break the steak. Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Lisa says
OMG! I made these and they are awesome!! I bbq'd one on my grill with my cookina mat and didn't have to baste with the extra marinade. I served it with a store bought bbq sauce I can buy here in Canada. President's Choice Poblano and Lime....it's my new fav!! Anyway, I tried a 2nd steak tonight on my salad with fried onions...the French's kind. I sliced the steak in thin slices and heated in a fry pan with the bbq sauce and a little white wine. Best salad ever!! Thanks so much for sharing all your knowledge through your recipes!!
Sam Turnbull says
Aww you're most welcome, Lisa! Thrilled you enjoyed it so much. I will have to try that BBQ sauce too, I live in Toronto 🙂
Cheryl says
This is the 3rd time I've made it and it comes out perfect every time! Thank you!
Sam Turnbull says
You're most welcome, Cheryl 🙂
Patty says
Hi Sam!
I’m new to Vegan cooking and am looking forward to trying lots of recipes in your book, which I already have! I’m wondering if you think I cook cook this in the air fryer rather than pan frying in oil. Trying to keep calories down.
Thank you!
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Patty! Thanks so much for being a fan! Once you finish steaming it, you can prepare it anyway you think a steak might be delicious prepared, so yes I think an air fryer should work well. It may get a bit dry so be sure to splash it with marinade. Enjoy!
Patty says
Thank you, Sam! 🙂
craig says
I made these the other day and although tasted great they were a bit like eating bubble gum so i think i did something wrong. I steamed them for 25 mins as the recipe says.
Sam Turnbull says
It sounds like you may have over kneaded the seitan. You just need to collect the dough into a ball, then cut and shape. The more you knead it the chewier it will become.
Mc says
Made this. It turned out great. Used the instant pot. Steamed for 20 minutes then nature release for 5 minutes. Love it!! Thank you so much.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! So happy you enjoyed it so much, Mc 🙂
Kris says
Excellent! This is a regular for my fiancé and I. I don’t have a food processor, so what I do is put everything except the vital wheat gluten in my bullet blender until it’s a nice and smooth paste and dump it in a big bowl and work it into the VWG with my hands. This also works with chickpeas.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful!! So happy you love it so much, Kris!
Kerryn says
I just did the same thing! It was the first time I’ve made seitan and I loved it so much I ate two steaks
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Amazing!
Maria says
Hi Sam, looking forward to trying this “steak”. I do not have a steamer but have a steaming function on my microwave. Do you think it would work out? All my previous attempts at seitan anything has not worked out so great so hoping this one is it! Don’t want to ruin though just because of the steaming. Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Maria, I have no idea if the streaming function on the microwave would work or not but my instinct is no. Steaming is crucial to the texture and the recipe turning out correctly. If you don’t have a large steamer you can pick one up fairly inexpensively or you can make a DIY steamer using one of these hacks. Hope that helps!
Carol says
I don't have a decent size steamer. Could these be cooked in broth, like some seitan recipes are, or will it alter them to that icky, rubbery texture, I wonder?
Sam Turnbull says
That would change the texture to a weird spongey squishy thing. Not good! Haha. If you don't have a large steamer you can pick one up fairly inexpensively or you can make a DIY steamer using one of these hacks. Hope that helps!
Valerie says
I just made these for dinner tonight and I can only say “oh my goodness”!! I am pretty finicky on textures but this was off the charts. My favorite part was when my 5 yr old said “ this is great steak mom” What???? This child has an amazing gag reflex for most faux meats I make so you couldn’t have gotten higher praise!! Thank you
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! That's amazing!!! Delighted you and your daughter enjoyed the steaks so much, Valerie 🙂
Lindsay says
I love this recipe! I made these seitan steaks on Sunday night and marinated them overnight in the fridge! I cooked them for a friend the next day. We pan-fried the steaks and served them over pasta with gravy! It was delicious! 10 out of 10 would make again!
I think I may play around with the marinade for next time and substitute something for the maple! It was very good and added a nice smokey flavor. It wasn't too sweet, but I'm excited to see what other marinades will taste like.
Thank you for posting this recipe. It was fantastic! I look forward to making this many more times and freezing. (Also excited to try your other recipes!)
Sam Turnbull says
Thanks Lindsay! So thrilled you loved the steaks so much. You can try one of my 12 seitan marinades here if you like. Enjoy!
Ameretat says
Hi , thanks for the amazing recipe.
One question though , can I add beetroot to make it redder ?
Sam Turnbull says
Add additional ingredients will change the texture, so I wouldn't recommend it. Enjoy!
John Malcolm says
Yay, the food stores are open again in New Zealand and being summer here, we are well in to BBQ weather. My local bulk food store sells vital wheat gluten so I am looking forward to giving both your seitan recipes a try. The local store owner tells me that canned banana blossoms are all rage as a fish alternative. The Thai canned variety is cheap here. Any banana blossom recipes in the offing? Great work and my wife is not complaining at my new found enthusiasm for cooking great new things from your fail proof recipes. Thanks
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you're enjoying my recipes so much, John! I don't have a banana blossom recipe yet... I haven't seen those for sale anywhere here in Canada yet. Hopefully soon!
Jessica Goodway says
Just finished making these and wow!!! Definitely the most successful vegan meat I've made. The fact that they are high protein is a huge plus. I didnt have lentils so I substituted pinto beans and it seemed to work out fine. It's also one of the easiest seitan recipes I've come across. Definitely going to be a staple in my house!
Sam Turnbull says
Awesome!!! Thrilled you enjoyed them so much, Jessica 🙂
Doug says
Amazing recipe! Very good. I used them to make a Vegan Chicken Fried Steak. Worked out very well.
Sam Turnbull says
Awesome! So happy you enjoyed, Doug 🙂
Kate says
Sam, I absolutely adore you because EVERY. SINGLE. RECIPE. comes out exactly as described when I try anything from your blog or cook book. My mind is blown! I have tried several pies, sides, and last night I attempted the steaks thinking I'll probably somehow mess it up. NOPE. They are delicious. I feel like you helped me crack that make-it-taste-like-store-bought-seitan code. Thank you for that. I followed the recipe exactly, but swapped out the maple/agave syrup for Cholulah hot sauce.
Sam Turnbull says
Awwww shucks, thank you, Kate!! So happy you enjoyed the steaks so much, and all of the recipes you have tried 😀
Crystal says
Hello! I read the recipe, it sounded pretty straight forward so I never looked at it again- in my haste I missed the steaming step and only pan froed them- they were like bubble gum! Lol WOOPS!!! The taste was great though... we only cooked two and have the other two im the marinade... i’m wondering if they would come out okay if i steam them in a coupme days when we are ready toncoom them... any thoughts on this? Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
I can't say that I have ever prepared the steaks in such a way so I cannot know if they will turn out ok. You're welcome to try tho. Best of luck!
Eddie says
I haven't made this yet but I was wondering how long can I store this in the freezer for? Can I substitute lentils for Chickpeas?
Sam Turnbull says
I would say 1 - 2 months. Chickpeas work ok, but their skins don't mix to well so it works a little less successfully, but still good. Enjoy!
Vanni says
I just tried and my liked it. =) My hubby called it devil steak. (Satan steak)
I was wondering....would it be weird to marinate the dough and then steam it?
Thanks
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Funny. That might change the texture. I recommend marinating after it is steamed. Enjoy!
Robin says
Hi.
I want to try making there this weekend as I've recently adopted a vegan diet.
I want to get these right so what is the weight (grams) of the Seitan and is the drained weight of the lentils around 265g? I'm in the UK so want to check pls.
I'm looking forward to the weeks. And experimenting making a Saturday night steak meal!
Thanks
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Robin, welcome 🙂 I don't know the weight of the seitan and the drained lentils as I didn't do those specific measurements when writing the recipe. Sorry I can't be more help!