Author:
Meal prep is so much easier with this Vegan Chicken in the fridge! This high-protein, homemade seitan recipe is juicy, succulent, and surprisingly easy to make. If you've never had seitan before, it's a chewy, meaty vegan chicken substitute that tastes way better than anything store-bought. Make a batch ahead of time and keep it in the fridge or freezer for quick, satisfying meals all week.
FEATURED COMMENT:
This is the BEST seitan I've ever had and I make this recipe frequently. I freeze the tenders in packs of two and make a different marinade for each pack. - Saraswati ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
After the popularity of my Vegan Seitan Steak, which ended up starting a love of making seitan, I got a lot of requests for a seitan version of a vegan chicken recipe. Well, ask and you shall receive. I introduce to you my Vegan Chicken! ...And yes, it does taste like chicken. Ba dum dum tsk!
What is Seitan?
Seitan (pronounced say-tan) is a high-protein, meat-like food made from vital wheat gluten, the protein-rich part of wheat. When mixed with liquid and cooked, it becomes chewy, firm, and savory, making it one of the best vegan meat alternatives out there.
It's been used for centuries in Asian cuisines and is sometimes called wheat meat or mock duck. In this recipe, we turn it into juicy, tender vegan chicken you can use in everything from stir-fries to sandwiches to sheet pan dinners.
Bonus: It's budget-friendly, freezer-friendly, protein-packed and WAY more delicious than most store-bought options.
Why You'll Love This Vegan Chicken Recipe
Store-bought vegan chicken is often rubbery, bland, or packed with additives, and it's pricey. This homemade version is juicy, tender, packed with flavor, and budget-friendly.
- Juicy and succulent. No dry spongey seitan here! I've balanced the ingredients and flavors in this vegan chicken recipe so it turned out tender and delicious.
- Easy to make. Just 8 ingredients, and most of the work is hands off. I love batch cooking this and stocking my freezer full of plant-based chicken!
- Great for meal prep. This recipe can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer so you can have vegan chicken on hand whenever you like.
- Perfect swap for any chicken recipe. Once steamed and cooled, you can swap this into any of your favorite chicken recipes. My favorite way to enjoy it? Marinate the tenders overnight, then pan-fry until golden. Chef's kiss.
- A wholesome alternative. 1 batch makes 6 cutlets and each one contains 156 calories, 8g carbohydrates, 26g protein, and 2g fat.
Ingredients:
- Vital wheat gluten: Vital wheat gluten is wheat flour with most of the starch removed (leaving behind almost pure wheat protein)! It is an ancient process, and this wheat protein is what makes seitan have that meaty texture. Unfortunately, there is no substitute. And that means this recipe cannot be made gluten-free. For a vegan gluten-free chicken-inspired recipe try my Baked Tofu Bites.
- Soft or silken tofu: This gives the seitan a juicy, tender texture. Be sure to measure carefully and use the right tofu type, firm or extra-firm will make the seitan too dense.
- Seasonings: Nutritional yeast, onion powder, vegetable broth powder or bouillon, garlic powder, and salt make it taste like chicken. (Do I need to change the name of my blog now?)
How To Make Vegan Chicken
- Combine: Add all of the ingredients to a food processor.
- Process: Turn on the food processor and mix the dough until it forms a ball.
- Shape: Turn the dough out onto a surface lightly floured with vital wheat gluten. Divide into 6 pieces and shape each into an oval.
- Steam: Add the vegan chicken to a greased steamer basket set over simmering water. Cover and steam for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through the cooking time.
- Cool. Allow the vegan chicken to cool to room temperature, then chill in the refrigerate for an hour before using; if you'd like, you can chill it in a marinade for extra flavor. (Check out my recipes for 12 Seitan or Tofu Marinades for endless flavor combos!)
- Cook. The world is your oyster! Use this vegan chicken any way you'd use chicken breast. In these photos, I fried them in a bit of vegan butter, and seasoned with salt, black pepper, parsley, and a squeeze of lemon. This makes the outside crispy and the inside stays tender and juicy.
Tips for Perfect Seitan Chicken
- No food processor? Use a bowl. It takes a little more work, but it's still easy! Just the ingredients to a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until the dough forms a ball.
- Make any shape you like. You can shape the seitan into small bites or nuggets, make the seitan into a big slab to slice and pan-fry, whatever! Just keep in mind that shapes that are thicker will take more time to steam.
- Cook in batches if needed. Seitan expands while steaming, so leave space in the basket or cook in batches.
- Make them extra chicken-y. You can mix poultry seasoning into the seitan mixture and/or use a vegan chicken bouillon instead of vegetable. (Poultry seasoning doesn't actually contain any poultry, it just has herbs and spices often used with chicken!)
How to Use This Vegan Chicken
Think of this like your plant-based chicken breast, you can marinate it, grill it, fry it, roast it, or slice it into your favorite recipes. Try it in stir-fries, sandwiches, tacos, salads, pasta dishes, or even breaded as vegan nuggets. I personally love it pan-fried with one of these marinades (my favorite is the sweet & smoky), or chopped up in my Vegan Chicken Caesar Salad.
How to Store
- Refrigerator: Refrigerate this vegan chicken in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: To freeze the seitan, let it cool completely and then transfer it an airtight freezer bag or container. If you'd like, you can freeze it in a marinade.
More Vegan Chicken Recipes You Might Like:
- Buttermilk Fried Oyster Mushrooms
- The Quickest and Easiest Seitan Recipe (Vegan Chicken)
- Vegan Chicken (Washed Flour Seitan)
- Vegan Chicken Wings
- Vegan Orange Chicken
If you try this vegan chicken recipe, let us know by leaving a comment, rating it, and don't forget to tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram.
Bon appetegan!
Sam Turnbull.
(click stars to vote)
Vegan Chicken (Seitan)
This homemade Vegan Chicken is juicy, flavorful and easy to make. It's a meal prep staple you can use in so many different ways!
Servings:
PRINT
PIN
Video
COMMENT
Ingredients
For the vegan seitan tenders:
- 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten, plus more for dusting
- 1 block (10.6oz/ 300g) soft or silken tofu, (1 ¼ cups)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons vegetable broth powder, vegetable instant stock mix powder, or 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add the vital wheat gluten, tofu, water, nutritional yeast, onion powder, vegetable broth powder, garlic powder, and salt to a food processor and pulse to combine until everything is well mixed and the dough forms a ball. *Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor in a large bowl mash the tofu using a potato masher until smooth. Add the water, nutritional yeast, onion powder, vegetable broth powder, garlic powder, and salt and mix. Lastly, mix in the vital wheat gluten to form a dough.
- Lightly dust a clean work surfaces with a bit of the vital wheat gluten. Turn the dough ball onto the surface and lightly dust the top with a little more vital wheat gluten. The dough will be soft and very sticky so this will help it from sticking to your hands. Do not knead the dough, kneading it will make it tough. Cut the dough ball into 6 pieces and use the tips of your fingers to press each piece of dough into an oval shape about 5" x 6".
- Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a gentle simmer. Lightly grease the steamer basket and lay the tenders in the basket. If the tenders need to overlap each other, spray the tenders with a bit of oil to stop them from sticking together. Cover and steam at a gentle simmer for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through or until the seitan's 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.
- Once steamed, remove the tenders and let cool. Cover or put in an airtight container and chill in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour, or for up to 3 - 4 days. You can either chill the tenders without any additional seasoning, or you could toss the tenders in your favourite marinade. The tenders shrink and firm up a bit when chilled and this results in the best texture.
- Once chilled, the tenders are fully cooked and edible, but you can now treat them as you would raw chicken -season and cook them as you desire. The cooking time can be short as they only need to be heated through but prepare them any way that you might prepare a chicken breast. Pan fry or grill them, bread or crust them, slice them for salad, pasta, or stirfry, cut them into nuggets, add them to burritos, tacos, or sandwiches. The options are endless!* Learn my secret tricks to making perfect seitan in my free masterclass. Click here to learn more and register.
Notes
Shape of tenders: if the end appearance of the tenders is important to you, make sure to allow lots of room around each tender to expand. You may want to steam the tenders in batches as when they overlap each other they can sometimes end up as weird shapes. This won't matter if you plan on slicing them, but you can consider it if you plan to serve the tenders whole.
Oil-free: for oil-free you can skip greasing the steamer basket and tenders. The tenders will expand and stick together when steaming and may tear when you try to separate them, but the end result will still be equally delicious. 🙂
Freezing: to freeze the tenders, let them cool completely before freezing. Freeze in an airtight freezer bag or container. You can freeze them plain or in the marinade of your choice.
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.
Steaming tips: you need to steam the seitan tenders before using them. 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.
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: 1 serving (recipe makes 6 servings) | Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Sodium: 486mg | Potassium: 187mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 63mg | Iron: 2mg
⭐ 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! 💕
DinosaurCravings says
What can I use instead of tofu that is soy free?
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi! Other readers have swapped the tofu for chickpea tofu with success! You could also try mashed white kidney beans. You may need a splash more water with either of those options. I hope that helps!
Lisa says
Hello Sam,
You just responded to my earlier email and said... (If it came out a bit chewy, my guess is it may have been kneaded a little too much, or possibly blended a bit too long. Using silken tofu and the correct measurements also makes a big difference in the texture. Pressing it out gently with your hands is perfect.
I will keep an eye on the food processor time and measurements. I cannot use silken as I'm on a low FODMAP diet and can only have firm tofu. Overall it is a great recipe.
Thanks so much,
Lisa
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Lisa, ah yes, the firm tofu definitly would have made them chewier! Glad we were able to figure it out! 🙂
Lisa says
Hello,
A couple of questions…Can I use liquid broth and if so what would be the equivalent? And due to a dietary issue I cannot have garlic or onion powder. I do have garlic and onion oil. Do you think a tablespoon of each might work?
Cheers,
Lisa
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Lisa! Broth powder is concentrated flavor so you will want to stick with that to get the best taste. I think the garlic and onion oil should work nicely too, I’d start with about a teaspoon of each 😊
Mindy says
Great recipe! This is by far the easiest seitan recipe I have ever made. I pan-fried some pieces in a little olive oil, and they crisped up nicely. I love that this can be frozen and is so versatile. Delicious too! 🙂
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Mindy, aww that's so great! I am thrilled you enjoyed it so much. Thank you for the review!! 🙂 If you want and even easier seitan recipe I recommend you try my Quickest & Easiest Seitan Recipe. They are a little chewier and less tender than this recipe but especially handy for when you want seitan in a rush! 😉
Mindy says
Thank you!
Angel says
I loved this recipe. It was so easy to make, and the taste and texture were excellent. Once it rested, I breaded the seitan and simmered in garlic, lemon 🌱butter served up with green beans and sweet potato. Best meal I’ve had jn a long time.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
That sounds incredible Angel! The garlic lemon butter combo with green beans and sweet potato sounds like such a perfect meal. So happy you enjoyed it 😊
Caspian says
Very good first time around. The texture was a little tougher than I would have loved, but that was probably my fault. Overall tasted really good.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Caspian thank you so much!! 😊 I’m so glad you liked it, and if you ever want it a little softer next time, make sure to use a gentle hand and not to mix it too much. Thanks again for the great review!