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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:
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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! 💕
Kimberly Pickard says
I am planning to try this recipe but the only tofu I could get was firm. Do I need to press it first? Thanks.
Andy B says
I’m only 7 months into veganism with my boyfriend and I finally mustered up the courage to try making seitan. After reading all of the reviews, I chose this recipe as my first foray and made your italian marinade and sweet and smoky marinade while they cooked. I followed your recipe exactly and WE LOVE THEM. Throw a little Trader Joe’s Vegan Pesto on them in a sandwich and OMG.
Thanks for making seitan so easy!
Sukha says
Sam, do you think this could be adjusted for a Chicken Roast...to slice like your Deli Bologna? It tastes sooooo good.
Lisa says
I love this recipe and sometimes use it to make chicken nuggets. To do this, I stop the food processor just before the dough forms a ball. Then I dump the dough onto the counter and tear it into chunks. I pile the chunks into the steamer using spray oil between layers. After 12 minutes, I use a fork to pull them apart and turn them over, and steam for another 12 minutes.
Kit says
This recipe is delicious I like using in Chinese food one of my favourites is sticky sesame seed covered strips using maple syrup to coat and then rolling them in toasted sesame seeds. Then have on top of mushroom rice. I add a little vegan mayo to the sticky strips and garlic and it is so good. Thank you for your amazing recipes so easy and so delicious.
Bayindir says
What do you do with the leftover silken tofu? My package comes with 450g and this recipe only uses 2/3s of it.
Kit says
The packets I buy are the right size for the recipe if you have left over you can freeze it and use in smoothies later in or just use it that day in a smoothie they are nice. You can also make a vegan icecream with silken tofu.
Lariza says
I was thinking the same and if you have her cookbook, there is a cheesecake you can use the rest of the tofu!!
Jess says
You can just easily scale up the recipe 450 is 1.5x300, so instead of 6 in the serving size box type 9. I actually make my own tofu (1800g tofu from 500g beans)+6 and scale it up, usually making 36 serving approx and freezing most.
Also, look into making your own tofu. I make 1800g for the price I'd pay for 200 😀
Lizzie says
These are great! And so versatile, I use them all week in lots of different meals. (BBQ especially good!!!) I like that it makes six pieces, lasts a while!
Tina says
I’ve been making seitan using post punk kitchen recipes for years. I was reluctant to try a new way and sceptical that this much easier method work. But I love your tofu crumble recipes so I took a chance and I’m so glad I did. I spent the day making a bunch of your recipes and my freezer is now full of tasty protein sources with no weird ingredients. I’m so excited to cook meals for my family this coming week!!
Sam Turnbull says
Amazing!!! So thrilled you loved them so much, Tina! Thanks for trusting my recipe 🙂
Mike says
Can you substitute firm for the silken in this? I can’t find silken or soft to save my life this week. I HAVE firm in the fridge...
Adri says
Anyone have issues with these plumping up like bread when baked or air fried? Not sure where I went wrong...
Sybille Stahl says
I keep making these because my vegan daughters love them, and they are so easy and can be used wherever you’d use chicken breasts. Thanks for this recipe!
Tara says
Excellent recipe! So easy to make and I used a recipe from your list of marinades. It was so good, especially after a day of marinading.
This website and your book are my go to for cooking. Everything I have made has been delicious!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! I'm so happy to hear that 🙂
Amanda says
Hi. I'm only assuming you press the tofu to remove water prior to adding but tried looking for clarification in notes but as far as I can see it doesn't state. Can you confirm this please
Nadia von der Schulenburg says
The recipe calls for silken tofu which isn't made to be pressed so just put in as it is with the other ingredients.
Donna says
My husband made the recipe...followed it exactly. I found them very chewy....no flavor....did we do something wrong??? Please help....we really want to eat less meat.
Aaron says
This recipe is simply unreal! I've made a lot of seitan in my time, and not only does this recipe produce the best results, it also has one of the smallest lists of ingredients with the least prep time (no kneading!), and even takes the least amount of time to cook! Thanks Sam!
Aaron says
We’ve been maybe plant based a year and a half. First time making Seitan, this was pretty easy. I subbed out some of the vital wheat gluten with chickpea flour (maybe a 1/4 cup worth).
Wow! First batch turned into air fried tenders with Panko which were fantanstic. Next batch turned into a chicken patty air fried with some hot sauce and bread crumbs, made for a delicious Buffalo chicken style sandwich.
This recipe is definitely going to be a staple in our home going forward!
Liz says
Aaron: How long did you air fry the patty?
Diane says
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Can I use a vegetable steamer ?
Jbro says
Hi there, do you know if baking would work for this recipe? I'm not able to use a steamer at the moment but the ingredients look amazing. Thanks 🙂
Hannah says
I'd like to know too as my steamer is packed in a box somewhere!
Jenny says
This is easily the best vegan recipe I have ever made. Thank you so much!!!
Kelly says
They are amazing! I've used the sweet and smoky marinate, so so good
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! That's one of my faves 🙂
Kari says
I am not a vegan, but my step-daughter is. Hubby is a carnivore, I lean towards ovo-lacto vegetarian. First time making seitan anything. Didn’t have tofu so I used 1/4C chick pea flour and added boxed veggie broth as my liquid until it pulled together as a wet dough. Steamed it in an instant pot with 1-2 cups veggie broth at bottom (stacked 2 cutlets per layer separated by foil) manual high pressure for 20 minutes/L5 minutes/pressure release. Was concerned about stiffened clumps of gluten flour in the dough, but turned out ok. In fridge now waiting to be grilled tomorrow for dinner. Dropped a bit on the floor taking it out...my Lab happily snarfed it down and looked for more, so I’m optimistic. If I can make this with no experience, all these substitutions, and cooking method changes, anyone can! This recipe is full proof (fool proof)!
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful!
Parker says
Just made these tenders today and I am so happy with how they turned out, and that I have 5 more to enjoy tucked away in the fridge 🙂
I did a tamari, sweet chilli and ev olive oil marinade and seared them in the grill. They were good, but I came home and made a sandwich with one of the grilled tenders that was leftover and it was glorious.
Trader Joe’s Super Bread, manchego cheese, grilled tender, fig preserves and mayo.
Donna Buckley says
Hi! I have made this this morning. Although I dont have a proper steamer so just out a colander over a pan and done a tinfoil lid. They didnt double in size and wondering what i might have done wrong. They disnt change in size. I didnt knead and blitzed in processor for very little time. Thanks!
Danica says
I am *very* surprised that nobody noticed this before, but when you put measurements to metric, it says 210g vital wheat gluten, but instead it should be 180g (1 cup vital wheat gluten is approximately 120g, so 1 1/2 cups should be 180g). I guess most of the people who made this recipe use cup measurements, and this explains why some people in the comments found the need to add way more water than recipe calls for. Hope you'll see this and fix it so people don't make super hard kind of bland vegan chicken tenders lol
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Danica, thanks so much for this info! The recipe program I use automatically converts to grams for me, but I guess it was wrong for this measurement. Thanks so much for letting me know! I will update all of my seitan recipes so that the information is correct. 🙂
Danica says
Hey of course, no problem! I actually made these with 210g vital wheat gluten flour instead of 180g and it was pretty great, definitely not 'tender' but in no way any less than delicious! I thought it would be bland and tasteless because of so much gluten flour but the marinade (I used your teriyaki marinade recipe) made it super tasty!
Marina says
These are very good! The only thing I did different the second time I made them was to blend the tofu and spices in the blender first and then mix it into the gluten and nooch in a big mixing bowl! Voila! No over mixing and no white tiny pieces in my tenders! So amazingly yummy. Thank you so much!
Sam Turnbull says
Glad you enjoyed!