YES you read that title correctly! Vegan. Steak. Technically, it is “vital wheat gluten seitan”, but that just doesn’t have the kind of sexy ring to it as a tender, flavorful steak. I have researched quite a few different recipes and after trying this one, I am definitely a believer. This is good on its own, however if you want to optimize the sensation of steak, I really recommend adding a steak sauce or BBQ sauce with it to add the illusion of eating “steak”. Plus, once you have all the ingredients it becomes very easy to replicate again and again and quickly becomes and easy and inexpensive meal option, and at about 350 calories per vegan steak, it is HALF the calories of average steak from a cow!
The very first step is to get all of your steak ingredients all combined. I used canned lentils, but you can definitely make your own if that is what you have on hand or prefer. Ideally, it is best to combine these all in a food processor. I did not have a food processor, so I did my best using a hand blender and spoon to combine. It worked fine, but as the mix began to thicken into a dough, it just took longer to mix through and I had to use my hands to knead the dough together as well. While it does take longer, it does work so don’t worry about having the “right” equipment, it will eventually all mix together. Regardless of what equipment you use, you will need to knead the dough together for about 5 minutes continually on a flat surface until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
After you have finished kneading, you should be able to form into a tight and smooth ball of dough. At this point you can cut the ball into 4 even pieces. Take 1 of the 4 pieces and flatten out with a rolling pin. As you are rolling it out at first the mix is going to want to go back to its original shape but just keep rolling out and eventually it will flatten out into more of a steak-like looking shape. Roll out until the vegan steak is about 1/2 inch thick. Set aside and repeat process with the 3 other pieces.
Now at this point you are probably looking at your “steak” thinking that there is no way this recipe can get more odd. Well it does. We are going to steam your 4 pieces of “steak” together for 20 minutes in a steamer basket on top of boiling water. When placing the steaks in your steamer basket do not worry if the steaks slightly overlap. This is fine. While steaming, the steaks will expand, double in size and give the chewy consistency of a steak.
While the vegan steaks are steaming, go ahead and prepare your marinade. In a large freezer bag, add together all the marinade ingredients listed in recipe below. Once vegan steaks are done steaming, add the steaks to marinade bag – and be careful! The steaks will be hot! Marinade for a minimum of 30 minutes, I recommend at least 1 hr, or over night.
If you are planning on eating the vegan steaks right away after marinating, take out steak and grill on BBQ or sear on pan to give the outside a nice char. NOTE: If you are not planning on eating the steaks right away, you can leave them in the fridge (in the marinade) for up to a week. Alternatively you can freeze the steaks and marinade together for about 6 months.
After being cooked on the pan, the steaks will be ready to enjoy immediately! I like to add extra BBQ sauce, add to a sandwich, or enjoy with chili.
Vegan Steak
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1/4 Cup Water
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 tbsp Low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp maple syrup agave works too!
To make the vegan steak
- 1 1/2 Cups Vital wheat gluten
- 1 Cup Cooked lentils canned is totally fine
- 2 tbsp Nutritional yeast
- 6 tbsp Water
- 2 tbsp Low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Liquid smoke
- 1/4 tsp Black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all vegan steak ingredients into a food processor (I used a blender) and pulse to combine. You will need to continually scrape the sides as the mixture becomes sticky as you blend together
- Take mixture out of food processor and onto a clean, flat surface. Begin to knead the mixture with your hands. It will look crumbly at first, but as you knead, you will be activating the vital wheat gluten and the “dough” like mixture will become more elastic looking and smoother – about 4-5 minutes. Don’t over knead
- Once it is kneaded into a smoother looking tight ball, divide with a knife into 4 similarly sized pieces (i.e. cut ball in half, and then in half again to make 4 same sized pieces
- Take 1 of the 4 pieces and roll the piece out flat with a rolling pin. As you are rolling it out at first the mix is going to want to go back to its original shape but just keep rolling out and eventually it will flatten out into more of a steak-like looking shape. Roll out until the vegan steak is about 1/2 inch thick. Set aside and repeat process with the 3 other pieces
- Heat 1/4 of a pot with water until boiling and place a steamer basket on top. Place the vegan steaks in the steamer basket. NOTE: It is OK if the steaks over lap a bit. As the vegan steaks steam, they will just about double in size. Steam for 20-25 minutes, flipping vegan steaks halfway through
- While the vegan steaks are steaming, prepare your marinade. In a large freezer ziplock bag, add together all of your marinade ingredients
- Once vegan steaks are done steaming, add steaks to the marinade bag (careful the steaks will still be hot). Allow to marinade for 30 minutes – 1 hour minimum
- If you are planning on eating the vegan steaks right away after marinating, take out steak and grill on BBQ or sear on pan to give the outside a nice char. NOTE: If you are not planning on eating the steaks right away, you can leave them in the fridge (in the marinade) for up to a week. Alternatively you can freeze the steaks and marinade together for about 6 months
