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Home > Vegan Recipes

How to Make Vegan Meat (Easy Seitan Recipe)

10/7/21 by Nicole | 13 Comments

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4.9 from 16 votes. Leave a review!

Making vegan meat is easy with this flavor-packed seitan recipe. While there are many ways to make seitan, some are quite labor-intensive. This recipe is for those who want a delicious seitan with a great texture and minimal work.

The recipe takes a while to bake, but you can prepare it in about 20 minutes. You can also customize it with any flavor combinations you may be looking for as a vegan. It’s a great source of vegan protein and is perfect for meal prep.

Front view of two rows of sliced seitan with a half-log of roast seitan behind it, sitting on a cast iron pan. Edges of pan filled with roast potatoes and garnished with thyme. Pan sits on a folded light brown towel that wraps around the handle of the pan.

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What is Seitan? Is it Vegan?

Seitan is almost always vegan. It’s a meat alternative made from the protein found in wheat flour, which is why some people call seitan “wheat meat”.

There are two common methods used to prepare seitan.

One requires you to make dough from wheat flour, then wash out the starch, leaving behind just wheat protein. This is called the “washed flour method” and has become popular on social media.

This first method creates a stringy seitan that replicates the texture of meats like chicken quite well. However, it’s a lot of work to prepare and requires large amounts of flour to create relatively small amounts of seitan.

The other common method to prepare seitan starts with gluten flour, also called vital wheat gluten. Since seitan uses only the protein in wheat flour, it’s much faster and easier to start with the protein in its pure form.

With this second method, the only steps required are to mix dry ingredients with liquid then cook it. Many people steam seitan; while this is an option, I like to simply bake mine in an oven. This is, in my opinion, the easiest way to make seitan.

You won’t end up with a super stringy “meat” texture with gluten flour, but rather a firm, chewy meat alternative. How chewy and firm the seitan is depends on other ingredients you might use. This recipe mixes in beans for a softer texture, but there are times when skipping the beans and creating a fully firm texture is more desirable.

Front view of a curved row of sliced seitan with the remaining seitan roast behind the slices. Board garnished with thyme with extra thyme, utensils and side dishes around the edges of the image.

Ingredients and Substitutions for Easy Seitan

This recipe has a long ingredient list but have no fear! Gluten flour has doesn’t taste like anything, so you’ll want to add lots of herbs, spices and other tasty ingredients.

This recipe creates what I’d consider a “middle-of-the-road” seitan. It tastes delicious but not specifically like chicken, beef or pork; it’s somewhere in between.

Play around with spices in this recipe to create whatever flavors you want. Just keep the ratio of liquid to dry ingredients as-is, otherwise its texture won’t turn out well. So, if you significantly increase or reduce the amount of any one ingredient, replace it with the same amount of some other dry or liquid ingredient.

Dry Ingredients

  • Vital wheat gluten (gluten flour): This recipe’s base uses vital wheat gluten, as opposed to regular flour, which is another way to make seitan. Gluten is the protein found in wheat, and is essentially extracted from the grain. Staring with gluten flour makes preparing seitan incredibly quick and easy (compared to the “washed flour method” which requires quite a lot of work).
  • Nutritional yeast: I love the flavor this ingredient adds to any recipe! It’s also a great vegan source of vitamin B12.
  • Herbamare: This specialty ingredient is a blend of sea salt, vegetables and herbs. It adds a nice flavor to recipes, like a bouillon cube that’s less concentrated. If you don’t have Herbamare and don’t want to buy it, substitute for half salt and half an herb blend of your choice. For this recipe, since you’ll use salt and lots of herbs elsewhere, you could also skip this ingredient.
  • Smoked paprika: Many meats taste smoky and using smoked paprika is an easy way to add that flavor. If you aren’t a fan of smoke flavor, use a regular or sweet paprika.
  • Onion and garlic powder: If you’re only using a few spices, these are the two I’d start with for a basic (but delicious) flavor.
  • Cumin: I love the smoky flavor of cumin. Like with smoked paprika, if you don’t want a smoke flavor, just skip this ingredient.
  • Sage: As I’ve mentioned, this seitan recipe tastes very meaty but not like any one type of meat. However, sage is a potent herb that creates a savory, roasted flavor that I associate with roast chicken.
  • Turmeric: I like to use this spice mainly for coloring because its flavor doesn’t come through in the final seitan. Turmeric, like most spices, is optional.
  • Celery seed: Celery seed pairs well with sage to create more of a roast chicken flavor. It’s also optional, as is every spice in this list!
  • Dry oregano: Some oregano really helps to round out the seitan’s flavors. As with all other ingredients, play around with the types and amounts of spices to get a flavor that you enjoy.
  • Salt and pepper: Always add these ingredients to taste. Keep in mind there’s salt in other parts of the recipe, but also that gluten flour has no flavor and salt is key to making vegan meat alternatives taste good.

Wet Ingredients

  • Baked beans: Adding beans to seitan helps change its texture. Making seitan solely with gluten flour creates a very firm, chewy texture. This is great for some recipes (like vegan seitan ham) but adding blended beans makes for a more tender meat. I like to use “beans in tomato sauce” as I can use its tasty liquid to flavor the seitan.
  • Onion: I blend some onion into the bean mixture for extra flavor. Garlic would also be a tasty choice.
  • Bouillon cube: A bouillon cube is an easy addition that provides lots of flavor. While most bouillon cubes should mix with large amounts of liquid, this recipe only uses ⅓ of a cup to maintain the ideal liquid to dry ingredient ratio.
  • Olive oil: I typically use olive oil or avocado oil to give this recipe some fat. Any liquid oil can work. This creates a satisfying vegan meat and prevents the seitan from being dry and tough.
  • Soy sauce: This is another ingredient I highly recommend adding for a great umami flavor and saltiness. Tamari or a soy-free alternative like coconut aminos can work too.
  • Apple cider vinegar: Some acid is always welcome to create a tasty recipe. While there’s only a small amount of vinegar, I wouldn’t skip it. Pretty much any other type of vinegar could work for this recipe, but I always keep apple cider vinegar on hand.
Top view of an arrangement of ingredients in glass or wood bowls. From top left working right then down: gluten flour; baked beans; chopped onion; soy sauce; vinegar; bouillon cube; paprika; thyme + celery seed; olive oil; cumin + sage; salt + seasoning salt; nutritional yeast; onion powder; garlic powder; black pepper + oregano.

How to Make Vegan Meat: Instructions and Tips

Ready to learn how to make vegan meat?! Read the detailed instructions below which takes you through each step. I promise it’s easy!

Step 1: Whisk Dry Ingredients

Start with a large mixing bowl and add vital wheat gluten along with all the dry spices.

When making this recipe, I include nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, sage, Herbamare, salt, turmeric, celery seed, dry oregano and black pepper.

Whisk everything until well combined and there are no clumps of spices left.

Two image side-by-side both showing a hand whisking dry ingredients in a large glass bowl. On the left there's lots of clumps of spices through the flour and on the right the mixture is an even color.

Step 2: Prep Wet Ingredients

Next, mix the wet (liquid) ingredients together. I do this in a food processor as it’s quick and easy. A blender could also work.

Start by adding the can of baked beans, including all the liquid. Then add onion. I like to pre-chop onion to make sure there aren’t any large pieces that remain once blended.

Pulse these ingredients to combine and start breaking down the beans.

Then mix your bouillon cube with ⅓ cup of hot water. I mash a cube into the water then dump it into my food processor.

Add olive oil, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar as well.

Blend until everything is nicely combined. You can puree to smooth or leave some texture, whatever you prefer.

Compilation of 4 images each showing a food processor at different stages of prepping the liquid ingredients for making seitan. Top left: baked beans and chopped onion in processor. Top right: beans and onions roughly blended. Bottom left: hand holding small glass dish over processor and mashing a bouillon cube in water with a fork. Bottom right: fully blended liquid ingredients (brown liquid that is mostly smooth).

Step 3: Form Seitan

Pour your liquid mixture into the bowl of whisked dry ingredients. Use a spoon to stir until a ball of dough starts to form.

Top view of a large glass bowl filled with partially mixed seitan (lots of dry flour and some clumps of formed seitan). A blurry hand is stirring the mixture.

At this point, switch to using your hand and knead the dough until no dry bits of flour remain. At this point, knead the dough for about another minute to work the gluten flour a bit more.

Hand kneading seitan dough in a large glass bowl.

Then cut the dough in half or rip it into halves using your hands. These don’t have to be exactly the same in size, but similar sized pieces will cook more evenly.

Prep four sheets of tin foil that are each about a foot long.

Place one sheet on your counter and set one half of seitan dough onto it. You can form the seitan into any shape you like, but I find a log shape cooks the best (the rounder the dough is, the longer it takes to cook through to the center).

When you’ve formed the seitan log, wrap it tightly in tin foil. Once you’ve wrapped the log with one sheet of tin foil, place its open edge down onto a second sheet and wrap tightly again. Place the open edge of this second tin foil sheet onto your baking tray.

Repeat the shaping and wrapping process for your second half of seitan dough.

Four images showing how to shape seitan then wrap it in two layers of tin foil then place the wrapped seitan logs on a baking tray.

Step 4: Bake, Cool and Serve

When you’ve wrapped both pieces of seitan and placed them on a baking tray, put them into an oven preheated to 350 °F.

Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. If possible, flip the seitan halfway through.

Once out of your oven, allow the seitan logs to cool. When they’re cooled enough to handle, remove from tin foil and place onto a cutting board or wire cooling rack.

You can serve hot from the oven, but the seitan will be quite soft until cooled completely. This is fine if you’re okay with a softer texture (it’ll also be harder to slice).

Seitan has a better texture after it’s had time to cool completely and has the best texture after refrigerating. While this takes some planning, if you can wait until the next day to eat the seitan, I highly recommend it.

Once your seitan cools to room temperature, use the tin foil it was cooked in to refrigerate overnight (or place it into an airtight container).

It’s best to slice the seitan with a serrated knife, especially if you want thin slices.

Top view of an oval cast iron pan filled with a log of roast seitan that is half slices and surrounded by roast potatoes with thyme garnish. Top right corner of image shows a plate with a row of seitan topped with gravy next to roast potato and broccoli. Two large wood forks between the cast iron pan and the plate.

How to Create a Balanced Vegan Meal with Seitan

You can serve this seitan however you would serve meat. It’s great in a “roast” meal alongside potatoes and veggies. It also makes a great sandwich or wrap and can be tossed into salad or pasta dishes.

I consider a balanced meal one that contains plant-based protein, carbohydrates, healthy fats and plenty of veggies (or fruits).

This seitan recipe is incredibly high in protein due to the vital wheat gluten. It also has some carbohydrates from the beans and some healthy fats from the olive oil.

This means all you need is to add some veggies and you’ll have a complete meal.

However, I typically view seitan as just a source of protein and add additional sources of carbohydrates (ex. potatoes or bread) to the meal. I’ll usually add more healthy fats too, depending on what I serve the seitan with.

Top view of one full plate and one half-cropped plate each with half the plate covered with a row of sliced seitan with gravy on it and the other half of the plate covered with roast potatoes and broccoli. Wood forks and fresh thyme decorate image.

Easy Seitan Variations

There are countless ways to make seitan. If you keep the ratio of dry to liquid ingredients on track, you can easily make this recipe taste however you like.

I highly recommend testing different flavor combinations to create new seitan varieties!

If you’re looking for more seitan recipes, here’s some of my favorites:

  • Vegan ham with pineapple glaze (glaze optional)
  • Vegan gyros (served with tzatziki sauce)
  • Vegan donair (with sweet sauce)
  • Vegan BBQ “ribs” (seitan with jackfruit that you can grill!)

If you’re hesitant to make seitan for the first time, I understand. I was too! However, I was so happy I gave it a try because it’s a staple recipe in my house now!

Top view of a long wood board with a half-sliced log of seitan on it, garnished with thyme.

How to Store Leftover Vegan Meat

Let the seitan cool for about an hour at room temperature before refrigerating. Store it in the tin foil you cooked it in, or an airtight container.

Seitan should last in your fridge for up to a week. This makes it a great recipe for meal prep! I’ve yet to test how this (or any other) seitan recipe freezes because we eat it all before I remember to freeze some! However, it lasts quite well in the fridge. If you’re concerned about making a large amount, just cut the recipe in half.

Top view of an oval cast iron pan filled with a log of roast seitan that is half slices and surrounded by roast potatoes with thyme garnish. Top right corner of image shows a plate with a row of seitan topped with gravy next to roast potato and broccoli. Two large wood forks between the cast iron pan and the plate.

If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!

Square cropped close up of the front view of two rows of sliced seitan with a half-log of roast seitan behind it, sitting on a cast iron pan. Edges of pan filled with roast potatoes and garnished with thyme.

Easy Vegan Seitan "Meat" Recipe

Learn how to make vegan meat with this easy seitan recipe! Not only is it incredibly simple, but it’s also packed with flavor and super customizable.
4.88 from 16 votes. Leave a review!
Prevent screen going dark
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 1 hr 20 mins
Total Time 1 hr 40 mins
Servings 8 servings
Calories 246 kcal
Cuisine Vegan

Equipment

  • Food processor
  • Large mixing bowl
  • Whisk
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Cutting board
  • Knife
  • Tin foil
  • Baking tray

Ingredients
  

Dry Ingredients

  • 2 cups gluten flour
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground sage
  • 1 teaspoon Herbamare seasoning*
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon celery seed
  • ½ teaspoon dry oregano
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper , or to taste

Wet Ingredients

  • 2 cups baked beans in tomato sauce (400mL / 14 oz can)
  • ⅔ cup onion , finely chopped
  • ⅓ cup water , hot
  • 1 cube vegetable bouillon
  • ¼ cup olive oil (or other liquid oil of your choice)
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce , low sodium
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Prevent screen going dark

Instructions

Step 1: Whisk Dry Ingredients

  • In a large mixing bowl, add the gluten flour along with all the dry spices.
    2 cups gluten flour, 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder, 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ground sage, 1 teaspoon Herbamare seasoning*, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground turmeric, ½ teaspoon celery seed, ½ teaspoon dry oregano, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • Whisk the dry ingredients until well combined.

Step 2: Prep Wet Ingredients

  • Add a full can of baked beans, along with all its liquid, to a food processor.
    2 cups baked beans in tomato sauce
  • Add onion to the food processor as well. I like to pre-dice the onion to ensure there are no large pieces in the final mixture.
    ⅔ cup onion
  • Pulse the beans and onion a few times.
  • Then, mix a bouillon cube with ⅓ cup of hot water. Mash the cube to dissolve, then add this mixture to your food processor.
    1 cube vegetable bouillon, ⅓ cup water
  • Add olive oil, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar to the food processor then pulse a few times, until everything is well combined.
    ¼ cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • Blend this mixture until completely smooth or leave some texture (but it should be almost completely smooth).

Step 3: Form Seitan

  • Add your blended liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients in the large mixing bowl. Stir together until a ball of dough forms and you can no longer stir.
  • At this point, switch to using your hands and knead the dough together until there’s no dry flour remaining. Knead for about another minute.
  • Cut the dough in half.
  • Prepare 4 pieces of tin foil, each about a foot long.
  • Place one half of the seitan dough onto a piece of tin foil and shape into a log. Wrap the seitan log tightly in tin foil.
  • Place the open edge of your first tin foil sheet down onto a second sheet and wrap the log tightly again. Place this open edge of tin foil down onto the baking tray.
  • Repeat the shaping and wrapping process for the other half of the seitan dough.

Step 4: Bake, Cool and Serve

  • Bake the seitan in an oven preheated to 350 °F for 1 hour and 20 minutes. If possible, flip the seitan logs halfway through cooking.
  • Once out of your oven, let the seitan cool until you can unwrap it without burning yourself on the tin foil.
  • Cool on a cutting board or wire cooling rack.
  • Serve the seitan hot from your oven (softer texture) or let the seitan cool for at least an hour (firmer texture). The seitan will be most firm and chewy if you can chill it in a fridge overnight.
  • Slicing with a serrated knife is very helpful, especially if you want thin slices.

Video

Notes

*If you don’t have Herbamare seasoning, leave it out or replace 1 teaspoon of Herbamare with ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon herb blend of your choice.
Accuracy of nutrition information cannot be guaranteed (certain ingredients may not have all nutrients listed in the database); amounts may vary (and will vary depending on brands of ingredients used); all nutrition fact values rounded to the nearest whole number.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 Serving (⅛ of recipe)Calories: 246 kcalCarbohydrates: 18 gProtein: 28 gFat: 8 gSaturated Fat: 1 gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 5 gSodium: 1035 mgPotassium: 160 mgFiber: 4 gSugar: 3 gVitamin A: 210 IUVitamin C: 1 mgCalcium: 61 mgIron: 3 mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Vegan Meat Recipes

Like this recipe? You should also try:

  • Close crop of seitan turkey roast with slices cut on wood serving board.
    Seitan Turkey Recipe (Vegan Turkey Roast)
  • Square cropped close up of a small pulled jackfruit sandwich with creamy coleslaw on it, topped with a pickle.
    Vegan Pulled Pork Recipe (BBQ Jackfruit)
  • Square cropped image of a close up of seitan ham roast topped with pineapple glaze on a small wood board with a few slices resting in front of the loaf with a spoonful of extra glaze.
    Vegan Ham Recipe (Seitan with Pineapple Glaze)
  • Square cropped image of three slices of lentil loaf that has a rough texture with flecks of lentils and vegetables throughout, sitting on a plate with roast potatoes topped with green onion sitting to the back of the plate.
    Vegan Lentil Loaf Recipe (Walnut and Mushroom)

About Nicole Stevens

Nicole is a vegan Registered Dietitian (RD) and founder of Lettuce Veg Out.

She helps people thrive on a vegan diet with balanced recipes and easy-to-understand nutrition science.


Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kim

    April 25, 2022 at 8:01 pm

    Hello, Chef,
    I have tried many seitans but to my taste buds, this is the best one. Very very good. I am wanting a seitan that tastes similar to corned beef. Any suggestions or recipe?

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      April 26, 2022 at 7:25 am

      Hi Kim! Thank you so much for this comment, I'm happy you enjoyed the recipe. I haven't tried making vegan corned beef before so unfortunately don't have any recommendations.

      Reply
    • Jacqui

      December 11, 2022 at 12:42 am

      Thank you for the recipe - my first time making seitan. I'm not sure if it's just my palate, but I found this overly salty. I'd leave out the sale next time as the stock and soy sauce plus salt were just too much. Just a warning for anyone else that doesn't like things too salty.

      Reply
      • Nicole

        December 12, 2022 at 8:30 am

        Sorry you found this too salty but thanks for the feedback. I've never found it too salty but everyone has different taste preferences and this may be helpful for others to know before they make it 🙂

        Reply
  2. Tacy

    March 30, 2021 at 3:42 pm

    This is the best tasting and best textured seitan I’ve ever made. Thank you so much. Now what recipes do you suggest I use it in?

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      March 31, 2021 at 8:43 am

      Thank you so much! I typically make this for a "meat and potato" type meal with a side of veg but you can use it however you like. It's great chopped up in pasta dishes or on pizza, in a wrap with salad greens and dressing; literally however you'd use "meat"!

      Reply
  3. Neale Aslett

    December 27, 2020 at 10:49 am

    I made this yesterday (doubled the quantity) and used vegan refried beans as I do not have a food processor ans lots of whole garlic cloves and mixed up the spice components a little. I baked for an extra 10 minutes (just because) & after a day in the fridge it is amazingly firm and flavourful and is the tastiest seitan I have made.

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      December 27, 2020 at 1:41 pm

      Refried beans is such a great idea!! So happy you enjoyed it 🙂

      Reply
  4. Alistair Brown

    October 26, 2020 at 9:42 am

    Hi just made this, and put in oven, smells good even b4 I put it in oven can't wait to taste it! Thank you for the recipe, I am not vegan yet but heading that way! Can't stomach meat any more!

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      October 26, 2020 at 4:34 pm

      So glad you're happy with it so far! And enjoy the journey towards veganism 🙂

      Reply
      • Alistair Brown

        November 04, 2020 at 4:33 pm

        Thank you was tasty and have made Turkey seitan as well glad I found you and seitan!

        Reply
  5. Stephanie

    September 13, 2020 at 9:42 pm

    How long can seitan be stored in fridge? Can it be frozen?

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      September 14, 2020 at 7:16 am

      Hi Stephanie! This seitan can be stored in the fridge for at least 5 days, up to 7 should be fine. I haven't tried freezing any of my seitan recipes yet so unfortunately can't say (but that's definitely something I need to test out)! If you want to test it out, maybe try freezing/ thawing out one slice?

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Nicole! As a vegan Registered Dietitian, I empower vegans to live a balanced life and gain confidence in the kitchen.

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