Seitan [SAY-tahn] or “wheat meat” is a long-popular vegetarian meat substitute, known for its ability to look, feel and taste like the ingredient that it is replacing.

I am not a vegetarian pour le moment, but I do recognize healthy (if you’re not gluten-restricted, that is), tasty protein when it crosses my plate. Unfortunately, the cost of store-bought seitan is increasing as fast as the economy is tanking.  Let’s see if we can make our own with a little lot of help from Isa Moskowitz over at the Post Punk Kitchen.

Vital wheat gluten flour, nutritional yeast flakes (not active dry yeast), garlic, ponzu, soy or tamari, tomato paste, vegetable broth and lemon zest.

Combine the flour and yeast in a large bowl and the rest of the ingredients in another bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, combine then knead by hand 3-5 minutes. Dough will be spongy, but not very sticky.

Roll the dough out into a log, then cut into equal sections roughly 1/2 inch thick. Put the pieces into the still-cold broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 1 hour.

Let cool in the pot another hour before using. Stored in its broth, the recipe-ready seitan will keep in the fridge for 5 days or so.  Stay tuned for more tasty things made with our own seitan (why, here’s one example already, and hey, its darn good!).

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