vegan steak by bish, bash, bosh

  • 1 1/2 c. vital wheat gluten
  • 2/3 c. pre-cooked puy lentils
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1 tbsp chilli powder
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1⁄2 tsp smoked salt
  • 1⁄2 tsp black pepper
  • 90ml water
  • a splash of oil
  • 150g chips per person, to serve

FOR THE MARINADE

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup

CAFÉ DE PARIS SECRET SAUCE

  • 2 large shallots
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 20g fresh tarragon
  • 1 tsp capers
  • 11⁄2 tbsp olive oil
  • 500ml vegetable stock
  • 60ml white wine
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp salt

METHOD

  1. 1.STEAK METHOD 
     Food processor | Clean work surface | Large saucepan of salted water on a high heat | Large freezer bag | Sauté pan 
     First make the steak | Add all the ingredients, apart from the water and oil, to the food processor and pulse to combine | Add the water and blitz, scraping down the sides as needed | Tip the mixture on to a clean work surface, knead for a minute or two then bring it together into a tight ball
     Roll the mixture into a rough oblong shape and cut into 4 even slices | Flatten each slice with your hand so they’re roughly 1cm thick and steak- shaped (you can also use a rolling pin here) | For a dryer texture press the steak as you would tofu – wrapping it in kitchen paper and placing a weight on top of it for 20 minutes, which will give a firmer texture
     Lower the steaks into the pan of boiling salted water and simmer for 25 minutes | Take the steaks out of the pan, drain and leave to cool for 5 minutes
     Put the ingredients for the marinade into a large freezer bag | Put the steaks in the bag and roll them around in the marinade so they are well coated | Leave to marinate for 20 minutes | While the steaks are marinating, make the Café de Paris Secret Sauce (see opposite)
     
     When you’re ready to cook the steaks place a sauté pan over a medium-high heat | Add a splash of oil and let it get hot | Add the steaks and pour over any remaining marinade | Cook for 2–3 minutes on each side, basting the steaks with the oil in the pan as they cook | Remove when both sides are well browned, but the steak is still tender | Leave to rest for a couple of minutes before serving with chips and Secret Sauce poured over in true Café de Paris style
  2. 2.CAFÉ DE PARIS SECRET SAUCE METHOD 
     Saucepan | Liquidiser Prep the ingredients | Peel and thinly slice the shallots | Peel and finely 
     chop the garlic | Pick the tarragon leaves, discard the stems, then finely chop | Finely chop the capers 
     Put the saucepan over a medium heat | Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil| Add the garlic and shallots and cook for 4–5 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally | Add the vegetable stock and simmer for 3–4 minutes | Add all the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce has reduced a little and become thicker
     Take the pan off the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature 
     
     Pour the sauce into the liquidiser and blend until smooth | Pour back into the pan and bring to a simmer | Stir through the remaining 1⁄2 tablespoon olive oil before serving

Chicken Souvlaki from recipetineats.com


1.5 lb seitan cut into 1″/2.5cm pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
¼ cup lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp dried oregano
½ – ¾ tsp salt
Black pepper

To Cook / Serve

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Flatbreads / wraps / pita bread
  • Lettuce
  • Tomato slices
  • Place chicken and Marinade into a bowl and set aside to marinate for at least 3 hours to overnight.
  • Thread chicken onto 8 skewers.
  • Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat (or BBQ). Cook skewers for 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.
  • Serve Chicken Souvlaki with tzatziki, flatbreads (make your own!), lettuce and tomato slices.

Un-Chicken Laksa Recipe from food republic

 

chickenlaksaA tart, spicy Southeast Asian chicken noodle soup

Leave it to West Coast guide to the good life, Sunset Magazine, to throw together a chicken laksa soup recipe so good we’d eat it in Southern California all summer.

The spicy Malaysian laksa soup may have a long list of ingredients, but it’s super easy. Malaysian kitchens (in Southeast Asia, in Southern California, and elsewhere) weave Chinese, Indian and Malay culinary strands into a complex cuisine.

2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
4 cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground tumeric
5 to 8 dried arbol chiles, stemmed
2 lemongrass stalks
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 lb. seitan, cubed
1 teaspoon shrimp paste*
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
1 can (13.5 oz.) coconut milk
1 quart veggie broth
2 teaspoons sugar
3 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cinnamon stick
8 ounces mung beans, rinsed
8 ounces wide rice noodles
1/3 cup fresh mint leaves, torn into smaller pieces
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves, torn
lime wedges
Sambal oelek chili paste

For the sambal oelek chili paste:

  1. Grind coriander, peppercorns, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cloves, turmeric and chiles coarsely in a spice grinder; set aside. Peel tough outer layers from lemongrass, then mash core with a meat mallet or small, heavy frying pan.

For the laksa:

  1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add seitan, shrimp paste, shallots, and reserved ground spices and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 2 minutes.
  2. Pour in coconut milk, broth, sugar, and salt; add cinnamon stick and lemongrass. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, 20 minutes.
  3. Boil bean sprouts in a large pot of boiling water until softened, 2 minutes. Transfer sprouts to a bowl. Add noodles to pot and cook until firm, 4 minutes. Drain; rinse well.
  4. Divide sprouts and noodles among bowls. Ladle in soup (remove cinnamon and lemongrass) and top with mint and cilantro. Serve with limes and sambal. Servings: 5

*Find shrimp paste in the Asian-foods aisle of a well-stocked grocery store or at an Asian market.

un-chicken simmering broth — simply heavenly!

1.2 c. chopped onion
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1/3 c nutritional yeast
1 tsp oil
2 tsp fish sauce and 1 tsp worchestershire sauce( this a substitute for 4.5 tsp MSG which I do not use ( omit is you want this to be vegan)
garlic and parsley opitional
2 c water

combine all ingredients and simmer before adding seitan

chicken-style seitan — the happy herbivore

1/2 c. wheat gluten
1.5 tsp no-chicken broth powder
2c. un-chicken simmering broth

In a mixing bowl, combine vital wheat gluten, no-chicken broth powder, and a 1/2 c. warm water, stirring until a dough forms.

Turn dough (seitan) out onto a clean surface and knead for 1 min. Cut dough into strips, breasts or any other shape, being mindful that it will more than double in size during cooking.

Bring simmering liquid to a boil add seitan, then reduce heat to low and simmer with lid slightly ajar for 50 min. to 1 hour, stirring every 10 – 15 min. Save any excess liquid.

You can stop here if making spedies.

if you are using the seitan as cutlets, preheat oven to 350 Grease a large cookie sheet, do not let the pieces touch.

Bake for 20-30 min, until a golden skin forms.

Flip over halfway through cooking time.

To make gravy, add up to 1 c. non- dairy milk to the leftover cooking liquid then heat over medium heat, adding salt and pepper.

Seitan Scaloppine with Lemon-Olive Sauce

I used Imagine Foods’ No-Chicken Broth to mimic the taste of chicken, but any vegetable broth may be used.

1 cup vital wheat gluten
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon basil
3/4 cup Imagine No-Chicken Broth (or other vegetable broth)
2 tablespoons tahini or cashew butter

1 tablespoon unbleached flour
1 lemon, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed slightly
10 green olives, pitted and sliced
1 1/4 cups No-Chicken Broth
2-3 tablespoons white wine or vermouth
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley
salt and pepper
additional vegetable broth, as necessary

Tear off 4 pieces of aluminum foil about 10 inches long. (See tips below for a foil-free way of making the scaloppine). Begin heating water in a steamer.

In a large bowl, mix the vital wheat gluten with the nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt, and basil. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the broth and tahini (or cashew butter). Stir the wet mixture into the dry until well blended. Knead gently 10 times. Quickly divide dough into 4 equal pieces.

Take a piece of dough and shape and flatten it into a thin oval cutlet. Place it on a sheet of foil, a little higher than center. Fold the bottom of the foil over to meet the top, and then fold the two edges over about 1/2 inch to form a seam. Continue folding the foil by half inches until it reaches just above the cutlet. Flatten the cutlet down a little more, and then fold the left and right edges in the same way until the packet is snug around the cutlet. Repeat with all pieces of dough.

Place the packets flat into the steamer and cover. Steam for 25 minutes. Keep packets sealed until you’re ready to use them.

Spray a non-stick skillet (or some other non-iron skillet) with olive oil. Begin heating it as you prepare a plate containing the flour sprinkled with a little salt and pepper. Once the skillet is hot, unwrap each cutlet and lightly dredge each side in the flour and then place in the skillet. Cook until brown and then turn over and brown other side. Remove to a plate.

(If you’d rather not use any oil at all, skip the flouring of the cutlets and just brown them alone. Your sauce may not thicken unless you add a little flour to it later.)

Add the garlic and lemon slices to the pan. Cook until the lemon slices have softened, 2-3 minutes, and then remove them from the pan, leaving the garlic. Add the olives, broth, wine, and lemon juice and cook on medium heat until the liquid starts to reduce. Remove the garlic, add salt and pepper to taste, and return the cutlets to the pan. Turn them over to coat with the sauce. Simmer briefly to warm them through, and if the sauce becomes too thick, add a little broth to thin. Stir in the parsley, and remove the cutlets to plates. Spoon some sauce over each cutlet and garnish with lemon slices.

Tips for Moister Cutlets:

I found two different tricks that resulted in a cutlet that was a little moister. Unfortunately, one of them requires an extra step, simmering the seitan in broth for a few minutes after it comes out of the steamer. If you’d like to do this, just put the cutlets in a skillet, add broth to about halfway over them, and simmer, turning, for 3-5 minutes. The cutlets will absorb a lot of the broth, so be ready to add more as necessary. Once they’re done, remove them from the broth and proceed with the recipe.

No extra step is required for the other technique; in fact, it’s simpler than the original recipe, though you will need a large steamer and plates that will fit inside it. Instead of wrapping the cutlets in foil, place them on the largest plate that will fit in your steamer. (If you have a double-level steamer, you can place two cutlets on smaller plates on each level.) Cover with an inverted plate of the same size, to keep water from dripping directly onto your cutlets. Steam for 25 minutes. Your cutlets will be a little lighter in color but will have a moister texture. This is my preferred way of making these cutlets!

Makes 4 servings.