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This vegan, cajun, deli-style turkey gets simmered in a slow cooker in a delicious broth, then roasted to develop the crust. The chicken-style bouillon and extra swirls of cajun seasoning throughout really pack in the flavor!
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare your dough ball for washing. New to washing flour? Check out the video or follow steps 1-7 here. For this turkey you should wash to the cloudy/hazy stage.
Save that starch to make bacon and Swiss cheese for an amazing sandwich combo!
While your dough ball is resting in water, prepare your simmering liquid.
*I love this broth and use it to cook most of my poultry-style dishes. You can save it after cooking and use it in other seitan dishes. It freezes well, too! Alternatively you can use store-bought chicken-stlye bouillon or vegetable broth and add the nutritional yeast, sage, thyme and rosemary. Whichever you choose, put the broth ingredients into your slow cooker and get it heating up. A 6 qt Instant Pot on the slow cooker "normal" setting works great, too.
IMPORTANT: My broth stayed at a steady temperature of about 190F (85C). If cooking on the stove make sure it stays below a simmer after adding in the seitan. You want it to be barely bubbling or you could wind up with spongey results.
Once your gluten has drained for at least 20 minutes after washing, add it to a blender (working in batches if necessary) with 2T of chickun bouillon. Blend until those ingredients are evenly incorporated.
After processing, let your gluten rest about another 30 minutes on the counter or until the strands have developed enough so you can stretch it without breaking. Stretch the dough into a long rope and coat it in the 2T of cajun seasoning, then tie it in a few knots. Wrap the dough in cheesecloth/muslin so it stays firm and can't expand very much, but also takes on the flavor of the broth.
Add your dough to the preheated broth and let it slowly cook for about 1 1/2-2 hours. No need to flip it if it's covered in liquid. When it's done, let it come to room temperature and strain the broth if necessary. I like to put the seitan back into the strained broth and let it rest in the fridge like this overnight.
TIP: Some people have said their dough take longer to cook than 2 hours. It should feel a little tough/stiff and have expanded into a firm ball.
The next day pull it out of the broth and pat it dry. Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat the skin with about half of the cajun crust ingredients. I like to brush on the oil and soy sauce/aminos, then sprinkle with cajun seasoning. Cook like this for about 10-15 minutes, flip, and repeat. Continue coating like this until the outside has browned and your desired amount of seasoning has built up into a crust. As it cools it will firm up again for easier slicing.
Don't forget! You can make the ultimate sandwich combo with bacon and Swiss cheese!
More Turkee & Deli-Style Recipes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare your dough ball for washing. New to washing flour? Check out the video or follow steps 1-7 here. For this turkey you should wash to the cloudy/hazy stage.
Save that starch to make bacon and Swiss cheese for an amazing sandwich combo!
While your dough ball is resting in water, prepare your simmering liquid.
*I love this broth and use it to cook most of my poultry-style dishes. You can save it after cooking and use it in other seitan dishes. It freezes well, too! Alternatively you can use store-bought chicken-stlye bouillon or vegetable broth and add the nutritional yeast, sage, thyme and rosemary. Whichever you choose, put the broth ingredients into your slow cooker and get it heating up. A 6 qt Instant Pot on the slow cooker "normal" setting works great, too.
IMPORTANT: My broth stayed at a steady temperature of about 190F (85C). If cooking on the stove make sure it stays below a simmer after adding in the seitan. You want it to be barely bubbling or you could wind up with spongey results.
Once your gluten has drained for at least 20 minutes after washing, add it to a blender (working in batches if necessary) with 2T of chickun bouillon. Blend until those ingredients are evenly incorporated.
After processing, let your gluten rest about another 30 minutes on the counter or until the strands have developed enough so you can stretch it without breaking. Stretch the dough into a long rope and coat it in the 2T of cajun seasoning, then tie it in a few knots. Wrap the dough in cheesecloth/muslin so it stays firm and can't expand very much, but also takes on the flavor of the broth.
Add your dough to the preheated broth and let it slowly cook for about 1 1/2-2 hours. No need to flip it if it's covered in liquid. When it's done, let it come to room temperature and strain the broth if necessary. I like to put the seitan back into the strained broth and let it rest in the fridge like this overnight.
TIP: Some people have said their dough take longer to cook than 2 hours. It should feel a little tough/stiff and have expanded into a firm ball.
The next day pull it out of the broth and pat it dry. Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat the skin with about half of the cajun crust ingredients. I like to brush on the oil and soy sauce/aminos, then sprinkle with cajun seasoning. Cook like this for about 10-15 minutes, flip, and repeat. Continue coating like this until the outside has browned and your desired amount of seasoning has built up into a crust. As it cools it will firm up again for easier slicing.
Don't forget! You can make the ultimate sandwich combo with bacon and Swiss cheese!
About the Author: Jen
Hi. Getting ready to try this but I’m confused about one thing. The finished product in the photos looks like a ball/loaf — which makes sense for slicing like deli meat — but the instructions say “Stretch the dough into a long rope and coat it in the 2T of cajun seasoning, then tie it in a few knots.”
So, an amorphous tangle of knots and not a boule? Or will it morph into a ball shape inside of the cheesecloth during the cooking process?
(BTW, so happy to have found this website.)
Yes, as you wrap it in the cheesecloth and tie it tight, the whole thing will turn into more of a ball shape. Then as it cooks, it will expand a bit (so make sure it’s tight so it stays firm) which will fill in all the knots into a smooth, round shape.
Happy to hear you’re enjoying the site and I hope you enjoy this recipe, too! 🙂
Thanks for the previous reply. Another question: if one wanted to use powdered Vital Wheat Gluten instead of doing the WTF process (e.g. for time reasons, or wanting to have a clear idea of what the carb count is) how many cups of VWG do you estimate one would use for this recipe? I know the answer varies depending on the protein content of the flour, so assume the same King Arthur Bread flour with 12.7% protein as in the linked video.
This recipe isn’t going to produce the same result with VWG and water plus the spices. I would recommend trying a different turkey recipe that is made for use with VWG. That said, to sort of answer your question, this recipe yields about 1lb/450g of deli “meat,” so probably similar to a recipe that uses 2 cups of VWG or a little less than that with the addition of tofu or other things. Hope that helps!
Thanks! Just had some (other recipe) seitan for lunch. Enjoying this new journey.
Wow how have I never seen this recipe?? Every time I find one of your recipes I get inspired to get to work! Definitely trying this one! Thanks!
Thank you and hope you enjoy it! 😊
hi! the recipe looks very good. I would like to know how long it took you to complete step 6 for the result in the picture? just so i can get an indication for the time i’ll spent on that step!
It takes about 30-45 minutes of total cook time for me to get it well-browned and crusted, though ovens vary. You can also put it under the broiler for just a couple of minutes to crisp a little more if you like, but the seasoning might blacken some if that’s a concern.