New to Making Sietan?

Then you’ve come to the right place! Though the range of possibilities from cooking methods, to flavorings, and even making your own gluten from scratch can seem daunting, there is just one main thing you need to know. Vital wheat gluten (in powder form) + any liquid in the form of broths, pureed beans, tofu, soup or even leftovers from the fridge can yield amazing results. If you’re ready to dive right in, jump down to the easy seitan recipes. If you’d like to learn more, read on!

Golden Ratio?

Unfortunately there is no “exact” ratio of wet ingredients to vital wheat gluten, but if you’ve had any experience working with dough of any kind, you’ll have a good idea of where to start. For some recipes I like the dough to have a wetter consistency – most sausages and and even some beefy dishes, while some recipes you’ll want a slightly more solid dough, like when trying to recreate chicken.

Cooking Method

For beginners, I recommend steaming as the most fool-proof way to achieve great texture. This can be done with a simple pot of water on the stove and some sort of steam basket, or even balls of foil to keep your “meat” out of the water. If you have an Instant Pot or similar device, you can use that to steam, too. How long it takes will depend on how large your dough is. Sausage sizes usually take about 40-45 minutes, while a larger “roast” size will take closer to 2 hours. Just make sure you don’t run out of water!

When steaming your “meat,” you’ll want to wrap it fairly tight. I’d recommend heavy-duty aluminum foil or a couple layers of the thin stuff. If you don’t want foil to touch your dough, you can add a sheet of parchment paper in between. If you don’t want to waste foil, try parchment paper and cheesecloth/muslin, and tie it tight with string. You can also use straight cheesecloth/muslin, but I’d recommend adding a layer of herbs or some kind of coating so the cheesecloth doesn’t stick.

After your seitan is done steaming, it’s usually preferable to let it cool to firm up a bit (many recipes recommend overnight in the fridge), but not necessary. Then you can “finish” it however you want, like marinading and then sautéing, baking, grilling, etc.

So… Let’s Get Started!

Here’s a collection of some of the most widely recommended recipes to help you get cookin!

If you’ve worked with any of these recipes, please share your experience in the comments below to help other beginners. And if you have an easy recipe you’d like to share, please head to the Submit a Recipe page.