Saturday, May 22, 2010

the king of all things vegetarian is here!

So I kept telling Norman I'd post a recipe up here but a few trivial things (work, beer, sleep) have been keeping me busy. But after two cups of coffee on a warm Saturday morning, I think I'm ready to show you what real (vegetarian!) cooking looks like. Put on The Smiths and get psyched!

This recipe for Tomato and Basil Sausages (adapted from a recipe at Everyday Dish TV) started my obsession with seitan and trying to create vegetarian and vegan friendly foods that look and taste like meat. Even my omnivorous friends and family enjoy this recipe, which means I must be doing something right. This is a great and easy introduction to seitan and it's versatility!

Meatless Tomato and Basil Sausages (makes about 8 sausage links)

Dry Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten (available at many supermarkets, usually in the health/organic food aisle, also available at most natural and health food stores)
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes (this one is a bit harder to find, but i've had the most luck at most health and natural food stores like Wholefoods)
1/4 cup chickpea flour
2 tbsp granulated onion
1 to 2 tbsp fennel seeds
2 tsp ground pepper
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried chili flakes (optional)
1 tsp ground smoked paprika (optional)
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups cool water
2 tbsp vegetable stock (i always use a homemade bouillon, i'll post that recipe at a later date)
6 to 8 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
handful of finely chopped fresh basil
1/8-1/4 cup of sundried tomatoes, chopped as small as you can get them (i use my food processor for this part)

Other Materials:
Large steamer pot
Aluminum foil




1. While you're following the steps below, put your steamer pot on the stove, fill it about half way with water and bring it to a boil
2. Put all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix together well with a fork.
3. Whisk together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl then slowly pour it into the dry ingredients, mixing it all together with a fork. It will look like a wet dough at this point, which is exactly what you want.
4. Take a measuring cup and scoop 1/2 cup of the dough mixture onto a 12" piece of aluminum foil. Shape the dough into a sausage link and tightly roll it up in the aluminum foil, making sure to twist both ends.
5. Place the sausages in your steaming tray, lid on, and let them steam for 30 minutes.
6. Take the sausages out, place them on the counter and let them cool. Unwrap them and let them sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

After all that waiting, cook the sausages up like you would with any other type of sausage (I recommend grilled or pan fried) and add it to your favorite dish! I'll be adding lots of faux-meat recipes in the future and feel free to ask me any questions you may have. Until next time...

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