Description
This Seitan Chicken Recipe is quick and easy to make and PACKED with plant-based protein and flavor in just 30 minutes!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 15 ounce Can Cannellini Beans (Drained and Rinsed) (see Note 1)
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Optional but Recommended (see Note 2)
- 3/4 to 1 cup Vegan Chicken Broth or Vegetable Broth (I used 7/8 cup)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
- 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast (see Note 5)
- 300 grams (or About 2 Cups) Vital Wheat Gluten (see Note 6)
Instructions
- Special Equipment Note: You need either a blender or food processor to make this recipe. I'll give you instructions for both; they're slightly different. Depending on the strength and size of your food processor, you may need to use the blender method (you can still use the food processor, it just changes when you add the vital wheat gluten). I did actually use the blender in this recipe (as opposed to my Seitan Burger recipe) to show you how it's done. If you don't have either of these, you'll have to forego the beans (or you can mash them by hand with a fork or potato masher if you don't mind the workout).
- Blend: In your blender or food processor, blend together everything except the vital wheat gluten. Blend .until everything is very smooth
- Food Processor Method: Add the dry ingredients (spices, nutritional yeast, and vital wheat gluten) into the food processor with the blended ingredients and process just for about 30 seconds to a minute until the dough comes together. This saves a bit of time and effort but isn't as accessible.
- Blender Method: Add the vital wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, and spices to a large mixing bowl and whisk them together. Then simply scrape the contents of the blender into the bowl (I like to use a blender spatula to get as much of it as possible). Mix with a strong spatula or wooden spoon (or just get in there with clean hands). You don't want to knead the seitan dough, just mix it together so all the vital wheat gluten is incorporated. This step isn't that bad, I often do it this way with just my blender and a large bowl.
- Seitan Troubleshooting: You want a firm dough that's lightly tacky but not wet. If the seitan is too wet, you can add a tablespoon or two of vital wheat gluten and mix it in. If it's too dry and crumbly and won't come together, add a tablespoon of water or broth and work it in a bit more.
- Divide into Equal Portions: I like to use a food scale for this step too as it helps me make sure each cutlet is about the same size and also the same macros... If one cutlet is smaller than the others, it will have less protein. If that matters to you, I recommend getting a cheap food scale. Otherwise, simply divide the dough into 8 equal portions to make a typical size cutlet. This recipe can also be used to make vegan chicken nuggets (just cut into small pieces... I like to boil them in a flavorful broth and then bake, as described in my Seitan Chicken Nuggets recipe)!
- Mold the Cutlets: Working them in between your hands and fingers, mold each portion into a relatively even thickness piece, I like to aim for a chicken breast type shape but obviously the shape doesn't really matter! Just go for a relatively even thickness so that it cooks evenly.
- Optional 30 Minute Rest: I have made a lot of seitan and have learned that letting your seitan rest for 30 minutes (covered to keep it from drying out) really helps the gluten develop more and creates a much better meaty texture and tender seitan chicken. I like to simply place the "raw" seitan on a plate and cover with a clean tea towel or cloth napkin to keep the air from drying it out. Once the seitan has rested 30 minutes, it is ready for the initial cook (and the most important one).
- Steam the Seitan: Wrap your seitan cutlets in parchment paper or aluminum foil. Wrap them up like a package and place in a steamer pot with the edge of the wrapper facing down. You can use a steamer pot, layered bamboo steamer baskets, or even just a steamer basket in a pot. Just make sure you bring a few inches of water to a boil first. Cover and steam for 20 minutes. While you can alternatively bake these, I find that the best results come from steaming the seitan (baking seems to make them more tough and less "juicy."
- Note if You're Prepping in Advance: If you're not going to eat/serve these yet, stop here (I recommend doing the final cook on only the amount you plan to eat). Let the seitan cool and store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days (or you can freeze in a freezer safe airtight container for up to 6 months). Then proceed with the next step.
- Final Cook: The last step is to cook your seitan chicken in a skillet (you can also microwave them, but I don't recommend air frying as it can dry them out). I recommend adding a little spray oil or a tablespoon or two of regular oil and cook the seitan for a couple minutes on each side over medium high heat until lightly browned (if they aren't browning as evenly as you'd like you can compress them lightly with your cooking spatula). Don't overcook or they will get tough. Depending on the size of your pan, you may want to cook only a few at a time.
- Serve: Serve up the final product with a veggie and a starch for a delicious and balanced meal. Check out my serving suggestions in the article above or serve alongside anything you like!
- Storage and Reheating: Refrigerate leftover cutlets in an airtight container for up to 5 days or you can freeze in a freezer bag for up to 6 months. When reheating, thaw if frozen and either cook in a pan or you can microwave them. I don't recommend an air fryer as this will dry them out.
Notes
- Note 1: Really any beans would work (lupini beans will actually give you even more protein), but any canned white bean (such as Great Northern beans or white navy beans) give it a more authentic color. Chickpeas would be fine too. I like to blend beans into my seitan recipes because it makes the seitan more tender, more robust, and it actually turns it into a complete protein.
- Note 2: This is part of what makes our seitan chicken so juicy! It also gives the cutlets a more tender texture. This amount gets split between 8 servings, so these fantastic meat replacements remain relatively low fat.
- Note 3: To achieve the "real chicken" flavor of this vegan chicken recipe, I used Better Than Bouillon No Chicken Broth Base for the liquid. It’s delicious and chicken-flavored but vegan. I buy mine online; that’s the only place I can personally find this flavor. You can also use carton vegan chicken broth. If you live near a specialty store or something like a Whole Foods, you could probably find either of those options there.
- Note 4: With all the flavor in the broth, all we really need to season this recipe is a little poultry seasoning (this is just a seasoning blend typically used on chicken and turkey, and the seasoning itself is vegan!) and a little salt. (Note that if you end up using vegetable broth, you may want to add a bit more salt as well as some garlic powder and onion powder for more flavor).
- Note 5: Nutritional yeast adds a lot of flavor to our seitan chicken recipe. It also positively affects the texture of the seitan. I've learned over the years that seitan has a better, more meaty, more tender texture when you add a bit of nutritional yeast to the recipe. I don't recommend skipping this ingredient as it adds a lot to the recipe, but don't worry as it's not a dominant (or even noticeable) flavor at all.
- Note 6: This is wheat that’s been stripped down to the proteins. It’s essentially a flour that we’ll mix into the blended mixture to make a “seitan dough” so we can make our seitan chicken. There is no substitution for this ingredient. If you cannot have wheat or you don't have this ingredient, you cannot make this recipe, sorry!
- Note 7: I do highly recommend getting an inexpensive food scale and weighing your vital wheat gluten (and flour whenever you're baking and want accuracy). Every time we dig our measuring cup into a bag of flour, we could be getting a different amount of flour and your recipe might need some alterations to work the way it was intended. At least in the case of seitan, if you have a crumbly dough you can add a little moisture, or if it's too wet you can add a little more vital wheat gluten. But honestly, it's best just to weigh your flours to make sure it turns out great!
- Note 8: This is a newer (and we believe better) version of this recipe originally published in February 2021. On the rare occasion that we change one of our recipes, we like to provide the old version in case anyone prefers the older version. Here are the ingredients for the older version of the recipe: 1 ½ cups chickpeas/garbanzo beans (or a 15 oz can) drained and rinsed, ¾ cup vegan chicken broth, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, ½ tsp poultry seasoning, and 2 ¼ cups vital wheat gluten.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner
- Method: Stove Top, Blender
- Cuisine: American, Meatless