Seitan is a high protein vegan meat alternative made using the protein of wheat—it is made by washing flour or blending pre-made vital wheat gluten, flavoring it, and cooking it until it resembles a certain type of meat (chicken, pork, beef, etc.).

Seitan is fairly healthy on its own, though it depends on what you do to it. If you fry it in a ton of oil, it's not as healthy as seitan that is steamed, baked, or otherwise cooked without oil. I make all my seitan with added beans for a full profile of amino acids. Seitan is one of the easiest ways to get protein as a vegan, and it's the most realistic meat replacement in plant-based takes on traditionally animal product-laden dishes.

What is vegan Philly cheesesteak made of?

While different sandwiches can be made of different things, this vegan Philly cheesesteak recipe includes homemade seitan beef, onions, peppers, mushrooms, homemade vegan cheese, and bread. Many vegan Philly cheesesteak recipes on the Internet use just mushrooms, which doesn't get you enough meatiness in my opinion, and also they're not high in protein. This particular vegan sandwich is loaded with nearly 50 grams of protein and it's super meaty yet still cruelty-free.

Vegan Philly Cheesesteak

Name: Vegan Philly Cheesesteak
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 Batch ZardyPlants Beef Seitan (see note 1 for substitutions); ¼ Cup Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce (see note 2); 2 Medium White Onions, sliced in ¼-inch thick half moons; 2 Green Bell Peppers, optional; 16 Ounces White Button Mushrooms, optional (or any mushrooms, or omit); 1 Batch 6-minute ZardyPlants Vegan Provolone (see note 3)

Description

This easy Vegan Philly Cheesesteak is incredibly delicious and makes a fun lunch or dinner to share—or not! Packed with a realistic but healthy homemade meat alternative, caramelized onions, and smothered in homemade melty, gooey vegan cheese in a hoagie roll, this is a truly satisfying vegan sandwich recipe.

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 Batch ZardyPlants Beef Seitan (see note 1 for substitutions)
1/4 cup Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce (see note 2)
2 Medium White Onions, sliced in 1/4-inch thick half moons
2 Green Bell Peppers, optional
16 ounces White Button Mushrooms, optional (or any mushrooms, or omit)
1 Batch 6-minute ZardyPlants Vegan Provolone (see note 3)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Tip on timing: If you are making my easy Instant Pot seitan recipe, I like to start the veggies and cheese while the pressure is releasing naturally from the pressure cooker (or if steaming on the stove top, during the last 10 minutes of the cooking process).
Start the onions: Start onions cooking in a large pan or large skillet over medium-high heat. You know the drill with me, I cook without oil so I just add a splash of water when things start to stick, just to deglaze the pan. If you use olive oil or vegetable oil or whatever, you can start with a splash of that.
Add peppers and mushrooms, if using: After the onions have become fairly translucent, add the peppers and mushrooms. Let those cook down for about 10 minutes and turn down the heat to medium. Add 2 tablespoons of reduced sodium soy sauce during the cooking process. There shouldn't be any need to add anymore liquid as the mushrooms release some of their own.
Rest the seitan: Whenever the seitan is done, it needs to be rested for 10 minutes. Just tastes better and juicier that way!
Finish the veggies: Continue to cook the veggies if you like, over medium low heat. Remove from heat when you're satisfied.
Cook the vegan cheese: If you haven't made my vegan provolone yet, you can quickly blend up the ingredients (remember to omit the onion powder and increase the garlic powder to a full tablespoon for more provolone flavor) and cook it for a few minutes in a small pot (this is what makes the cheese become stretchy). You could also just add slices or shreds of vegan cheese to the pan in step 9 and the filling will be ready when the cheese melts.
Toast the bread: Heat a grill pan or a large skillet over medium heat and add a bit of vegan butter. Once it melts, grill the cut sides of your bread until desired level of golden brown.
Carve the seitan: After the seitan has rested enough, slice it into quarter inch thick slices and cut those pieces in half lengthwise.
Flavor the seitan pieces: Throw all this delicious stuff in the pan with the veggies over medium heat and toss in the other 2 tablespoons of reduced sodium soy sauce or liquid aminos.
Assemble vegan Philly cheesesteak sandwiches: Add a couple scoops of seitan, sauteed onions + veg to your toasted roll, then add a healthy dollop of the cooked melted cheese or a couple slices of store bought if that's how you roll. Then add some more seitan and veggies. Finally, make your best attempt to close it up, grab a napkin, and enjoy!
Note on leftovers: Only make as many sandwiches as you'd like to eat—this will keep the bread from getting tough in the fridge. Once it's cooled to room temperature, refrigerate leftover seitan and veg separately from leftover cheese. Both will keep in a sealed container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Leftover seitan can be frozen for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe air-tight container.

Notes

Note 1: My homemade Instant Pot seitan (you can do it stovetop too) can be made in advance and is a fantastic meat substitute and really mimics the flavor and texture of the meat in a classic Philly cheesesteak. If you don't want to make your own seitan, I'd recommend at least 2 pounds of store prepared seitan. You could also try Impossible Meat, Beyond Steak, soy curls, tofu, or even just chickpeas, and all of these could be good options if you're gluten-free (you'll need a GF bun or a lettuce wrap too). Keep in mind though, those store bought dudes won't have the same flavoring, so add some low sodium soy sauce or vegan Worcestershire sauce, thyme, smoked paprika, like a quarter to a half teaspoon salt, nutritional yeast, and black pepper.
Note 2: You can use regular soy sauce (or aminos, but I don't recommend coconut aminos as they're too sweet) or just a little vegetable broth and a pinch of salt if you need to.
Note 3: Since it's so delicious AND quick to make, I highly recommend using my homemade vegan cheese sauce. Just make my homemade vegan mozzarella sauce and all you have to do to make it taste like provolone is omit the onion powder and increase the garlic powder to a full tablespoon. You can also use any prepared vegan cheese you like—Field Roast Chao might be pretty dang good in this, but I'm OBSESSED with my provolone concoction. Not that I'm biased, no, that would be wrong.
Note 4: Make Ahead—You can make the Instant Pot seitan (stovetop or pressure cooker) up to 5 days ahead of time (the sooner the better, though, for the best flavor). Actually, seitan freezes really well, so you could make the seitan log, freeze it, and then defrost and carve when you're ready. Then you'd just cook it up when the instructions say to add the carved seitan and don't skip the soy sauce to make it juicy again. You can also make the cheese in advance, though it tends to firm up a little in the fridge, so you might need to revive it with a splash of plant-based milk in a pot over low heat on the stove.
Note 5: Gluten-Free Option—You'll need to check the Substitutions section above for gluten-free meat options, such as a GF store bought meat alternative like soy curls. When flavoring it, use a gluten-free tamari, and don't forget you'll need a gluten-free bun or lettuce wrap. I love butter lettuce or green leaf lettuce for lettuce wraps, but you might want to double layer since this is a pretty loaded vegan sandwich recipe.

Cook Time: 20 minutes
Category: Lunch, Entree, Sandwich
Method: Pressure Cooker, Stovetop
Cuisine: American

Keywords: Vegan, Oil-Free, Nut-Free, Sugar-Free, Can be Soy-Free, Seitan, Vegan Philly Cheesesteak, Vegan Seitan Sandwich