April 2, 2019

5 Ingredient Easy Vegan Chicken

Most of us don’t become vegan because we don’t like how meat tastes- we become vegan because we care about animals, the environment, or our health. But that doesn’t mean we need to give up familiar flavors and dishes. This 5 ingredient easy vegan chicken is a great substitute to create a cruelty-free version of your old favorite chicken dishes. It’s chewy and flavorful, and wonderfully versatile to work in all sorts of dishes. This simple chicken-style seitan is a great ingredient to have on hand, and can be added to all of your favorite dishes. From stir-fry to curry, marinade to grill, this easy vegan chicken is a wonderful and versatile, protein-rich ingredient.

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Making Homemade Seitan

Making my own seitan always seemed like an intimidating prospect- the idea of having to combine the right elements for flavor and texture, the dreaded kneading, and then the final element of cooking the seitan all seemed like a form of art I wasn’t yet prepared for. After a few unsuccessful attempts at making seitan, I had built the idea up as an impossible challenge, and had more or less decided to leave seitan making to the experts. It took a while before I decided to give it another shot, and realized that seitan really wasn’t anything to be scared of. This recipe is great for anyone who is feeling overwhelmed with the idea of making their own wheat meat. It’s simple and versatile- and I even made a video so you can make your own easy vegan chicken along with me!

Seitan (and this easy vegan chicken) is reliant on vital wheat gluten, a flour made with only the protein and none of the starch in bread. When kneaded, it forms really strong gluten bonds, allowing the dough to take on a chewy, meat-like texture. The flavor is made more chicken-like with miso and nutritional yeast.

Try these other no-meat options!

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5 Ingredient Easy Vegan Chicken

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Yield: 10 pieces

5 Ingredient Easy Vegan Chicken

Ingredients

1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten
½ cup canned chickpeas
3 TBSP. miso paste
3 TBSP. nutritional yeast
1 tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. poultry spice or other spice blend (optional)

Instructions

Add all the ingredients to your food process and process along with 1 cup of water. Process until it forms a smooth dough.
On a clean surface, kneed the dough for 5 minutes. It will become rather tough. Set aside for 10 minutes, and then kneed for another minute. Form into a sausage, and cut the dough into 10 even pieces.
Working in two batches if necessary, place the pieces of chicken in a steamer and steam for about 25 minutes. Allow to cool fully before storing in the fridge, and incorporating them into your meals.