December 10, 2019

Spicy Black Bean Vegan Deli Slices

The perfect lunch might be the sandwich. It’s portable, customizable, travels well, and doesn’t require heating up. Plus now you’re lunchtime sandwiches can be filled with homemade, spicy black bean vegan deli slices! They’re soft, flexible slices filled with black bean and other umami flavors, a tinge of smokiness, and a little sweet spicy note from sriracha. Make this vegan seitan Sunday night and enjoy sandwiches all week!

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Making Great Vegan Sandwiches

A question I’ve gotten a lot since I stopped eating meat 22 years ago is “what do you put on sandwiches? Just vegetables?” Sometimes. Sometimes I do have a great vegetable sandwich, and it’s perfectly satisfactory. Or we could add some hummus, a vegan tuna salad, or even just go classic PB&J. But sometime when I was in college I also discovered the vegan deli slices. There are several brands like Tofurkey, Lightlife, and Field Roast, and they’re pretty fun. They take the place of the cold cuts that most meat eaters put on their sandwiches, and while they’re definitely not a must for a good sandwich, I do enjoy them.

So we made our own! The benefits of homemade vs store-bought? Firstly, it’s much cheaper to make them yourself. You also have control over what the ingredients are, which means no strange ones can find their way in to the mix. Plus you can get creative with the flavors, and have a lot more choices! This version is for a spicy black bean deli slice, but if you all like this recipe we can get more varieties going in the future.

Making Seitan at Home

The first time I had seitan, or wheat meat as it’s affectionately nicknamed, I had no idea that one day I would be making it in my own kitchen, and developing different and diverse recipes. It seemed like a prepared food you bought and only the very very dedicated would make- much like I never thought I’d be making my own “cheeses”. But it’s really not all that hard! You combine elements you want for flavor, and elements you want to alter the texture, and most importantly vital wheat gluten, and kneed to perfect the texture. Then you either simmer, bake, or steam the seitan to cook it- we steamed it in this recipe, which I have found to be the best method in most cases.

Vital Wheat Gluten

It’s the main ingredient in seitan- vital wheat gluten– and let me tell you seitan is not for the gluten-free. Vital wheat gluten is a specialized flour that is incredibly high in protein, but does not contain the starches that ordinary all-purposed flour does. It’s great because it forms these really strong bonds, which give seitan the “meaty” texture that it’s known for. It can sometimes be tough to find in grocery stores, so if you have trouble I recommend a natural foods store or co-op, or looking online.

Looking for More Seitan Recipes? Try one of these!

Making Vegan Deli Slices

Making these spicy black bean deli slices is a great way to meal prep for the week- make up a loaf, and you’ll have sandwiches for days. Start by processing all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth- the dough will be a little more wet than your average seitan dough, because we will be steaming it and we don’t want the loaf to dry out when it cooks. Kneed, and then shape into a log and wrap tightly in aluminum foil. Then you just need to steam it, and let it cool fully before slicing. Store in the fridge, and enjoy!