Our Veggie Kitchen

I tried boiling seitan for the first time this weekend. As always with something new, I poked around for ideas and techniques. I landed on a post on VeggieBoards for Seitan alla Cacciatore that intrigued me (Thanks MrFalafel). It was seitan cutlets, boiled in cooking broth, then left to simmer in the tomato sauce. I was intrigued by the cooking method.

As it cooked, I was getting apprehensive. The simmer was more of a boil and the seitan was beginning to look spongy. When I cut it up, I was pleasantly surprised, though. It didn't taste like chicken, but it DID taste like cacciatore. It went so well with the sauce. I will definitely be making this again.

The texture of the seitan still isn't there yet, and in a way that is hard to explain. My wife thought it was too 'toothy,' the best descriptor she could come up with. I think it was, maybe, too uniform. Next time, I will try to improve the cook's attention to detail, and maybe bake it at a lower temp in a pyrex casserole.

So, this is just a draft, but it is a good draft.



Seitan Cacciatore
1/2 Recipe (6 cutlets) MrFalafe's Seitan Cutlets
1 cup flour
1 lb pasta (penne, rigatoni, etc)
3 tbs olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 green bell pepper, chopped fine
2 cups button mushrooms, quartered (next time I'll use 3)
3 cloves garlic
6 oz can tomato paste
1/2 cup dry red wine
14 oz can diced tomatoes, including juices
1 cup chicken flavored vegetable broth
1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp thyme, minced (0r 1/2 tsp dried)
1/4 cup parsley, minced

Heat 2 tbs oil in a large pan over high heat. When the cutlets are done cooking, pull them from the cooking, liquid, dust both sides with flour and sear both sides. When browned, remove and set aside.

Add another tbs olive oil to the pan. Add the onions, peppers and mushrooms. Saute over medium heat until the onions are soft and the mushrooms have given off most of their liquid. Add the garlic, give it a stir. Add the tomato paste and stir for a minute or two. It should darken just a bit. Add the tomatoes, broth, wine, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Stir in thyme and parsley. Place cutlets into the sauce, so that they're covered by sauce. Reduce to a slow simmer and cover. Simmer while you prepare the pasta, maybe half an hour.

I stirred the pasta into the sauce and served sliced cutlets on the side, but you could just as easilly spoon the sauce over pasta and cutlet, what ever works.

6 Servings: 513 cal (7g fat, 77g carbs, 31g protein)

Note on Marmite: There seem to be two marmite camps: those that love it and those that hate it. I'm not sure what to think. I will make this again with marmite and some with strong veggie stock and see what I think. Right now, I'm on the fense.