What We’re Cooking for Father’s Day: Vegan Steak & Gravy
Father's Day is this weekend and we have a dish that vegan and non-vegan dads alike will love. What dad doesn't enjoy a good steak? Well, we decided to veganize it. How do you make a plant-based steak? We didn’t want to cop out with grilling a slab of tofu and calling it a day, because it wouldn't be a special enough way to show our appreciation to Dad. After some research and a bit of trial and error, the end result is a steak that is meaty, flavourful, and most importantly, 100% vegan! Also, it has gravy. Even better.
The key ingredient in this recipe is something called Vital Wheat Gluten. Without this, you can’t achieve a “meaty” vegan steak. This recipe makes four pretty large steaks, but if you don’t want something so big you can just divide your steaks into 6-8 pieces instead. Other than that, have fun with the recipe and enjoy your Father's Day celebration!
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 2 Hours
Total Time: 2 Hours, 30 Min
Vegan Steak & Gravy
Ingredients
Wet
- 1 Cup White Mushrooms, sliced
- 1 Red Onion, diced
- 2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
- ⅔ Cup Veggie Broth
- ½ Cup Red Wine
- ¾ Cup Black Beans
- 3 Tbsp Tomato Puree
- 1 Tbsp Tamari
- 1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Miso Paste
- 1 Tsp Dried Oregano
- ½ Tsp Ground Sage
- ¼ Tsp Allspice
- 1 Tsp Smoked Paprika
- ½ Tsp Dried Rosemary
- 1 Tsp Salt
- 1 Tsp Pepper
Dry
- 2 ¾ Cups Vital Wheat Gluten
- ½ Cup Fine Bread Crumbs
Seitan Broth
- 1 Litre Veggie Broth
- ½ Cup Red Wine
- ½ Cup Water
- 1 Tbsp Miso Paste
- 2 Sprigs Rosemary
- 1 Red Onion, quartered
Gravy
- ½ Cup Mushrooms, diced
- ¼ Cup Non-Dairy Milk
- Seitan Broth
- 2-3 Tbsp Cornstarch
- Pinch of Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a non-stick pan, heat up some oil over medium heat. Cook your mushrooms, onions, and garlic for 5 minutes or until your onions soften and become translucent. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a blender, add the rest of your wet ingredients and your mushroom onion mixture. Blend until completely smooth. Set aside
- In a large bowl add your vital wheat gluten and fine bread crumbs. If you don’t have fine bread crumbs, just add regular bread crumbs to a blender or food processor and give it a couple of pulses until it’s fine. Whisk the vital wheat gluten and bread crumbs until combined.
- Add your wet ingredient mixture to your dry ingredient mixture, and mix it using a rubber spatula. Once it starts to get to hard to mix it with the rubber spatula, start mixing with your hands until it forms into one dough. Transfer your dough onto a countertop and knead your seitan for 10 minutes. Really put your back into it! This is going to activate the gluten and give you that meaty texture.
- Once you are finished kneading, using either your hands or a rolling pin flatten out your dough until it’s about 1cm thin. Divide it into 4 pieces if you want large steaks or 6 pieces if you want medium-sized steaks. Set aside and make your seitan broth.
- In a large pot, add your veggie broth, red wine, water, miso paste, 2 sprigs of rosemary. Peel the skin off your red onion and cut it into quarters, add it to the pot. Bring your pot to a simmer and add your steak pieces to the broth. Let it simmer for 1 hour.
- Once your seitan is finished simmering, remove from the broth and set your steak pieces aside while you make your gravy. Do not throw out your broth mixture!
- In a pan, heat up some oil over medium heat and cook your mushrooms for 5 minutes or until it starts to brown. Add your seitan broth (without the onions and rosemary) and non-dairy milk, whisk until combined. Bring it to a simmer and let it simmer for 5 minutes, whisk in 1 Tablespoon of cornstarch at a time and let it simmer until it slightly thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Time to cook the steaks! Heat up a large pan or skillet over low- medium heat and melt 1 tbsp of butter. Add your steak to the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes or until browned. Flip it over and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes. Depending on the size of your steaks, you may need to cook it in batches. Alternatively, you can pop these seitan steaks on the grill for a more authentic steak with charred marks.
- Serve right away and pour over as much gravy as you want. I like to serve my seitan steaks with some roasted baby potatoes and a side salad. But you can serve it with whatever your favorite sides are. Enjoy!
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