The best meaty, juicy, vegan steak you will ever eat! Made from onions, mushrooms, wheat gluten, and spices then simmered in a juicy marinade and seared to perfection. These meaty mock steaks will satisfy your beef cravings for sure! This seitan steak recipe will get meat-lovers eating vegan and loving it!
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I've been making homemade seitan recipes for over 20 years and I have a ton of them on my blog like vegan turkey, ham, chicken, hot dogs, and salami just to name a few. I have spent years tweaking my steak recipe and held off on publishing it until it was perfect.
I start off by sauteing onions and beefy portabella mushrooms and pureeing them in a beef-flavored broth before mixing with wheat gluten. Then, the secret to a delicious juicy steak is simmering it in a flavored broth then searing it to perfection.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Portabella Mushrooms - for a beefy flavor and texture in your steak. You can also use baby Bellas.
- Onion - for flavor.
- Oregano - for flavor. You can use fresh or dried.
- Garlic Powder - for flavor.
- Steak Seasoning - for flavor. I use a basic steak seasoning mix, but you can also make your own blend using this steak seasoning recipe.
- Soy Sauce - for a beefy flavor. You can also use Tamari or Bragg's Liquid Aminos.
- Tomato Paste - for an umami flavor and red color.
- Smoked Paprika - to give your steak a red color and a slightly smoky flavor. You can also use regular paprika.
- Vital Wheat Gluten - for the base of the seitan. This can not be substituted with any other ingredient. (I'm sorry, but this recipe can not be made gluten-free.) You can usually find it in the Bob's Red Mill section or specialty baking section of large grocery stores. I order a large bag from Amazon to make lots of seitan recipes.
- Oil - for sauteing the onion and mushrooms and searing the steaks.
🔪 Helpful tools
- A food processor - you can also use a blender or an immersion blender to puree the onions and mushrooms with the broth.
- A large skillet with a lid - to simmer the steaks in. You will need a pan with a well fitting lid.
- An iron skillet - to brown the steaks after you simmer them. I like to use a griddle to make chared lines on the steaks. You can also grill the steaks after they have simmered in the broth.
🥄 Instructions
- Dice a small onion and saute it in 2 tablespoons of oil for about 3-4 minutes.
- Cut 2 portabella mushrooms into small pieces, add to the onions and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of oregano. Then saute the mushrooms and onions for about 5 more minutes until tender.
- Add 1 cup of water, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 2 teaspoons paprika, and 2 teaspoons steak seasoning and stir well.
- Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor and blend until it becomes a smooth paste.
- Transfer the mixture to a glass bowl and add 1 cup of vital wheat gluten and mix well. Add another 1/2 cup of wheat gluten and mix again.
- Add the final 1/4 cup of wheat gluten and knead it in with your hands until you have a firm dough that no longer feels wet to the touch. (The amount of wheat gluten needed may vary slightly depending on the amount of moisture in your onion and mushrooms.)
- Flatten the gluten dough in a circle on the countertop and cut it into 4 large steaks (or 6 smaller ones.)
- Shape the gluten into steaks and fry them in a little oil in a large frying pan. (This sears the gluten and stops it from expanding too much when you simmer them.)
- Make a broth by mixing 2 1/2 cups of water 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 2 teaspoons steak seasoning, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
- Pour the broth over the seared gluten steaks. This should just barely cover them. Cover with a lid and simmer at a slow boil for 45 minutes. (Flip the steaks after 25 minutes)
- After they have simmered for 45 minutes, most of the broth will have been absorbed or evaporated and there will be a little sauce left in the pan. (At this point your seitan is cooked and can be eaten, but if you want to give it a charred steak flavor, grill or sear it in an iron skillet.
- Heat an iron griddle or skillet until it is very hot. Coat with a small amount of oil and cook the vegan steaks for about 3-4 minutes on each side until it becomes a little blackened. (You can use any of the remaining sauce in the pan as a steak sauce.)
🥘 Serving suggestions
👩🏻🍳 Pro tips
- Wheat gluten is a very fine powder that can get messy. When pouring the flour into the bowl, hold it low in the bowl so it doesn't splash out or make a cloud of dust.
- Gluten needs to be cooked, don't eat it raw. You know that it has cooked enough when it is firm and meat-like and no longer has a doughy texture.
- After you simmer the seitan for 45 minutes, it is safe to eat, you can then dice it up and use it as vegan beef in other recipes if you wish.
- Use only a glass bowl and silicone spatula. Wet gluten is very sticky and hard to clean.
- Wash your bowl and utensils in very hot water. This will help to reduce the stickiness of the gluten. You may want to use an old rag that you can throw away after you clean up.
🍞 Can I make gluten-free seitan?
No, seitan is made from concentrated wheat gluten, so there is no way to make this recipe gluten-free. The closest thing that I have seen to gluten-free seitan steaks is a gluten-free seitan roast recipe from A Virtual Vegan.
🥡 Storage and reheating
Refrigerate: You can keep your vegan steaks in the fridge for 3 - 5 days in a sealed container.
Freeze: Seitan steaks freeze well and can be stored in an airtight bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let them defrost overnight in the fridge.
Reheating: Reheat the steaks by pan-frying them in a little oil until heated through.
🌟 More seitan recipes
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
The best meaty, juicy, vegan steak you will ever eat! Made from onions, mushrooms, wheat gluten, and spices and cooked to perfection.
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 2 medium portabella mushrooms (about 2 cups chopped mushrooms)
- 1 small onion (about 1/2 cup diced onion)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika or regular paprika
- 2 teaspoons steak seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 3/4 cup vital wheat gluten
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons steak seasoning
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or regular paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon oil (for searing the steaks)
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Dice a small onion and saute it in 2 tablespoons of oil for about 3-4 minutes.
-
Cut 2 portabella mushrooms into small pieces, add to the onions and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of oregano. Then saute the mushrooms and onions for about 5 more minutes until tender.
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Add 1 cup of water, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 2 teaspoons paprika, and 2 teaspoons steak seasoning and stir well.
-
Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor and blend until it becomes a smooth paste.
-
Transfer the mixture to a glass bowl and add 1 cup of vital wheat gluten and mix well. Add another 1/2 cup of wheat gluten and mix again.
-
Add the final 1/4 cup of wheat gluten and knead it in with your hands until you have a firm dough that no longer feels wet to the touch. (You may need to adjust it a little - the amount of wheat gluten needed may vary slightly depending on the amount of moisture in your onion and mushrooms.)
-
Flatten the gluten dough in a circle on the countertop and cut it into 4 large steaks (or 6 smaller ones.)
-
Shape the gluten into steaks and fry them in a little oil in a large frying pan. (This sears the gluten and stops it from expanding too much when you simmer them.)
-
Make a broth by mixing 2 1/2 cups of water 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 2 teaspoons steak seasoning, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
-
Pour the broth over the seared gluten steaks. This should just barely cover them. Cover with a lid and simmer at a slow boil for 45 minutes. (Flip the steaks after 25 minutes) (Check on the steaks frequently towards the end of simmering to make sure all of the liquid did not evaporate. If the liquid is low add a few more tablespoons. If you still have lots of liquid at the end of cooking simmer for a few more minutes with the lid off. See the picture above of how it should look after simmering.)
-
After they have simmered for 45 minutes, most of the broth will have been absorbed or evaporated and there will be a little sauce left in the pan. (At this point your seitan is cooked and can be eaten, but if you want to give it a charred steak flavor, grill or sear it in an iron skillet.
-
Heat an iron griddle or skillet until it is very hot. Coat with a small amount of oil and cook the vegan steaks for about 3-4 minutes on each side until it becomes a little blackened. (You can use any of the remaining sauce in the pan as a steak sauce.)
- Wheat gluten is a very fine powder that can get messy. When pouring the flour into the bowl, hold it low in the bowl so it doesn't splash out or make a cloud of dust.
- Gluten needs to be cooked, don't eat it raw. You know that it has cooked enough when it is firm and meat-like and no longer has a doughy texture.
- After you simmer the seitan for 45 minutes, it is safe to eat, you can then dice it up and use it as vegan beef in other recipes if you wish.
- Use only a glass bowl and silicone spatula. Wet gluten is very sticky and hard to clean.
- Wash your bowl and utensils in very hot water. This will help to reduce the stickiness of the gluten. You may want to use an old rag that you can throw away after you clean up.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Leave a comment and starred review! I would love to hear from you!
Thanks for all you share! I’m wondering, Monica…could this be cooked (simmered or steamed) on Instant Pot? Or is that too high a temp?
When you simmer seitan in broth, it gets the best texture when it's cooked slowly at a low simmer. I make some of my other vegan faux meats (like turkey and ham) in an IP, but with that method, I use steam instead of having the seitan come in direct contact with the boiling broth.
Hello Monica,
Thanks for sharing this! I’m looking forward to returning home after my Iceland adventure to give this a try. My daughter has become Vegan and I’d like to make special treats just for her. Who knows, I might just convert as well! I know eating Vegan is healthier but do I have the perseverance to find the right recipes?
I hope that you like the recipe, Laura. Enjoy your trip to Iceland, it sounds like an amazing place to visit!
Hi Monica, This looks delicious. I'm looking forward to trying it as a "steak sandwich". I never was a big steak eater before I stopped eating meat. But I did like a steak sandwich every now and then. Thank you! I've pinned this.
Thanks, Lea! This will be perfect for a steak sandwich. I'm going to put it in some fajitas soon too! 🙂
Carnitas tacos 🤤
Awesome!
Thanks for this Monica…I’m making it tonight for my vegan family. It will go over well because my wife transitioned from a typical southern diet so she always loves when I give her familiar alternatives. I’ll let you know how it goes.
You're welcome, Kevin! I hope that you all enjoy it! 🙂