Vegan Summer Sausage
This vegan summer sausage is made from wheat gluten and the perfect blend of spices, giving it a mild smoky flavor and a meaty texture. It’s perfect for slicing and serving cold on crackers.
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If you were a kid in the 80s or 90s, you probably remember getting free samples of summer sausage at the Hickory Farms store at the mall while you were Christmas shopping.
That flavor goes hand in hand with Christmas in my mind. I had to recreate a plant-based version of this sausage for my vegan kids to have during the holidays, too. Needless to say, my teenage boys can’t get enough of this!
Why make seitan summer sausage
This plant-based summer sausage is the perfect addition to any vegan charcuterie board, along with some vegan pepperoni, vegan salami, or even some sliced vegan ham.
It’s delicious sliced thin and served on crackers with your favorite vegan cheese, like vegan provolone, vegan goat cheese, vegan garlic herb, or vegan smoked gouda.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Water – or low-sodium vegetable broth.
- Ketchup – for flavor and a slight sweetness. The vinegar in the ketchup is a key ingredient to improve the flavor of the gluten.
- Oil – for a rich flavor. I like refined coconut oil, but any neutral-flavored oil will work. You can omit it if you want it to be oil-free. If you are using coconut oil, be sure it is refined so it doesn’t taste like coconut.
- Smoked Paprika – you can also use regular paprika plus 1/2 tsp extra liquid smoke.
- Salt – if you don’t want to use salt, you can swap it out with 1 tablespoon of Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or soy sauce.
- White Pepper – (optional) This adds a lot of flavor to the sausage.
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper – it’s important to use fresh ground for the best flavor. You can swap it out for regular black pepper, but it won’t be quite as flavorful.
- Onion Powder– for flavor.
- Garlic Powder – for flavor.
- Celery Seed – for flavor. If you don’t have any, you can leave it out.
- Whole Mustard Seeds – optional for flavor. Feel free to leave them out, but I like the flavor and texture that they add.
- Vital Wheat Gluten – this is a high-protein gluten flour. You must use wheat gluten, and no other flour will work. Unfortunately, there is no gluten-free swap for this. You can find it at most major grocery stores, but I like to order a large bag from Amazon to make lots of seitan recipes.
Helpful tools
- Small Saucepan – to warm the oil and spices.
- Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil – for wrapping the summer sausage in before steaming it. You can wrap it in parchment paper first before wrapping it in foil, so the foil doesn’t touch the seitan.
- Steam Basket – You can use any method to steam the summer sausage. If you don’t have a steam basket, you can use jelly jar rings at the bottom of a pot and just fill the water to the top of the rings. You just need a way to hold the sausage out of the water.
How to make vegan summer sausage
A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post.
Step 1 – In a bowl, add everything except for the wheat gluten (warm water, ketchup, refined coconut oil, smoked paprika, liquid smoke, mustard seeds, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, white pepper, black pepper, and celery seed) and stir well
Step 2 – Mix in 3/4 cup of the vital wheat gluten with a silicon spatula, then knead in the remaining 1/4 cup a little at a time with your hand. (Add the wheat gluten until it no longer easily absorbs into the dough.)
Step 3 – Shape the summer sausage into a log shape and wrap it tightly in foil. (You can wrap it in a layer of parchment before wrapping it in foil if you don’t want the foil to touch your food.)
Step 4 – Place the wrapped sausage into a steamer basket and steam for 50 minutes. (or in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot for 40 minutes and allow steam to release naturally.)
Step 5 – Allow the sausage to cool and then slice and serve. (It will firm up even more if allowed to cool completely overnight in the fridge.)
Serve the summer sausage with some spicy mustard, vegan honey mustard, vegan horseradish sauce, or some vegan honey garlic sauce.
Pro Tips
- Small changes in the amount of vital wheat gluten you use will change the texture of the final result. More gluten gives you a firmer texture, and less gives you a softer texture.
- I find the best texture is achieved if you add vital wheat gluten until the dough doesn’t easily absorb more, yet not so much that the dough becomes rubbery and you are not able to form it into a smooth shape.
- You can eat the sausage immediately after steaming, but it has the best texture and flavor if allowed to cool completely in the fridge.
How to store vegan sausage
Your vegan summer sausage will keep well wrapped in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. You can also keep the cooked sausage wrapped in plastic wrap in your freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge before serving.
I like to double or even triple this recipe and keep it in the freezer. It’s always a hit and goes fast when I put it out on a platter.
More seitan recipes
- Vegan Turkey
- Seitan Chicken
- Flour and Water Chicken
- Vegan Chicken Patties
- Vegan Chicken Nuggets
- Vegan Shredded Chicken
Vegan summer sausage recipe
Vegan Summer Sausage
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons refined coconut oil, (melted) or any neutral-flavored oil
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds, optional
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon celery seed
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten
Equipment
Instructions
- In a bowl, add everything except for the wheat gluten (warm water, ketchup, refined coconut oil, smoked paprika, liquid smoke, mustard seeds, garlic powder, onion powder, salt white pepper, black pepper, and celery seed) and stir well.
- Mix in 3/4 cup of the vital wheat gluten with a silicon spatula, then knead in the remaining 1/4 cup a little at a time with your hand. (Add the wheat gluten until it no longer easily absorbs into the dough.)
- Shape the summer sausage into a log shape and wrap it tightly in foil. (You can wrap it in a layer of parchment before wrapping it in foil if you don’t want the foil to touch your food.)
- Place the wrapped sausage into a steamer basket and steam for 50 minutes. (or in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot for 40 minutes and allow steam to release naturally.)
- Allow the sausage to cool and then slice and serve. (It will firm up even more if allowed to cool completely overnight in the fridge.)
Notes
- Small changes in the amount of vital wheat gluten you use will change the texture of the final result. More gluten gives you a firmer texture and less gives you a softer texture.
- I find the best texture is achieved if you add vital wheat gluten until the dough doesn’t easily absorb more, yet not so much that the dough becomes rubbery and you are not able to form it into a smooth shape.
- You can eat the sausage immediately after steaming, but it has the best texture and flavor if allowed to cool completely in the fridge.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
This is a handy sandwich filler. I made it a bit too chewy, but freezing slices and thawing in the microwave made them softer. Very nice! I plan to make this again.
Yes, it makes a great deli meat alternative. Glad that you liked it and were able to fix the texture.
I put the finished sausage in a stovetop smoker for 20-30 min. YUM!!!!
Monica, I love the summer sausage recipe. Sausage is one of the things I really missed going vegan. Being able to make my own is wonderful. Today I made a double batch, one according to your recipe. But I tried an experiment and added about 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup to the second batch. I kneaded it just enought to work it through the dough. Then I cooked it in my Instant pot clone. Oh my! Three bites and I may be addicted to maple summer sausage
I’m so happy that you like it!
This sounds lovely but 40 mins in a pressure cooker sounds a long time compared to 50 mins in a steamer. Is that right?
Yes, that is correct. It doesn’t hurt it to over cook it a little, but you don’t want to undercook it. I do low pressure, so that the weight on the top is just barely moving when I use the pressure cooker.
I love your recipes, tips and hints. Most of the recipes are basic ingredients, instead of exotic (read: expensive, hard to find) items that might be ‘used once’ before dying of old age in the back of the cupboard. I’ve had that problem with other vegan blogs / videos.
I’m on a tight budget so really appreciate your online sharing without demanding a subscription or purchase, and none of the recipes that I’ve tried disappointed me. Your generosity has a long reach! This recipe, too, is a keeper – I’d suggest anyone new to vegan cooking to bookmark and save your site. — Thanks for all your work on this!
Aww, thank you so much, Elaine! It made my day to read this comment. A lot of recipes are from big sites that are not necessarily vegan themselves. I think that the fact that my family and I are exclusively vegan and that I hate spending lots of money on groceries make my recipes more approachable for people.
Hi, I have some vital wheat gluten I was wondering what to do with and this is a great addition to a grazing board! Just wondering how long it keeps for after steaming it please?
I’m glad you have some wheat gluten and can make this. It will keep in the fridge for about 1 week or in the freezer for about 3 months.
this looks fantastic. Can this be done in the oven?
I’ve never tested it in the oven, but I think as long as you get the internal temperature to 160° F, it should work in the oven as well. I feel like steaming it keeps it more moist.