Seitan's Fiery Burger

Another day, another remix! I'm really enjoying creating new recipes for seitan and obviously loving the eating that comes with it. Nom noms!! I've been obsessed ever since I discovered the marinate, bake and smother cooking technique. I don't think I'll ever go back to boiling seitan ever again. I really hope you enjoy this Southern spicy twist on my seitan burgers. 

FYI - also on this burger is 1/4 baked sweet potato without the skin. I just mashed it, heated it and smothered it over the top bun. I also put mashed avocado on the lower half of the bun and threw some diced onions, BBQ sauce (recipe way below) and mustard on there. It was on a toasted bun too. 

Bowl 1: 

• 1 cup wheat gluten 
• 1/4 cup garbanzo flour
• 1/4 cup cornmeal 
• 2 tsp's of garlic powder 
• 1 tsp of onion powder 
• 1 tsp of celery salt 
• 1 tsp crushed chillies 
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp of chilli powder 
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 

Bowl 2: 

• 2 TBSP apple cider vinegar  
• 2 TBSP Sriracha. Ketchup would also work if you don't have Sriracha. Obviously one option is less spicy, but it has the same consistency. 
• 2 TBSP oil 
• 1/4 cup veggie broth 
• 3/4 cup of hot water 

Marinade: 

• 2 TBSP of oil. I used olive oil. 
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 
• 1 TBSP minced garlic 
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp crushed chillies 
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1/4 tsp cayenne 

With a spatula or fork mix the contents of bowl 2 in bowl 1. Then start to lightly knead it all together. If the mixture is sticky add an additional teaspoon or two of wheat gluten and start to knead everything all in once again. If it's not too sticky, don't bother with the additional wheat gluten. Once kneading is done (about 3 minutes) form a thick log and cut into approximately 6 pieces. Pat each piece down and put into a large baking dish. Each piece should be no thicker than 1/2 an inch. I used a rectangular glass dish that I covered with aluminum foil; however, if you have one that has a lid, that is acceptable as well. Brush each piece (front & back) with marinade, cover with tin foil and let sit for 1 - 2 hours in the fridge. 

**While the seitan is marinating, you can get the BBQ sauce going.**

Homemade BBQ Sauce: 

• 1 can tomato paste (156 ml) 
• 1 can of veggie broth (I just filled the empty 156 ml can of tomato paste with the broth and threw it in the pot. Just the water, not the can. 😂) 
• 1/4 cup of coconut sugar 
• 1/8 cup molasses 
• 2 tsp's garlic powder 
• 2 tsp's onion powder 
• 1 tsp celery salt 
• 1 tsp cacao powder 
• 1/2 tsp crushed chillies 
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 

All of the above ingredients go into a pot with a lid to simmer for 20 minutes. Make sure to stir all ingredients together with a whisk before turning on burner and letting it simmer. Once done, let it cool and put in a glass jar with a lid to store in the fridge. 

Back to the seitan... 

Once marinating is done fully cover the Seitan with veggie broth and bake for 60 minutes on 350 F with lid or cover the top of the dish in aluminum foil. Once cooking time has expired take it out of the oven and flip each piece to bake for an additional 30 minutes uncovered (no lid or aluminum foil) and without adding more veggie broth. 

Once completely done, brush both sides with BBQ sauce and BBQ each side for approximately 30 - 45 seconds per side to achieve grilling marks. You can also just completely skip the barbecuing step and eat it straight out of the oven. It's nom noms either way! 

Store unused seitan patties in a sealed container. I put parchment paper in between mine. 

Enjoy!!