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Seitan Roast Stuffed With Shiitakes And Leeks

November 23, 2011 442 Comments

Serves 6 to 8
Active time: 1 hour || Total time: 2 hours

Seitan Roast

I know. I’m posting a roast recipe on the Tuesday evening before Thanksgiving. I’m sure everyone already has their menus planned and I’m late to the party. But this roast almost drove me to the brink of madness Call of Cthulu style, so I had to defeat it! And defeat it I did.

Seitan Roast

After about 20 years and twice as many tries I’ve got a fabulous centerpiece stuffed roast that I’m proud to show off to the neighbors. Succulent seitan stuffed with herbed meaty shiitakes and leeks. The seitan is mixed with pureed pinto beans to give it great, juicy texture and even a hint of pink color. It’s really similar to my sausage recipes which I used as a base recipe. The stuffing is coated with bread crumbs, which keep it perfectly packed into the roast when you slice it, instead of falling out all over the place. It all comes together when baked in a familiar tinfoil wrapping.

I don’t know what took me so long to get it right. Maybe someday I’ll be ready to talk about it. But right now, let’s get roasting!

Seitan Roast

There are a few recipe notes before you begin:

~For best results, use a salty homemade vegetable broth. Salt is integral to the flavor of the seitan, so if your broth isn’t seasoned then add a teaspoon or so of salt to it.

~You’ll also want to spoon broth over the roast before serving, to keep it from being dry. Of course you’re going to be coating it in gravy, too. But the broth is a nice touch. If you’re slicing and serving, ladle on spoonfuls of broth on each individual slice, too. You can’t have too much juice, here!

~This roast reheats perfectly. Refrigerate in its wrapper for up to 3 days before hand. When ready to serve, preheat an oven to 350 F and cook for 20 minutes. This will dry it out a bit, so use the broth hints above for sure!

~Use a steak knife for the easiest slicing.

~I used storebought breadcrumbs but if you use homemade, use 3/4 cup.

~This makes enough for 6 hungry people. If it’s not Thanksgiving or another holiday, and people are not totally stuffing their faces, it serves at least 8.

For the filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 oz shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced (rough ends removed)
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, cut into thin half moons
1/2 teaspoon salt
Fresh black pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice


For the roast
3 cloves garlic
3/4 cup cooked pinto beans, rinsed and drained (fresh or canned)
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups vital wheat gluten
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed or finely chopped
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed between your fingers
1 teaspoon dried sage, crushed between your fingers
Several dashes fresh black pepper

First prepare the filling:
Preheat a large pan, preferably cast iron, over medium heat. Saute the mushrooms and leeks in oil until soft, about 10 minutes. Add salt, pepper, garlic and thyme. Cook for about 2 more minutes, stirring often.

Sprinkle in the breadcrumbs and toss to coat. Cook the mixture, stirring very often, until the breadcrumbs are toasty and the mixture is relatively dry. This should take about 5 minutes, and the breadcrumbs should turn a few shades darker.

Drizzle in the broth and lemon juice and toss to coat until moist. If it still seems dry drizzle in a little extra olive oil. Set aside until ready to use.

Prepare the roast:

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a food processor, pulse the garlic until well chopped. Add the beans, broth, olive oil and soy sauce and puree until mostly smooth (a few pieces of bean are okay, but they should be no bigger than a pea.)

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, herbs and spices. Make a well in the center and add the bean mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture starts coming together to form a ball of dough. Knead until everything is well incorporated.

Now we’re going to roll out the seitan and form the roast. Place two pieces of tin foil (about 18 inches long) horizontally in front of you. The sheet further from you should overlap the closer sheet by about 6 inches. This way you have enough foil to wrap around the whole roast.

On a separate surface, use your hands or a rolling pin to flatten the seitan into a roughly 12 x 10 rectangle. If any pieces rip, don’t worry about it, just use a pinch of dough from the ends to repair any holes.

Place the filling in the lower 1/3 of the seitan rectangle, leaving about 2 inches of space at both ends. Make sure the filling is compact, use your hands to form it into a nice, tight bundle.

Now roll! Roll the bottom part of the seitan up and over the filling. Keep rolling until in it’s in a log shape. Now pinch together the seam and pinch together the sides to seal. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it will snap into shape when baking.

Place the roll in the center of the tinfoil and roll up like a tootsie roll, making sure the ends are tightly wrapped. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for an hour*. Rotate the roll every 20 minutes for even cooking.

* I may update the time in this recipe because I’ve gotten a few comments that said it took up to 90 minutes to cook completely! So for now I would say just do a test my poking the roll with tongs. It should feel very very firm. If it doesn’t, then bake further.

Remove from oven and let cool. Unwrap, slice and serve! (See recipe notes for keeping moist and reheating.)

Filed Under: Entrees, Holiday, Main Featured, Recipe, Recipes Featured, Thanksgiving Tagged With: beans, leeks, pinto beans, seitan, shiitakes

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. kittee

    November 23, 2011 at 3:20 am

    bravo, it’s gorgeous.
    xo
    kittee

    Reply
  2. Ashley

    November 23, 2011 at 3:21 am

    Oh. My. Gawd. Why is this coming into my life so late in the holiday season? I’m going to need to make this for Christmas now and wow my friends and neighbors. Love it!

    Reply
  3. Scissors and Spice

    November 23, 2011 at 3:23 am

    Don’t worry! It’s not too late and made of things most people have on hand! Tis a thing of beauty!

    Reply
  4. MyVeganJournal DotCom

    November 23, 2011 at 3:26 am

    oh my gosh OH MY GOSH oh my GOSH, this looks SO good!! i may just have to change my plans and make this for thanksgiving!!! bravissimo times infinity!! it looks fantastic!!!

    Reply
  5. Evelyn M.

    November 23, 2011 at 3:27 am

    This recipe sounds great and although I have a menu planned out for this Thanksgiving, I think I will make a change! 🙂

    Reply
  6. GiGi

    November 23, 2011 at 3:29 am

    This looks like you nailed it Bravo! I love salting things, and here’s a little game I made up that you can play with guests, called how high can we go. I take guests BP before we sit down to dinner and then just after they finished my well salt seasoned dinner. This is pretty and who would suspect the salt content?

    Reply
  7. Eileen

    November 23, 2011 at 3:34 am

    This is beautiful! I will be trying this recipe over the next couple months in hopes of perfecting it for my 40th birthday celebration. Thank you so much for sharing!

    Reply
  8. Meg

    November 23, 2011 at 3:34 am

    I guess I WONT be making pizza on Thursday!

    Reply
  9. Skinnywellfed

    November 23, 2011 at 3:36 am

    Which of your fabulous gravies did you pair with the loaf? Looks amazing!!!

    Reply
  10. Jasmine

    November 23, 2011 at 3:37 am

    Wow, Isa, this sounds AMAZING!!! Would greatly benefit from a video on how to do all the steps… please say you’ll do one!

    Reply
  11. Celyn

    November 23, 2011 at 3:38 am

    Beautiful! I’ll be making this this week for sure.

    Reply
  12. michelle

    November 23, 2011 at 3:38 am

    Aaron, with his fabulous seitan making skills, could pull this off!

    Reply
  13. Shannon

    November 23, 2011 at 3:42 am

    Luckily for me, my only plan was to bake a Tofurkey . Now I can do this instead! YAY!

    Reply
  14. virtual.jess

    November 23, 2011 at 3:44 am

    I have a shroom-a-phobic spouse. I am thinking of skipping the stuffing… or maybe adding some of my usual wild rice/sour dough/ mire poix/ sliced almonds/ dried cranberry/ chardonnay stuffing.

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 3:48 am

      MMMM. I think most stuffings that hold together will work. Just be careful not to overstuff, you wanna be able to roll it.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 19, 2018 at 7:51 pm

        IsaChandra: Where’s the seitan in the ingredients..Cannot find it.

        Reply
        • Deb

          January 6, 2019 at 7:39 am

          It’s the vital gluten four – when mixed with liquids and cooked that is seitan

          Reply
  15. Laura E

    November 23, 2011 at 3:50 am

    This looks way better than the Tofurkey basketball I ended up buying! A must try for Christmas!

    Reply
  16. Gina Crout

    November 23, 2011 at 3:51 am

    So glad I am a procrastinator! This will be on my table for Thanksgiving!

    Reply
  17. Anne

    November 23, 2011 at 3:53 am

    Looks great! Is there a separate recipe for the gravy?

    Reply
  18. Michelle

    November 23, 2011 at 3:56 am

    Sha-wing! Totally making this for Christmas dinner.

    Reply
  19. Frank

    November 23, 2011 at 4:06 am

    Please divulge which gravy that is. It looks a little like the chickpea from VWV.

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 4:32 am

      It’s this gravy I make from breadcrumbs. I call it Breadcrumb Sauce. I never wrote it down, I just make it when I have a need for a quick quick gravy. Maybe someday I will write it down. But the chickpea gravy would be great here, or the navy bean gravy. I think the mushroom gravy would be too many mushrooms, but could be good, too!

      Reply
      • Deb Geary

        November 19, 2016 at 8:06 pm

        TOO MANY MUSHROOMS???? Never!!!

        Reply
  20. Sarah

    November 23, 2011 at 4:11 am

    This looks amazing! I really want to try it–thanks for doing so much work to figure it out, so I don’t have to. You’re great!

    Reply
  21. Caitlyn

    November 23, 2011 at 4:16 am

    Yum! I have already bought my tofurkey for Thanksgiving, but I think I will make this for Christmas! I’m not a fan of shitakes, though love mushrooms otherwise, but I think I will try using regular old stuffing in the middle to make it a bit more “traditional”. Can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
  22. Monika

    November 23, 2011 at 4:17 am

    WOW. As in, this makes me contemplate risking gluten contamination even for just. one. bite. Instead, I’ll just make it for the fam and admire it from afar, enjoying it vicariously (and pain free) through them.

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 4:33 am

      Aww, that makes me sad! I tried really hard to come up with something gluten-free but it just wasn’t working for me. I shall try again soon.

      Reply
  23. Cthulhu7

    November 23, 2011 at 4:30 am

    Looks Amazing lady. You might’ve just changed the vegan thanksgiving for so many peoples.

    Reply
  24. Matt

    November 23, 2011 at 4:42 am

    Dear Isa – THIS POST JUST MADE MY DAY! Holy moly! It looks fantastic and is exactly what I am feeling like today. Stuff waiting for Christmas! And I reckon this is going to serve 2 😉

    Reply
  25. Dawn (Vegan Fazool)

    November 23, 2011 at 4:49 am

    This looks really wonderful and I’d love to give it a go! I agree with Jasmine that it would really benefit from a video or at least pictures of the steps of making and assembling the roast, for those of us with tired brains who like cooking shows.

    XOXO!!

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 5:15 am

      I agree, too. I just don’t have the capability to do something like that. I’m not sure how bloggers do that stuff, my kitchen always looks like a bomb hit it while I’m cooking.

      Reply
  26. Karen

    November 23, 2011 at 4:53 am

    Not too late for me! I’m still contemplating which seitan to make. This will be it! Thanks so much for doing it again, Isa!

    Reply
  27. Cadry

    November 23, 2011 at 4:55 am

    That’s so beautiful! It was worth the wait!

    Reply
  28. Kat

    November 23, 2011 at 5:35 am

    Oh man. I was planning on making a different roast, but now you post this! I didn’t buy pinto beans, all I have is black beans, hmmm. Do I dare sub? Oh no!

    Reply
  29. Mr. Shiny

    November 23, 2011 at 6:09 am

    LIttle late to change my holiday menu but that looks too beautiful not to try it out soon. Terrific.

    Reply
  30. cherryred

    November 23, 2011 at 8:47 am

    wow this is amazing!!!! no thanxgiving here in itlay but i’ll save this recipe for xmas!!! thanx a lot.

    Reply
  31. Bonnie

    November 23, 2011 at 11:13 am

    This looks amazing! I’m looking forward to trying it. Maybe I’ll make it with a different stuffing as my boyfriends hates mushrooms, but I think it looks really delicious with the shiitakes. Just one question: should there be broth in the stuffing? It’s in the instructions but I don’t see it on the ingredient list.

    Reply
  32. Rachelle

    November 23, 2011 at 11:24 am

    Will definitely give this a go for Christmas dinner. Of course, I will have to try it before hand…can’t wait. It looks delish!!

    Reply
  33. Maya

    November 23, 2011 at 11:25 am

    Thanks for posting this! Exciting! Quick question – for the stuffing, you say drizzle on the broth and lemon juice, but I don’t see how much broth to use for the stuffing. Can you add that in? Thanks!

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 4:18 pm

      I fixed it, 1/4 cup!

      Reply
  34. golden delicious

    November 23, 2011 at 11:37 am

    Too late for Thanksgiving day, but I’m have a Thanksgiving party for friends in two weeks…this is on the menu now!

    Reply
  35. JL goes Vegan

    November 23, 2011 at 11:48 am

    Bravo!!! I’m going to a restaurant for Thanksgiving but I’m tempted to try this over the weekend! Wow!

    Reply
  36. Lisa Schaeffer

    November 23, 2011 at 12:38 pm

    This looks great Isa. I think you’re just in time! I just have to mention, I must be the only vegan who hates mushrooms LOL. I’m going to set aside some of my traditional (albeit, whole grain, reduced fat and healthy version) bread stuffing to put inside this instead of the shiitakes. Thanks for working on this. By the way, just got your pie book and am looking forward to putting it to use. I know that it will be good, because I already have your cookie and cupcake cookbooks and they have won over the skeptics. Thanks for everything you do! Happy holidays!

    Reply
  37. Krista

    November 23, 2011 at 12:41 pm

    This looks so good; can’t wait to try it. Thanks!

    Reply
  38. Cathy @ What Would Cathy Eat?

    November 23, 2011 at 12:45 pm

    Wow. Such an impressive looking entree. This will be perfect with my famous vegan gravy!

    Reply
  39. Chris M.

    November 23, 2011 at 2:57 pm

    The instructions say “Drizzle in the broth and lemon juice and toss to coat until moist.” for the stuffing, but the stuffing ingredients don’t list any broth. How much should I add? I’m getting ready to make this, I guess I’ll just toss a bit on until it looks damp?

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 4:17 pm

      Thank you for catching that! I was sooo beat when I wrote it out I am surprised I got anything right. It should be 1/4 cup veg broth, I’ve updated the recipe.

      Reply
  40. Mare

    November 23, 2011 at 3:13 pm

    Thanks Isa for this awsome roast recipe! I have been searching for something like that for a big christmas dinner with my friends, and want it to be really great. Think this one will totally do it!

    Reply
  41. frederic

    November 23, 2011 at 3:20 pm

    Nice. I might try this instead of my plan of making an attempt at a turkey shape with the chickpea cutlets recipe tomorrow. Although I was looking forward to making the white tassles…

    Reply
  42. Gloria Huerta

    November 23, 2011 at 3:35 pm

    Very interesting recipe. I’ve made seitan using beans before, white kidney or red kidney. And the texture is quite different when it is baked in the broth versus boiling in broth. I’ve also made the seitan using tofu and oats in combination with the gluten. I will definitely try this out. It looks amazing.

    Reply
  43. Ralph

    November 23, 2011 at 3:46 pm

    Why do you have to use olive oil in everything. It is 100% fat and can contribute to a heart attack. Haven’t you seen forks over knifes or read Caldwell Esselstyn’s book?

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 4:15 pm

      http://www.theveganrd.com/2010/10/olive-oil-health-and-advocacy.html

      Reply
  44. Ida

    November 23, 2011 at 4:13 pm

    It will decently be something for Christmas! Looking forward:)!!! Thank you so much for an wonderful site!
    Love from Stockholm, Sweden

    Reply
  45. Farrah P

    November 23, 2011 at 4:14 pm

    Wow this is so awesome! I think I am going to add this to my Christmas menu for sure!

    Reply
  46. Lillian

    November 23, 2011 at 4:14 pm

    this is it!!! I am making it tomorrow. Thank you SO MUCH.

    Reply
  47. Therese

    November 23, 2011 at 4:52 pm

    This looks amazing! I’m a South African living in England, and will now be celebrating Thanksgiving just so that I have an excuse to make this! =)

    When you reheat the roll, do you bake it inside the tinfoil, or unwrap first?

    Reply
    • IsaChandra

      November 23, 2011 at 5:55 pm

      I did it both ways and it worked fine, but I think it will be faster if you keep it inside.

      Reply
  48. denise

    November 23, 2011 at 5:15 pm

    Haha Can i ORDER this from you?

    Reply
  49. Kaitlyn@TheTieDyeFiles

    November 23, 2011 at 7:28 pm

    I wish I saw this earlier! Christmas, perhaps!

    Reply
  50. Barret

    November 23, 2011 at 7:30 pm

    No matter how many times I’ve tried, I’ve never been able to make good seitan.

    Reply
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Hey I'm Isa, welcome to The Post Punk Kitchen. Let's cook some vegan food!

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