03.Jun.2008 Crispy Seitan Bacon
I was craving a simple avocado-”bacon” sandwich, but got too lazy to contemplate biking all the way to the natural food store to get my fix.
Worse? I didn’t even have tofu to whip up a batch of tofu bacon, the horror!
So I made do with what I had and here’s what I came up with, using Veganomicon’s chickpea cutlet idea of combining beans and gluten to make the base for it.
If you give them a few minutes to cool down once they’re out of the oven, they will crisp up even more.
Note: the dough will not be like the one for the Seitan O’Greatness, but rather paste-like
Crispy Seitan Bacon 1/2 cup (128 g) cooked cannellini beans
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/4 cup (36 g) vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup (20 g) whole-wheat panko or other bread crumbs
3 tablespoons (45 ml) soy sauce
2 tablespoons (16 g) nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons (30 ml) maple syrup
1 tablespoon (15 ml) liquid smoke
1 tablespoon (17 g) tomato paste
1 clove garlic, gratedBlend all ingredients in a food processor, until smooth and paste-like, scraping sides occasionally.
Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C, or gas mark 5). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat, such as Silpat.
Scoop up about 1 1/2 tablespoons of seitan paste, and pat down in the shape of bacon strips, spreading the paste as thinly as possible.
Bake for 15 minutes, or until brown and crispy, turning once halfway through baking time.
If you have leftovers, fry them in a pan for a few seconds to make them crispy again.Yield: 12 to 16 strips