Seitan is quickly becoming one of our favorite staple recipes. We make it all the time and do just about everything with it. (What is seitan? Check out this post!).
Our new favorite seitan creation is this chick’n tender recipe.
Crunchy on the outside.
Meaty on the inside.
So. Much. Flavor.
Everything we love in a tender, without the chicken! For the tenders, you’ll need:
vital wheat gluten
nutritional yeast
garlic powder
onion powder
vegetable broth
soy sauce
and once you simmer the seitan in a broth mixture, you’ll dip each tender in a flour + water mixture then a panko + spices mixture before frying in oil.
And the sauce. It’s so simple to make, but oh so good. Simply combine:
vegenaise
dijon mustard
BBQ sauce
& maple syrup or agave
Trust us, this recipe is worth making. If you try it, let us know in the comments!
Seitan Chick’n Tenders w/ Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
For the seitan
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 3/4 cup vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
Broth Mixture
- 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 2 1/2 cups water
Flour Mixture
- 1 cup water plus extra, as needed
- 1 cup flour
Panko Mixture
- 2 cups panko or breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
For frying
- Canola oil
For the sauce
- 1/2 cup vegenaise
- 1/4 cup dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup BBQ sauce
- 2 tbsp maple syrup or agave
Instructions
- Make the seitan: In a mixing bowl, whisk the vital wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, and spices.
- Add the 3/4 cup veggie broth and soy sauce to the vital wheat gluten mixture and mix until combined. Knead for a couple minutes until firm and stretchy.
- Bring the remaining 2 1/2 cups broth and water to a boil in a large, tall saucepan.
- Form the seitan into a long, oval-like patty and place into the boiling broth mixture.
- Bring the mixture to a light simmer and cook for about an hour, flipping halfway through.
- Once it has about doubled, remove it from the broth and let it cool.
- Whisk together the flour mixture ingredients in one bowl and the panko mixture ingredients in another.
- Once the seitan has cooled, slice the seitan into long ~1/2 inch thick pieces that resemble tenders.
- Either pour oil in a deep fryer to the fill line or fill a large saucepan about 1 inch high with canola oil and heat to 350°F.
- For each piece of seitan, coat in the flour mixture* then the panko mixture and place in the hot oil.
- Cook on each side for 2-3 minutes until crispy.
- Make the dipping sauce by mixing together all the ingredients.
- Enjoy the warm tenders dipped in the sauce!
Can I use Xanthan Gum instead of the vital wheat gluten? Thanks for all your delicious recipes!
You’re welcome!! Unfortunately, the vital wheat gluten cannot be substituted in this recipe. Hope this helps! 🙂
Wow I can’t wait to try this ! I have two questions. First-do you know where I can find vital wheat gluten (I live in California)? I’ve never used it so this would be my first time trying! Second-am I able to air fry the tenders rather than fry? Thank you!
I purchased VWG by Bob’s Red Mill in my local grocery store in the baking aisle near the flours and I have purchased it by Anthony’s from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Vital-Gluten-Anthonys-Pounds-Protein/dp/B00PB8U7Y0/ref=sr_1_2?crid=DQ2AEXLQWRBB&dchild=1&keywords=anthony%27s+vital+wheat+gluten&qid=1591279423&sprefix=anthony%27s+vital+wheat%2Caps%2C171&sr=8-2
I made these last night. OMG!!!!! I did them in an air fryer with no fat/oil and used homemade veggie broth. Also, when I mixed the dough I left it coarse so the texture was more like ground chicken. I used half for the nuggets and the other half for chicken and broccoli stir fry. OOOOWEEEE!!!! it was good.
Hello ! Any chance you can share how long and what temp you air fried these on?
Any suggestions for baking instead of frying?
I’m thinking 400F for ~20 minutes, turning halfway thru.
Otherwise, I really like the recipe and will be trying it this weekend
Wondering this as well. Can I air fry and maybe spray with some oil .
This was SOOOOO good. I doubled the recipe and had tons to enjoy.
I love this recipe! Now I just use the seitan part and use it wherever I would use chicken – Mexican food, Indian curries, Asian stir frys, etc. Thanks for making it so simple and delicious!