Popcorn "Chicken" with French Fries

So, this happens to be my second attempt at fried chicken style seitan, and I think I'm making improvements. My first try was actually for new year's eve, when my mom and I prepared a southern-style new years meal complete with collard greens and black-eyed-peas (which were my favorite part of the meal). That time I actually made it a different, slightly odd way because I was short on time. I found a tutorial saying that for fried chicken style seitan you can just stretch your dough very thin and drop it right in your cooking oil, no need to pre-cook the seitan. I did this, and the best way I can describe it is that it was like fried chicken skin without the chicken. Pretty tasty (my family rather enjoyed it, particularly my mom and older brother who are both vegans), but not quite what I had been wanting. This time was closer to what I'm looking for, but still wasn't 100% my goal.

First, I mixed up a seitan dough. I used the dragonfly brand pork broth mix for it because I was out of chicken broth, and it turned out tasting really great. I flavored it additionally with some Johnny's seasoning salt (but that shouldn't be a surprise) and some garlic powder. Instead of making cutlet-shaped pieces I just tore it into little chunks and dropped them in a saucepan of broth. If anyone reading this is a little lost about how to make seitan, refer back to my first or second post (ham roast and steak, respectively) or look up any recipe on cooking seitan using the simmering method. I particularly recommend the cookbook Veganize This! by Jenn Shagrin.



Lovely little simmering seitans. After cooking I drained them, but I really could have drained them longer. The bits ended up rather juicy which made them quite flavorful, but a bit soft. I also think that in the future for deep-frying I'd use less all-purpose flour in the mixture, because these were just all around too soft. Most of the time when preparing seitan in a dish I cook it in some way that removes mosture (such as sauteeing). Deep-frying tends to seal in moisture, especially when there's batter involved. I didn't really take this into account, but despite their soft texture they were still rather delicious

For the coating I bought the Krusteaz brand frying mix. The last time, I used the kind they were selling in the bulk section of Winco, because this was the only vegan kind we could find. After comparing the two I think that the Winco kind was actually tastier, but the Kusteaz is still rather good. I also added in some smoked paprika to the Krusteaz which was a nice addition. The way I ended up applying the mix was different than the instructions called for, but I think caused the coating to be a bit thicker. Instead of just rolling the pieces in the dry mixture I turned it into a thin batter using milk (you could easily sub in soy milk if you are vegan), coated the pieces in this and then coated again in the dry mix to cut down on splattering.

My boyfriend got a small fryer for Christmas a couple years ago, and I love using it. I don't use it terribly often because it makes our little apartment smell like fry-oil all day, but when I do bust it out I'm always happy with the results. Of course, this is terribly, terribly unhealthy. But you're reading a blog post about popcorn chicken, so I don't imagine you were expecting health food. Alternatively you could always deep-fry or shallow-fry on the stove if you don't have a fryer. The end result should be the same.

Since I always want to make the most of it when I do use the fryer I paired the chicken with some frozen french fries (I have learned not to buy the Kroger brand fries ever again-- every single fry in the bag was one of those tiny crappy fries that hide at the bottom of any respectable bag/carton of fries).

After frying a put them on a double layer of paper towels to cool and dry. Don't they look fantastic? The coating was a bit thinner than I'd like for popcorn chicken, so I'll keep experiementing with how to get it crunchier (if anyone has any tips please put them in the comments!). This way they were crispy and delicate which was nice, but not what I was going for.

There's a closeup to see the texture inside. Very juicy which I think made it more flavorful, but as I said earlier it was a bit on the soft side. Next time I'd cut down on the all-purpose flour, or maybe not use it at all. I would definitely give it more time to dry out before frying. Still, pretty good for a work in progress!

Happy cooking, everyone. Next will most definitely be a highly-anticipated adventure on my part: pepperoni! At last!

"Pork" Fried Rice

So this is something I whipped up last week because I was low on groceries but didn't want to have ramen noodles for dinner. For something I just threw together it actually turned out pretty great! I had intended to make fried rice over MLK weekend because my brother was in town. I meant to serve it with some broccoli "beef" but only remembered once the stir-fry was finished! I didn't end up taking pictures of the stir-fry because that weekend ended up being a little crazy (my brother ended up getting sick-- not from my cooking... I hope!). I'm sure I'll end up making something similar before long, though.

I started out by making some pork style seitan, which is rather similar to the beef style except I use dragonfly brand pork-flavor broth instead. You know the drill. I left out the Worcestershire sauce and added some bacon salt (that stuff is fantastic, and meat-free). I made it with a cup of wheat gluten, but it turned out a little rubbery because I forgot to add the all-purpose flour. Still good, though.

Instead of making two cutlets I made three-- one for cubing up for the rice and two for slicing and frying. The fried rice was from a simple recipe I grabbed off the internet, to which I added a diced carrot for variation. It turned out rather tasty for a first attempt.

I sliced up the two other cutlets and pan fried them with a bit of Soy Vay's Veri Veri Teriyaki, which I can't recommend more highly for stir-fry. I like to use it for broccoli and "chicken" (usually Quorn Tenders, but I think it would be good with just about anything). It's got a fantastic garlicy flavor that sets it apart from other bottled teriyaki, and I like to use it as a base for a peanut sauce I like to make (something else I'll have to put up here sometime).



The sliced seitan ended up very flavorful while the rice was rather mild, so it was a good balance. Definitely something I'll be making again in the future.

Now, obviously this isn't a vegan recipe because I used egg, but I imagine one could put in some kind of tofu-y eggy substitute in it. In fact, I'd imagine there are plenty of great vegan fried rice recipes out there if you want to go looking.

One last thing: I don't know if people always do it this way, but I added the green onions after cooking, and it was GREAT that way. They stay nice and crisp, which is fantastic.

Yummy

Coming up next: Either seitan pepperoni, or seitan fried chicken!

Seitan Steak with Mashed Potatoes and Broccoli

So at the end of my last post I said I was going off to make a steak dinner and I must tell you, it turned out to be the best steak dinner I've ever made, and perhaps the best meal I've ever made. I cannot convey how pleased I ended up being with how this turned out. Every bite was incredibly satisfying, and I can only hope I'll be able to recreate it's magic next time I make this.

Looks pretty "real," doesn't it? Seitan beef steak is probably the fake meat that I have the most experience with making, because the first time I attempted it my boyfriend and I declared it a new favorite. At first I said that it would have to be only an occasional thing because I thought it was too difficult to make all the time. These days we probably have this just as often as any other given dinner, and I've realized it's actually not difficult, just a bit time consuming compared to what I'd been used to. Most of the time is spent just letting the seitan simmer though, so you can get this started in the afternoon and while it's cooking just go do something else. You do have to come back to it periodically, but just to turn it.

There are a lot of alternative broths out there that are delicious (such as the previously mentioned Better Than Boullion), but the one I've been using for a while now is Dragonfly brand artificial beef broth mix, which I found by chance while I was shopping at my favorite Asian grocery in Vancouver, WA.

Sorry for the blurriness

This stuff is a lifesaver. It's (as far as I can tell) meat free, relatively inexpensive at only $3 a can, and lasts a while. I'm a college student, and as such I really appreciate a bargain. There might be slightly more delicious vegetarian broths out there, but this one definitely gets the job done.

Now, I've found that the key to making something taste especially steaky is Worcestershire sauce. When buying this beware, however: traditionally Worcestershire sauce is made with anchovies which many if not most vegetarians don't eat. It is possible to find vegetarian Worcestershire sauce, but you have to check the ingredients.

Another flavoring that I've been obsessed with nearly my whole life is Johnny's Seasoning Salt ("It's pure magic!"). I find this is great for giving steaks a nice little pick-me-up. However, I do put this in almost anything that it would be remotely appropriate in, so don't think that this is the only way of doing it. If you think something else would be tasty, go for it! That's my attitude about cooking basically anything. You could try some kind of pre-made steak rub, or concoct your own. Whatever floats your boat.

For a dinner for my boyfriend and I, I mix up a cup of wheat gluten which is more than plenty. It might not seem like much, but it makes two very generously sized steaks. This could easily be enough dough for three or even four steaks depending on your preferred portions.  However, when I say I mix up a cup of wheat gluten what I really mean is my dry ingredients come out to about a cup. I'd say about a quarter cup of the gluten was replaced by all-purpose flour, which I believe was the key to the fantastic texture that it ended up having. Some people think that having that low of a gluten-content in the dough makes it too squishy (I guess they like their seitan really tough!). I think that doing this made my steaks deliciously tender, and wouldn't have it any other way.

I like to cook seitan cutlets and steaks in a wide shallow pan. This keeps things orderly, and will produce a nice flat piece of seitan. My pan comes from Cosco, and is called an "everyday pan." Kind of a silly name, but I'll be darned if it isn't true. I use this thing all the time, because it's very versatile.

The simmering broth comes out to about six cups in this pan, but the important thing here is just to make enough to cover (or mostly cover) your gluten. I added in my broth powder (being very generous), some Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, seasoning salt, and a couple bay leaves. I like to get this up to boiling just to be sure it's all integrated nicely before adding in the gluten.

Why, yes, my stove is comically tiny.

For the dough broth I heated a cup of water and stirred in a generous amount of the broth powder. The can calls for a teaspoon per two cups (or as the can inexplicably says, two teaspoons for four cups), but I find that this is much too weak, especially for use in seitan. I put in what must have come out to a little over two teaspoons, but I can't be sure because I just used the nifty little spoon that comes in the can. After this I added a generous splash of Worcestershire sauce and a large pinch of onion powder.

Time to combine them! SUPER IMPORTANT REMINDER: As I said in the previous post, always make a little well in the middle of the dry ingredients, pour in the broth, and mix carefully. Try really hard to avoid dry pockets, because they come out tough and nasty, and will ruin your nice tender steak.

After kneading it together I let it sit for a couple of minutes to let it settle a bit, which seems to help prevent bubbles. Next you just pull it apart into equal parts of however many steaks you want it to be-- in my case, two. You then want to put it on a cutting board or other flat surface and flatten it with your hands until it's around 3/4ths of an inch thick. Remember, this will bulk up considerably in cooking, so don't worry if it looks a little small. Once you have them flattened carefully lay them in your broth. It's not a problem if they're not completely covered, because we'll be turning them. You want to simmer them for an hour, turning them every ten minutes or so. Try your best to keep it a gentle simmer because if it goes to a full boil for too long something something I really don't know. This is just what everyone says so I've never done it any other way. You'll also want to put a lid on it to keep it from reducing too much.

Done simmering! Here the steaks have increased in size quite a bit, and the broth has reduced a little. At this point I take them out and put them in a colander or strainer to let them cool and drain a little bit. I reserved a few cups of the broth to make a gravy, and it turned out lovely! Very flavorful.

To finish off the steaks I like to pan sear them in a little oil (and seasoning salt, of course!), which is much easier to do with seitan than it is with beef. When pan searing beef you have to then bake it to let it finish cooking through, but since the seitan has already been cooked through you can skip that altogether.

And there you have it: a beautiful steak! I paired this with mashed potatoes and some sauteed broccoli, and I could not have been happier with how it came out.

A mouthwatering closeup

I don't imagine this is going to fool anyone into thinking they're eating meat, but it's close enough for me! Nice and chewy with a lovely savory flavor. I always eat mine with A1 steak sauce, because some habits never die. Put on it what you like, or eat it plain. You could even use this in another recipe like fajitas, or anything else that would traditionally call for beef. Such as jerky... but that's a recipe for another day.

As for now, I think it's time for a little afternoon tea because I made myself hungry writing this post.

Christmas "Ham": An Inaugural Post

Well, I thought I ought to start off this blog with a solid post, so I present to you my attempt at a Christmas ham that I cooked while I was on Winter break last month visiting home.

I decided to do a ham because I had done a "turkey" for Thanksgiving and wanted to try something new (sorry, I don't really have pictures of it so a turkey post will have to wait until next time I make one. In the meantime there are tons of great seitan turkey recipes out there on the vast internet.). Previous to this my only attempts had been poultry (mostly chicken) and beef, and I really wanted to try to capture the, how does one say, hammy-ness of a ham. My first step in preparing a new seitan recipe is to do some research as to what people are doing to the meats I'm trying to replicate. I sifted through a lot of ham recipes and came up with three very important ingredients: nutmeg, allspice, and clove. I figured that with the right amount of saltiness combined with these three spices, I could pretty well replicate the flavor of a ham. Well, that and a lot of brown sugar.

My personal favorite method to making any kind of roast-like seitan is to simmer in a slow-cooker for several hours. I feel that this is a good way to produce a tender juiciness all the way through. Firstly I start with the broth. One thing you should know about me is that recipes aren't for me. Don't get me wrong-- they're very useful and for some people crucial, but when I'm cooking I like to have a degree of freedom and flexibility (as I like to say, I enjoy cooking by intuition). As such I actually don't know how much of most of the ingredients I used. I'll try to give an approximation whenever I can, though.

For the base of the broth I used Better Than Boullion's No Chicken flavor. I first learned about this stuff from Jenn Shagrin's fantastic cookbook "Veganize This!" and will use it whenever I want to make something really delicious. They also make No Beef broth, but I went with the No Chicken because I thought it would more easily adapt to a ham flavor (that, and my mom happened to have a jar of it on hand anyway). I made about seven cups of it because I was making a pretty big roast and my mom's crock pot is rather large. I also tend to use slightly more of the Better Than Boullion per cup of water than the directions call for, because the more flavorful the broth, the more flavorful the seitan. I then put in some dried onions (because you can never go wrong with onion), a few teaspoons of various spices (nutmeg, allspice, clove, plus others that sounded good at the time, I'm sure), a nice pour of maple syrup, a few tablespoons of brown sugar, and a few tablespoons of liquid smoke (oh-so necessary). Add a couple of bay leaves for good measure and we're in business!

Next step is to mix up the broth for the wheat gluten dough. Some people use water but I'm completely mystified as to why; I find that the majority of the flavor comes from the way you season your dough. The seasoning for the simmering broth is mostly just to make sure you don't lose any of the flavor in cooking.

Here you can see I've mixed up four cups of Better Than Boullion (you definitely want this on the strong side) with some Bragg's Liquid Aminos (soy sauce works just as well, but I like Bragg's a little better and had it on hand), the aforementioned spices, brown sugar, and some more liquid smoke (as well as some red food coloring to try to make it a bit pink). This is the stage where you really decide what your seitan is going to taste like, so have fun! This bit I pretty much just make up off the top of my head. I heat up my water in the microwave before adding in the flavorings because it seems to dissolve better that way. This is why I make the broth before mixing up my dry ingredients-- I want to let the broth cool for a bit so I don't burn myself (although, really, I end up burning myself anyway because I am impatient).

Here you can see my vital wheat gluten (four cups), to which I usually add a little (a few tablespoons) all-purpose or bread flour. This is a way to keep your seitan from being too tough and chewy. That can be a good thing sometimes, such as when you're trying to recreate beef, but I wanted my ham to be nice and tender. There on top of the flours you can see my spices-- all stuff mentioned before, as well as some ground sea salt. Table salt will do, but I like using a salt grinder. I then use my whisk to mix it all up until it seems nicely blended. At this point, DO NOT just dump your broth into the dry mixture. This is a terrible thing which I sometimes forget not to do, and then I cry and cry. What you want to do is make a little well in the center of your dry ingredients and pour the broth in there. If you don't do it this way, there's a good chance that you will end up with dry pockets in the dough as you knead it which, if not attended to, will turn into unpleasantly tough areas in your seitan. Yuck! This, sadly, is what I did to my ham dough. It took me a lot of working to get all the dry pockets out (much kneading and soaking and crying). So, pour the liquid into the middle, then carefully begin to knead it all together into a spongy dough.

Now, isn't that ugly? Seitan dough looks pretty gross (especially with red food coloring, I found), but this is the way it's supposed to be. I ended up having some left over liquid, which isn't a problem. In fact, since I had to deal with dry pockets in my dough, it came in handy for soaking them. At this point, if I have time, I like to let the dough sit and deal with itself for a little while. I find this can minimize the amount of air bubbles in the dough, and generally make it more well behaved. After it settled for a while I kneaded it a few minutes more for good measure, then shaped it into a log and wrapped it in cheesecloth. This helps it to retain its shape as it cooks.

Next, I put my ham into the crock pot and wish it luck! I put the cooker on low heat and left it for several hours. It's okay that the broth doesn't cover the whole thing, because we can just turn it. I turned it sometime late that night, and it smelled fantastic.

This is when I turned it. It's not very clear here, but it had swelled quite a bit by this point. I left it for the rest of the night.

Steamy goodness. I took it out of the pot the next morning (after opening presents, of course) and let it cool and drain a bit in a colander.

After peeling off the cheesecloth. It ended up baking a little bit on the parts that were out of the liquid, but this was okay because I planned on baking it a little anyway. Some cheesecloth fibers stuck to it, but this wasn't noticeable after glazing. I ended up using Top Secret Recipes "Honeybaked Ham Glaze," which I altered slightly. I'd tell you what it is, but I think if I did they might put a hit out on me. That, or sue me or something.

And here it is! Scored and glazed, and put under the broiler for a little while.  The glaze was fantastic, and I'd call the ham an overall success. I think it may have been a little too tough, and probably could have been more flavorful. But, for a first attempt, rather yummy! For sides we had garlic sauteed asparagus, roasted sweet potatoes, vegan "cheesy" biscuits, and homemade (purple) mashed potatoes with some gravy I made with the leftover broth. Interesting, but a bit sugary for a gravy.

For now, I'm gonna go make a veggie steak dinner. I promise to document.