This is the Best Vegan Turkey Recipe! Moist, flavourful with the perfect chew. Serve for your holiday main course with gravy or sliced as deli meat for your favourite veggie sandwich.
Impress all your friends with this easy vegan turkey seitan recipe! You won’t believe the texture and flavour of this mock meat! It’s so much like turkey! (well as close as you can get anyway?) I’ll admit it took me awhile to perfect it, uhh like 6 times to be exact, haha. So let me just say I have a lot of meatless turkey loaf in my freezer for thanksgiving. Christmas and Easter, and of course for sandwiches and wraps.
This vegetarian turkey recipe is made using vital wheat gluten and chickpeas not tofu. So no guys this isn’t a Tofurky roast! Yes those Gardein Holiday turkey roasts are good, but I like the texture of this recipe better. It chews like turkey and the taste is awesome!
Oh and this makes the best hot open faced vegan turkey sandwiches!!?
Enjoy this Whole vegan turkey loaf with all the vegan fixings like: mashed potatoes, scalloped potatoes, mushroom gravy, stuffing, roasted veggies and Brussel sprouts, butternut squash, Mac and cheese, fresh buns, green salad and cranberry sauce! Yum!! You’ll be so happy and stuffed! And don’t forget some pumpkin cupcakes for dessert with some hot coffee or tea! What a meal plan!
What is Seitan?
Seitan is a vegan meat substitute made using vital wheat gluten. It is sometimes referred to as “wheat meat”
What is Vital Wheat Gluten?
Vital Wheat Gluten is made from wheat. It is made by washing the wheat flour with water until all the starch has been removed. And you are then left with the gluten which must be cooked before eaten.
How to make a Vegan Turkey:
Start by adding all the ingredients (except vital wheat gluten) to your food processor: chickpeas, water, bouillon, Braggs, seasonings, sesame oil and nutritional yeast. Process until smooth.
Pour the puree into a large mixing bowl, scraping out as much as possible with a spatula. Add in the vital wheat gluten. Mix by hand until combined. Then kneed the dough 10-15 times. Shape into a log.
Using a medium pot with a steamer insert. Place the turkey roll into the steamer part and fill the base of the pot with the veggie stock.
Cover with the lid and bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce to a good simmer and cook for 1 hour. Baste after 30 minutes and add more veggie stock if necessary.
Once done remove the turkey loaf and cool on cutting board for 10 minutes. Slice thinly and serve. Or cool completely, refrigerate and slice as deli meat. Enjoy! For full recipe ingredients and instructions see recipe card below.
Ok let's make a Vegan Turkey Roast, it's:
meatless
moist
flavourful
got the perfect chew!
delicious with gravy
perfect sliced on a vegan deli meat sandwich!
kid friendly
easy to make
Enjoy guys! Happy day to you? feel free to leave a comment and a rating below. I would love to hear from you.
Follow me on PINTEREST and INSTAGRAM for more tasty Vegan Recipes❤️
Want more Seitan recipes? Check these out!
- Vegan Burger (Best Grillable Vegan Burger Ever!)
- Vegetarian Salsbury Steak Meatloaf with mushroom gravy (Vegan) (Meatball Version)
This recipe was inspired from The Edgy Veg
Vegan Turkey Recipe (Seitan)
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 8-10 Servings 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This is the Best Vegan Turkey Recipe! Moist, flavourful with the perfect chew. Serve for your holiday main course with gravy or sliced as deli meat for your favourite veggie sandwich.
Ingredients
- 1 (541 mls) (18 fl oz) (equivalent of 2 cups) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- ¾ cup water
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, toasted or regular
- 2 tablespoons Braggs Liquid aminos ,can sub Tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Better Than Bouillon Vegetarian No Chicken Soup Base
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1 teaspoon granulated onion
- ½ teaspoon granulated garlic
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme (optional)
- 1 and ½ cups Vital Wheat Gluten
For Steaming:
- 3 cups vegetable stock ( for steaming roast)
Basting/Oven:
- 2 tablespoons melted vegan butter + 1 tablespoon Tamari, Braggs, or soy sauce, reg or low sodium + ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- ¾ cup vegetable broth (I like better than bouillon no chicken soup base)
Instructions
- Start by adding all the ingredients (except vital wheat gluten) to your food processor: chickpeas, water, bouillon, Braggs, seasonings, sesame oil and nutritional yeast. Process until smooth.
- Pour the puree into a large mixing bowl, scraping out as much as possible with a spatula. Add in the vital wheat gluten. Mix by hand until combined (it won't stick to your hands) Then kneed the dough 10-15 times. Shape into a log.
- Using a medium pot with a steamer insert. Place the turkey roll into the steamer part and fill the base of the pot with the veggie stock.
- Cover with the lid and bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce to a good simmer and cook for 1 hour. Baste the roast after 30 minutes with a ⅓ cup of the hot stock and add a little more veggie stock if necessary to the bottom of pot.
- Once done remove the turkey loaf and cool on cutting board for at least 10 minutes. Slice thinly and serve. Or cool completely, refrigerate and slice as deli meat. Enjoy! (for best texture I recommend cooling in fridge overnight then continue with step 6) Step by step photos in the above post if necessary.
- Basting in Oven (optional extra step after steaming for more flavour and nicer presentation -this isn't in video): Preheat oven 375° Add whole steamed turkey to a small casserole dish not much bigger than roast. Pour in the veggie broth (don't add broth until oven is preheated). Brush on all melted butter mixture. Bake uncovered 35 minutes, basting half way through, add splash extra broth if needed.
Delicious served with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, vegan stuffing and Mac and Cheese! or in your favourite sandwich or wrap!
Alternative cooking instructions in 'Notes' section
Notes
- If for some reason all the vital wheat gluten doesn't all mix into the dough, don't sweat it just keep mixing and kneading per recipe instructions. It will still work!
- If you don't have a steamer insert use a steamer basket in a pot and cover with a piece of parchment paper then add the vegan roast.
- this recipe works in the oven also: add a steamer basket with a piece of parchment paper to a Dutch Oven or casserole dish with the veggie stock, cover and bake for 1 hour at 350°.
- If you don't have a steamer insert or a basket you can make a tinfoil boat and place the roast on it, place in a Dutch Oven or casserole dish. Pour the veggie stock underneath the foil in the pot. Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour. The stock might bubble up into the foil boat but it still works and tastes delish!
- To make ahead of time: Yes you can make up to 1-2 days before hand (just the steaming method) cool to room temperature wrap and refrigerate. To reheat let sit out on counter for 20 minutes, make the basting sauce and follow baking instructions. FYI- once steamed the turkey is ready to eat like video
- To store and freeze: It will keep covered in the fridge for up to 5 days and freezes great, I like to portion and slice it first then wrap in plastic wrap add to a container and freeze.
- Gluten free: No this recipe can only be made with vital wheat gluten there no substitutions. So it is not gluten free.
- Instant Pot: you can use instant pot instead of steaming. Wrap turkey tightly in tin foil place on rack inside the Instant Pot. Add 2 and ½ cups of water. Close lid, set pressure valve to sealing, select the steam option Set it to 30 minutes. Press start. Once done let pressure release naturally. Then follow step 6 basting/baking instructions.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 60 Minutes
- Category: Mains
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American, Canadian
Steph says
Delicious turkey alternative!! Thank you for creating a juicy, delicious soy free seitan turkey! This is my go to from now until eternity!!
Dani says
Preface: I used a 15.5 oz can of chickpeas instead of 18 oz. I used onion bouillon because they don't sell the vegetarian chicken broth one where I shop. I also added a little curry powder and Cajun salt to the dough.
The texture turned out amazing and the flavor was great too. It was the best vegetarian imitation of turkey I've had. I love the ham recipe but this one was even better. I'm amazed one can do that with 50% chickpeas.
Deanna says
This recipe is great! The best seitan recipe I have made yet .
Thank you chickpea 🧡
Amber says
Absolutely delicious! The texture is nice and firm and it slices beautifully. I added a little smoked paprika and chipotle chili powder to boost the smoky flavor. Liquid smoke would work too. My meat eating husband said it's tasty and he's really enjoying it sliced in sandwiches. And these slices are SO economical. I doubled the recipe, steamed for 2 hours, and made over three pounds of vegan turkey slices for about $9.00 worth of ingredients. My local stores sell 5.5 oz. packages of "Smoked Deli Slices" for around $5 (meaning 3 lb. of slices at the grocery store would cost me about $45). This recipe is a keeper! Thank you so much for this! 10 out of 10.
Marsha says
This looks great and I really want to try this recipe.
I’m thinking about texture and so when serving to meat eaters or previous meat eaters the Instant Pot method might give a closer texture of the real thing. Would that be correct?
So, if you use the Instant Pot method, do you have to still cool it in the fridge before proceeding to step 6, the basting method?
Thank you for sharing and for your answer.
Verna Rindler says
Hi Marsha I think steaming and instant pot are both great in my opinion so use what you prefer and texture of the seitan always improves if rested and cooled in the fridge first but still delicious if you skip it. Enjoy your Thanksgiving 🙂
Emily says
This turned out so good! I followed the recommendation and left the seitan in the fridge overnight then basted in the oven. Taste and texture were perfect!
Verna Rindler says
I am thrilled you enjoyed it Emily 🙂 thank you for your wonderful feedback!
Alexa says
I made the turkey roast the day before then baked it the next day with the broth and seasonings. It was fantastic we loved the taste and texture. I will be making this on a regular basis from now on for sandwiches, soups, with veggies and gravy you name it! Thanks for sharing such a brilliant recipe. Cheers to you!
Verna says
Thank you for a wonderful review! So happy you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
Mark says
I’ve made this recipe numerous times for my family and it is always delicious and so is your gravy!
Chaim says
Wow! Nobody will mistake this for turkey, but for a vegan imitation, this is really good. The flavor is really nice, and the texture is surprisingly meaty. The entire dish was gobbled down in our Thanksgiving meal.
Do NOT skip the oven basting step. This adds a whole extra depth of flavor and moistness.
Verna says
So glad your family enjoyed it. Thank you for the wonderful feedback it is so very appreciated!
Lynnette Booker says
Will be okay to add liquid smoke so can I have a smoke turkey
Katie Hale says
Yes
Julia says
Tried this yesterday and it was so good. 😍 This is gonna be my new vegan turkey every Thanksgiving.
Verna says
So glad you enjoyed it Julia! Thanks so much for your wonderful feedback.
Starrysky says
Hello Verna,
Great Recipe! Will finish baking the cooled steamed seitan loaf in the oven tomorrow (currently in the fridge). I subsituted using Olive Oil for the Sesame Oil. I also added about 8 small green olives with pimento (inspired by "David's" comment posted on October 7, 2020 where he used Castelvetrano olives), used soy sauce, organic vegetable broth (insead of bouillion chicken soup base), and dried Rosemary. Noting (n case this helps someone else who may not have all of the actual recipe ingredients on hand. After reading a comment posted by "James" on JUly 5, 2020, I decided to use my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer to do the kneading part with the Dough Hook starting out lower on "stir", or "1, and then increasing speed to "2" for 9-10 minutes. Otherwise, I followed the receipe by first mixing the ingredients in my food processor, except for the Vital Wheat Gluten as the recioe states, and then added this mixture and the Vital Wheat Gluten to the stand mixer for kneadng. This seems to be one of the best and easy Vegan Turkey recipies!!! Love that it is not made with tofu. And looking forward to using it for sandwiches as well. It's a keeper. Have A Blessed Thanksgiving, Verna, and Everyone.
Verna says
Thank you for a wonderful review and all of your helpful suggestions! So very appreciated. Hope you and yours have a beautiful day xo
Jon says
I've seen other similar recipes that use a food processor to help develop the gluten before cooking. Would that work for this recipe?
Verna says
Hi Jon yes it would. Mix it until just combined and then knead per instructions. Enjoy
Craig says
I don't think i have ever seen a 18oz can of chickpeas. Ever. If i recall correctly the typical size is like 13.5 or 14oz. Do you happen to know how much beans that is drained? I would like to use this but usually cook dry beans in the instant pot so i need to know the actual amount of beans to convert it. I would like to make this for Thanksgiving.
Verna says
Hi Craig, I give cup measurements in the recipe card it is equivalent to 2 cups. Enjoy!
Craig says
Okay. So 2 cups cooked, which by should be 2/3 dry beans (for anyone else that might be wondering).
Sarah DeAngelo says
Hello! Can you add stuffing into the middle of this roast?
Verna says
Hi Sarah I haven't tried but I'm sure you could make it work. Let me know if you do and how it turns out!
KM says
We made this today to make deli meat for vacation day trip sandwiches this week. It is so freakin’ good! Perfect for sammies and, although I haven’t had it as a roast dinner, it would be amazing for the too. Just perfect. ☺️
Thanks for another winning recipe!
Verna says
Yay!! thrilled you enjoyed it. Thanks so much I really appreciate your feed back
Lauren says
love this recipe I sprinkle Montreal chicken seasoning on it before roasting. It's so yummy, my kids love it
Verna says
Sounds great Lauren, thank you for your feedback!