What is seitan?

Have you heard of seitan, a plant-based meat alternative with roots dating back centuries? Join us to learn more about this protein packed vegan staple and the surprisingly simple preparation methods that can be used to make this a delicious addition to any diet. 

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Transcript

Today we’re exploring a centuries old meat substitute from Asia. Whether you’re a seasoned vegetarian, a curious foodie, or just looking to spice up your meals, stay tuned as we share the potential of this plant-based, protein packed food. 

M: I’m Professor Megan 

S: and I’m Professor Susan, and we’re

Both: Your Nutrition Profs!

M: We are registered dietitians and college professors who have taught more than 10,000 students about health and nutrition. We have answered a LOT of questions about nutrition over the years – 

S: Some questions we get asked every year and some are rarely asked but very interesting.

M: We’re here to share our answers to these common (and uncommon) nutrition questions with you.

S: So bring your curiosity and let’s get started. 

Both: Welcome to our class!

M: Hello everyone! Welcome to another snack–i-sode.

S: Yay! I love it when we get to eat during an episode!

M: Me too! Alright, today we're exploring an ancient plant-based meat alternative, seitan and that’s spelled S-E-I-T-A-N. 

S: I’m so glad we’re doing this episode. I’ve seen it in the store, but I’ve never bought any to try at home…until now!

M: So you may be asking listeners, “What is seitan?” It’s a plant-based meat substitute that is often described as dense and somewhat chewy with a texture similar to meat or chicken. It’s typically light to dark brown in color and can be shaped into many different forms, cubes, strips, patties, you name it. 

S: It’s super versatile and its described as having an umami flavor, but it can also take on the flavors that it is cooked with, like tofu or tempeh. 

M: So let’s define umami really quickly in case anyone is unfamiliar with it. Umami is one of the five basic tastes along with sour, salty, bitter, and sweet. Umami in Japanese means “essence of deliciousness.” 

S: Essence of deliciousness – I like that! You find umami flavor in meaty and savory foods, things like meat, broth, and mushrooms. It’s also found in foods that are high in the amino acid glutamate including monosodium glutamate, which you probably know better as MSG.

M: We often get asked about MSG, so stay tuned, we’ll definitely do an episode on that soon.

S: Definitely, but back to seitan. Seitan by itself doesn’t have much flavor although some describe it as having the flavor and texture of chicken. 

M: And if you’re familiar with tofu, seitan is similar in many ways. They are both plant-based, versatile in cooking and texture… but apparently seitan is considered a better mimic to meat than tofu is. In fact, it’s often called wheat meat here in the U.S. 

S: I’ve seen that – wheat meat.

M: Me too.

S: It’s called fu in Japan, mianjin in China, or milgogi in Korea. But what’s it made of?

M: Gluten. 

S: Gluten. 

M: Gluten. Seitan is made of gluten. And most people have heard of gluten – it’s been all over social media for the last decade, but many may not know what it really is. Gluten is a mixture of two proteins, gliadin and glutenin, and is found in grains like wheat, barley, rye, and some others. 

S: So in food, gluten helps provide structure and elasticity. In baked goods, it traps gasses produced by yeast or other leavening agents (like baking soda or baking powder) and this allows dough to rise. This increases volume and texture.

M: It also serves as a binding agent or “glue” that holds ingredients together, and it contributes to the chewiness of foods like bagels and crusts. 

S: Gluten is separated from the starch in wheat, and that’s what’s used to make seitan. We’ll talk a little bit more about this process in a little bit. 

M: So we mentioned in the intro that it’s an ancient plant-based meat substitute. Where did it come from? 

S: Well seitan can reportedly be traced back to Buddhist monks in sixth century China, making it one of the oldest known meat substitutes.

M: Wow. 

S; They created it by washing wheat flour dough repeatedly to remove the starch leaving only the elastic, pliable gluten.  

M: Some sources suggest that its popularity gradually spread across Asia to the Middle East and Europe via the Silk Road but we don’t really know for sure… 

S: And the term, seitan, is a Japanese word and it’s believed to have been coined in 1961. “Sei” S-E-I means “made” or “produced” and “tan” means “protein” Or at least that’s what the internet said. 

M: The first commercially made seitan was produced in 1962. It was made by simmering raw wheat gluten in a broth made of water, soy sauce, a sea vegetable called kombu, and ginger. And it was imported to the Western world in 1969.

S: One of seitan’s biggest claims to fame is that it’s packed with protein. And it’s plant-based, so it can be an excellent protein option for vegetarians and vegans. 

M: Other popular alternative meat products are made from tofu and tempeh. Tofu has a smooth texture and is made from condensed, pressed soy milk, while tempeh is made from fermented soybeans. 

S: Soy is a complete protein, meaning it contains all 9 of the essential amino acids. Essential means we have to get these amino acids from food we eat. All animal foods are complete proteins, they have all 9 of these essential amino acids. Most plant foods are not – they have fewer than 9.

M: Seitan is not a complete protein because, well, it’s made from a plant – wheat. It lacks 2 of the 9 essential amino acids but it’s still really high in protein. Just one serving has ~20g of protein which is about the same as a 3 oz serving of chicken or beef.  The equivalent amount of tofu only has ~8g. 

S: So I guess this high level of protein is not too surprising since it’s made out of gluten and that’s the main protein in wheat and most other grains. 

M: Yeah, and according to the USDA, a 3oz serving of seitan is about 120 kcal, again 21g of protein as we just said, very little fat or carbohydrate, only 1g fiber. It’s a good source of the mineral selenium and provides a very small amount of calcium and iron. 

S: But unfortunately it can be fairly high in sodium. So always check the labels on the pre-packaged versions. The sodium can vary widely, but all pre-made versions likely provide significantly more sodium than homemade. 

M: Ok, so seitan is a meat alternative. Does that mean you can use it in any recipe calling for meat? Well…. It sure seems like it. A quick google search for recipes using seitan had nearly 3.5 million hits. 

S: It does seem to be pretty versatile. Some recommended uses include layered on sandwiches like deli meat, in ground form as a ground beef substitute, sliced into strips for fajitas or stir fry, or added to soups and stews, and you can even put it on a skewer like a kebab. 

M: The most common form I’ve seen is ready-made cubes at the grocery store. I think you can also get it in powder form from which you can use almost any way you wish. You can buy it plain or with flavors like bacon or sausage.

S: An even more common google search, returning more than 12 million hits was “seitan recipes”. These are recipes to actually make seitan, not recipes for what to use seitan in. And some seemed a little bit more complicated, some were pretty straightforward.

M: Yeah we found one simple recipe with only 4 ingredients: vital wheat gluten, salt, garlic powder, and water. This one is made with wheat gluten as its own ingredient. So once you mix and make a dough, it’s really simple to just cook it, bake, simmer, steam, fry, however you like.  

S: You can typically find vital wheat gluten in the cooking aisle of a grocery store. It's usually next to all the various types of flours. While it’s not technically a flour, it’s a flour-like powder. It can be added to your bread dough to increase the protein content and it will improve elasticity and chewiness. In fact if you buy actual bread flour, it's basically all purpose flour with additional gluten added. 

M: And we found another seitan recipe, this one with only 3 ingredients: all purpose flour, water, and broth. This one requires you to wash the dough yourself… So maybe a bit more authentic? But definitely more time consuming. 

S: I have no idea how to wash dough.

M: I know, I know.

S: Of course, there are several recipes online with a whole host of ingredients including added nutritional yeast for a more nutty or cheesy flavor. You can add soy sauce, broth, herbs for flavor. And I did find vital wheat gluten in our grocery store and it had its own recipe for seitan on the back of the package. 

M: So once seitan is cooked and cooled completely, you can be store it in the fridge for 3 to 4 days and of course, you can freeze it as well. Today we have a few pre-made seitan products to try. We have plain, chili lime flavored, prosciutto flavored, and chicken flavored. 

S: Ok but before we taste test, is there any reason why someone might want to avoid seitan? 

M: Yes, because it’s made out of gluten, those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity should definitely avoid seitan. 

S: It’s estimated that 2 million people in the United States or as many as 1 out of every 133 have celiac. And it’s been suggested that up to 6% of the U.S. population may be gluten sensitive.  

M: And globally, it’s estimated that 1% of the population has celiac. We don't have good data on global gluten sensitivity prevalence though. There is also some debate on what actually constitutes gluten sensitivity and how it’s diagnosed. 

S: But if gluten is an issue for you, definitely avoid any form of seitan. 

M: We also mentioned that often high amounts of sodium are found in pre-prepared seitan products. And there are several populations who should limit their sodium intake including those with hypertension, heart disease (like congestive heart failure), kidney, or liver disease.

S: So make sure to check the labels. Or you can always make your own seitan and that way you would have much better control over sodium levels. But let’s take a look at some of our products.

M: Ok, so we have two products. One is a Blackbird chili lime seitan and it’s about 13% sodium for one serving.  

S: That’s 13% of your daily intake.

M: Daily intake. And then the other one is seitan cubes from Franklin Farms – that’s 15%. 

S: And I’ve got some plant based chicken strips and that’s 35% of your daily sodium intake for a single serving. And we’ve got this deli slice, um,, deli slices that are prosciutto style and they are 30% of your daily sodium intake in one serving

M: Yeah.

S: So as we said, the pre-packaged seitan is definitely very high in sodium. So make sure you check them. out. 

M: Well I want to eat some food.

S: Let’s try it. 

M: So is this going to be your first time trying seitan, Susan? 

S: I’m not really sure. I may have had it before but I can’t really remember. How about you?

M: I have actually, although at the time I didn’t know it. I used to get various vegetarian dishes at a local vegetarian restaurant, here in town called Green, that included “wheat meat”. At the time I didn’t know that that meant it was seitan. So as I was doing research for this episode, it hit me! That was seitan that I was eating! And I have to say, I actually liked it better than dishes that have been made with tofu.  

S: Oh! I mean, I like tofu in some dishes.

M: I do too, but I liked this more…

S: Well, we’ll see.

M: Alright, so we have some here to try.

S: Ok, we have five different types of seitan to try. So what do you want to try first?

M: Um, let’s go with the cubed.

S: Ok.

M: The cubed, the unflavored. 

S: So this is supposedly unflavored – the cubed. And we fried it in a little bit of oil. And honestly it looks like steak. 

M: It kind of does look like steak, in like small–

S: Brown, cubed steak. Here we go.

M: I like it. 

S: I think it’s a little softer–

M: I was going to say…

S: –then meat. I can definitely taste the sodium. 

M: I can too.

S: So these cubes, what do you think Megan? They look a lot like meat.

M:They look like small, like little chunks of steak. 

S: Mmm-hmm. It doesn't look like steak on the inside but– 

M: Maybe processed steak? 

S: Softer, then meat. 

M: Definitely softer.

S: I’m getting a little of the umami flavor.

M: Definitely.

S: I’m definitely getting some sodium flavor – salt flavor. It was 15% on the cubes. So one serving is 15% of your daily intake and 13g of protein. 

M: The third ingredient is soy sauce… and you can taste it. 

S: Yeah, you can definitely taste it. 

M: It’s not bad.

S: No, no. 

M:  Alright, let’s try the, um chicken?

S: Let’s try the chicken. This is 13% of your sodium intake and 14g of protein per serving. This is supposed to taste like chili lime. I’m getting a little citrus

M: Me too. I can– yeah, I can tell the flavoring on it. I like the texture, it’s also kind of soft.

S: It is. It reminds me really of shredded chicken. 

M: I really like it. 

S:I would totally eat this in a product.

M: For sure.

S: And you know, I was kind of concerned that I thought maybe it would have a little bit of an aftertaste, but I’m not noticing that. Ok, so let’s try the seitan– these are chicken strips. They look like French fries, but they’re skinny chicken… 

M: Like fajita chicken.

S: Yeah, that's  a good way to say it. Let’s try it. We air fried these. I am getting a chicken like texture and I say “not bad”

M: Yeah, not bad. It’d be a little bit better with some seasoning.

S: Yeah, it’s a little bit dry. That chicken strip and the Chicken nugget that we’ve got they’re a combination of seitan and a soy based product.

M: Yes. 

S: So they’re not straight up seitan – they’re a combo. Alright, let’s try the chicken nugget.

M: Ok.

S: Also air fried.

M: It tastes like McDonalds. 

S: I’m not wild about it.

M: Same.

S: But it does taste like McDonalds.

M: It tastes just like a… chicken nugget.

S: I can’t tell the- I mean, the texture is the same as a McDonald's Chicken McNugget. The flavor’s pretty much the same. These are breaded. 

M: They’re breaded, yeah–

S: And we air-fried them. 

M: And honestly, I don’t know the last time I had McDonalds chicken nuggets but it's exactly what I would expect from a chicken-based frozen chicken nugget product.

S: Right, right. The only difference here is that both of those chicken products and these are chicken with additional soys product added, they’re very high in sodium. They were the highest–

M: Yes.

S: They were the highest ones. And protein wise though, they're also fairly high. Like we said 16g of protein in a serving. So much higher than, you know, some other– like something based on soy–

M: Yeah.

S: –only.  Ok so the last thing we’re going to try. This is dry… raw– it’s not cooked, I mean I guess it was cooked somewhere else. But this supposedly a deli slice– a deli meat slice that is supposed to taste like prosciutto or ham. 

M: It kind of looks like a dark colored fruit rollup. 

S: It does!

M: Like a real thin… It’s not giving prosciutto.

S: I’m getting a lot of smoky. It’s really really smoky. Ok, let's try it. I would say the texture is similar to prosciutto… a little bit denser.

M: It’s got an aftertaste.

S: Oh yeah, it does. My least favorite so far. 

M: Yeah, same. 

S: Is this deli slice of prosciutto ham.

M: But overall, I like it.

S: I was a little concerned– I was a little nervous about trying these but I have to say that all of these were pretty good.

M: Yeah. 

S: Most of the boxes that I purchased were between $3 and $5 for a few servings.

M: Yeah.

S: So… less expensive than meat now. 

M: Yeah. 

S: Than chicken or beef.

M: And of course you can always try and make it yourself at home.

S: You can make yourself at home from the vital wheat gluten if you can find it and put in whatever–

M: Flavor you want….

S: Flavoring you want. So I’m pleasantly surprised by seitan. 

M: Me too.

S: And I would have it again.

M: Yeah, so thanks everyone for joining us today. This was a really interesting food to research!

S: It was– the history was really interesting to me. Yeah, I had no idea it had been around since the 6th century. It’s really cool. We hope you give seitan a try! There are a lot of meat alternatives out there on the market, and maybe seitan is right for you. 

M: So let us know what other unusual food we should discuss on the pod. Send us an email or contact us on instagram. Thank you so much for listening. Join us next time when we’ll answer the question should I take a magnesium supplement? Is magnesium really a magical cure all?

M: We hope you join us!

S: We do.

Both: Class dismissed!

S: We hope you enjoyed this episode. You can find the show notes and a list of sources on our website, yournutritionprofs.com. 

M: Your homework is to follow us at your nutrition profs on Instagram and to listen to our next episode. You can listen on Amazon Prime, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or anywhere podcasts are found. We’d appreciate it if you’d “like” us, write a review, subscribe, and invite your family and friends to join us too. 

S: If you have a nutrition or health question you’d like answered, let us know! We may even do a show about it! Send an email to yournutritionprofs@gmail.com or click on the “Contact Us” page on our website.

M: Thanks to Brian Pittman for creating our artwork. You can find him on instagram @BrianPittman77

Both: See you next time!