BBQ Seitan and Coleslaw

As I write, it is a cool and breezy evening and the sound of the Phillies playing in the background.  We have the windows open and no damage from the hurricane that recently ripped through the northeast.  Today was beautiful and we had a lovely dinner.  Not this dinner, but a lovely one nonetheless and we have much to be thankful for.  This dinner was inspired by the only menu item that lures me into choosing the same thing every time I go to the restaurant. 





The hubs and I love Home Grown Cafe in Newark, Delaware and despite the distance, we end up going there at least every other month. I love their menu where almost everything can be made either vegan or vegetarian with then even choices of protein.  Somehow though, their "sloppy joe" gets me every time and I end up eschewing other options for a trusted favorite (the bahn mi was another inspiration for a recipe on the blog). 

As promised, I am finally talking a bit about seitan.  "What is seitan?" you may ask.  Well, for starters, it is oddly pronounced like "satan" with the second a sounding a bit more like "on." (sorry grammar people- i never learned phonetics).  Seitan is made out of wheat gluten and is a more convincing meat substitute as far as texture goes.  We don't eat it very often, but is great for an occasional treat.  I have never made it before this recipe, though I have bought it frozen before with less than desirable results. 

I loosely used the recipe in Veganomicon for seitan, found here though I omitted the lemon and veg broth because I was out.  I am sure it will taste better next time if I use a good quality broth.  I prefer Trader Joe's brand of concentrated liquid bouillon but they haven't been carrying it for quite a while. 

BBQ Sauce  (adapted from Recipes from an Ecological Kitchen)

1/4 c apple cider vinegar

1/4 c soy sauce

2 T tomato paste

1 pt cherry tomatoes, seeded

1/4 c maple syrup

1 T olive oil

3 t dry mustard

2 large cloves garlic, minced

red pepper flakes to taste

1 t liquid smoke

salt and pepper to taste

In a blender, mix all ingredients together.  Taste and adjust seasonings.  Pour into a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes for tomatoes to reduce. 

BBQ Seitan

Slice the seitan cutlets into 1/2 in thick slices and sear on a cast iron griddle on all sides.  Toss into bbq sauce and simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve with good rolls and a better cole slaw than the one pictured above (I spared you the recipe, no point in making you suffer the poor quality slaw as well- find you favorite blog and use theirs).