Vegan turkey roast

5 from 1 vote

This tender and delicious vegan turkey roast is perfect for cutting into thick slices on Thanksgiving and garnishing with fried sage leaves. Filled with fall flavors, it pairs perfectly with your favorite holiday side dishes.

Outside of the holiday season, slice it thin for deli sandwiches, add it to soups, or put it in pot pie.

Prep Time15

Cook Time50

Total Time1 5

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: seitan turkey, thanksgiving dinner, vegan thanksgiving

Servings: people

Calories: 219kcal

Author: Cadry Nelson

Ingredients

For vegan turkey roast

2 cups vital wheat gluten
½ cup chickpea flour
½ cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 Tablespoon onion powder or granulated onion
½ teaspoon dried marjoram
¼ teaspoon rubbed sage
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon herbs de Provence
½ teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon salt
Several dashes black pepper or several twists of the pepper grinder
2 cups water plus more for steaming
½ teaspoon Better Than Bouillon, no chicken base
1 Tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
1 Tablespoon tamari

For basting vegan turkey roast

¼ cup vegan butter
1 teaspoon tamari

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients: vital wheat gluten, chickpea flour, nutritional yeast flakes, onion powder, dried marjoram, rubbed sage, dried thyme, herbs de Provence, dried rosemary, salt, and pepper.
(When you add the dried rosemary, use your fingers to crush and break up the rosemary leaves into smaller pieces.)
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the wet ingredients: water, Better Than Bouillon no chicken base, avocado oil, and 1 Tablespoon tamari. Stir with a whisk or fork until the bouillon has mostly dissolved.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry. First combine by stirring. Once it becomes a dough, use your hands to combine and knead it, making sure to get any dry flour from the sides of the bowl. (You don't need to knead the dough a lot. Just enough so that it's uniform with no flour-y spots.)
Form the dough into a loaf.
Run a cheesecloth (or thin white cotton tea towel) under water. Wring it out with your hands until it's just damp. Then wrap the dampened cheesecloth (or towel) around the loaf.
For a firm, log-shaped vegan turkey loaf, wrap it tightly. For a moister, slightly oval-shaped roast, loosely wrap it with room to expand.
Put a couple of inches of water into a steamer pot with insert. Bring to a simmer. Put the wrapped loaf into the basket. Cover with a lid. Steam for 45 minutes.
Be sure to watch that the pot doesn't cook off all of the water. You want enough water that it will keep steaming for the full amount of time, but not so much that the water touches & boils the seitan.
Once the water is at a simmer, you can lower the heat to medium, and it will keep steaming the whole time. (If you don't see steam pouring out the top, turn it up. If the water looks too low, add more.)
When the seitan is done, it will be firm and bouncy to the touch. (If it's not quite ready at 45 minutes, cook another 5 minutes.)
Carefully remove it from the steamer basket, unwrap it from the cheesecloth, and set it aside on a plate to cool slightly.
(At this point, the turkey seitan roast is fully cooked. It can be enjoyed as-is for sandwiches or refrigerated in an airtight container where it will continue to firm as it cools.)
For an eye-catching holiday roast, complete the look and improve the exterior texture by browning the outside.
Bring a large skillet to a medium heat. Add vegan butter and melt it. Then add 1 teaspoon tamari and combine. Put the vegan turkey roast in the skillet and brown on the bottom.
While it's browning, tip the skillet slightly to spoon out some of the butter mixture, and baste it over the top of the roast. Once it's brown on one side, turn it over and brown the other side, while continuing to baste.
Remove the vegan turkey roast from the skillet, and put it on a serving platter or cutting board. Slice and serve.

Notes

Storage instructions

Store leftover vegan turkey roast in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about 4 to 5 days.

It also freezes beautifully in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag for up to 3 to 6 months. When you’re ready to use it, move it to the refrigerator to thaw.

Nutrition