No need to buy expensive veggie sausages anymore! These Homemade Vegan Sausages are easy to make and delicious. Thanks to two tricks, they are not tough and rubbery like seitan often is.
Veggie sausages like all the other meat alternatives and processed vegan products are quite $$$. Making your own vegan sausages at home can be quite daunting. I get it. I’ve been there. It took me a couple of years of being vegan to finally figure out a vegan sausage recipe that I’m happy with.
These vegan Seitan Sausages are
- easy to make (soften the onions and garlic, then add all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse, form the sausages, roll them in parchment paper and aluminum foil and steam – no need to knead seitan until your arms hurt!)
- quick to make (you’ll only need about 20 minutes of preparation time to make these, then steam)
- super versatile (you can use them in any dish you would have used regular sausages in)
- soft and firm (if you’ve had rubbery and tough seitan before, you know what I’m talking about. These do not have the texture of a rubber mallet!)
Tricks for making Vegan Sausages that aren’t spongy/rubbery/tough?
My #1 super secret ingredient for these sausages that have just the right balance of soft and firm is sparkling water! It’s just a simple substitution with a huge effect. Trick #2 is to use canned chickpeas instead of chickpea flour. This makes the seitan soft (even the next day or the day after!).
How to make Vegan Seitan Sausages
Step 1: Cook onion and garlic until slightly browning. Add fennel and cumin.
Step 2: Add all the ingredients in a food processor (except the vital wheat gluten): chickpeas, thyme, salt, tomato paste, smoked paprika, onion-garlic-mixture, soy sauce, and sparkling water. Pulse.
Step 3: Now add the vital wheat gluten. Pulse again.
Step 4: The seitan should come together in the food processor.
Step 5: Cut the seitan into 4 equal pieces and form the sausages. Then roll the sausages in a piece of parchment paper (prevents sticking to the foil) and aluminum foil – tightly.
Step 6: And steam! I’m using a large pot with a steaming basket. If you have a steamer, great, use that!
Step 7: Remove the foil and paper. Enjoy!
Uses for the Seitan Sausages
Basically, you can use these Seitan Sausages in any dish that would use regular sausages. They are very versatile! Here are a couple of ideas:
- Corn Dogs (coat them in a batter of cornmeal, flour, spices, and plant-based milk and fry)
- Paella (cut into slices)
- serve them with mashed potatoes and gravy
- Breakfast Sausages with tofu scramble
- Pigs in a Blanket (wrap with puff pastry and bake)
- add it to Goulash or any kind of stews
- in Hot Dogs
Can you freeze Seitan Sausages?
Yes, I’ve tried it with this seitan recipe and it works great! Remove the foil, let the sausages cool off completely, place them in a freezer-safe container or ziplock bag, freeze. When you’re ready to eat the frozen sausages, let them thaw at room temperature for a few hours, then grill/cook/roast/whatever you want to do with it! They are good as new!
Homemade Vegan Sausages
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/2 large white onion chopped
- 1 garlic clove chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1/4 cup cooked chickpeas
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/4 cup sparkling water
- 3/4 cup vital wheat gluten
Instructions
- In a large pan with canola oil, sautée the chopped onion and garlic cloves until soft. Add the cumin and fennel seeds. Let it cook for another minute until the spices are toasted.
- In a food processor, add the chickpeas, onion-garlic-spices mixture, tomato paste, salt, thyme, smoked paprika, soy sauce, and sparkling water. Pulse until it’s saucy. Then add the vital wheat gluten and pulse again until it comes together in a ball.
- Prepare a large pot (filled with a couple of inches of water) with a steaming basket and bring it to high heat.
- Divide the seitan into 4 equal chunks. Roll and press the seitan into a sausage shape. Roll each sausage in parchment paper and aluminum foil (roll it tightly). Twist the ends so that the seitan is completely covered in foil. Add the seitan sausages into the steaming basket and let them steam for about 40 minutes, flipping them after 20 minutes.
- Let them cool off a bit before removing the aluminum foil and parchment paper.
- You can use them in various recipes (Hot Dogs, Corn Dogs, serve them with mashed potatoes etc.). To warm them up, cook them in a pan or contact griller. You can store them in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Lyle
Thursday 22nd of April 2021
Made my first batch the evening, they came out so good and soft, had to make another batch the next morning. This is now my go-to sausage recipe. Cannot thank you enough.
Rox
Monday 29th of March 2021
Could I omit the vital wheat gluten or replace with something else?
meaghan
Tuesday 14th of July 2020
AHHH Was tasting so good until I added real flour thinking I could substitute it - since read in comments I cant. I dont know what to do with my gooey batter - I tried to add some zucchini and almond flour to get it to mix but it has failed. what can Ido with the remaining batter? it is a waste to throw out :(
Wanda
Tuesday 30th of June 2020
This sausages are Great very flavorful sausages and very easy to make , this is my 3rd time doing them👍🏼
Cathy
Friday 26th of June 2020
Thank you for the recipe! I love all the great comments. I made my first batch today. The taste was good but the texture was like a very doughy bread. Where did I go wrong? Did I pulse it too long? Thank you in advance for you help!