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Homemade Vegan Sausages

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. 

Homemade Vegan Sausages

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!).

Homemade Vegan Sausages

How to make Vegan Seitan Sausages

Onion, garlic, fennel and cumin in pan
Step 1: Cook onion and garlic until slightly browning. Add fennel and cumin.
Making Seitan in a Food Processor
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.
Making Seitan in a Food Processor
Step 3: Now add the vital wheat gluten. Pulse again.
Making the mixture for Homemade Vegan Sausages in a food processor
Step 4: The seitan should come together in the food processor.
Homemade Vegan Sausages in parchment paper and aluminium foil
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.
Steaming Vegan Sausages in Aluminium Foil
Step 6: And steam! I’m using a large pot with a steaming basket. If you have a steamer, great, use that!
Homemade Vegan Sausages
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:

Vegan Sausages in Hot Dog
Homemade Seitan Sausages are delicious 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

Homemade Vegan Sausages

Bianca Haun | Elephantastic Vegan
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. 
4.26 from 161 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Basics
Cuisine Vegan
Servings 4 sausages
Calories 123 kcal

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. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1sausageCalories: 123kcalCarbohydrates: 7gProtein: 18gFat: 2gSodium: 398mgPotassium: 107mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 185IUVitamin C: 2.6mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 1.8mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @elephantasticvegan or tag #elephantasticvegan!

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4.26 from 161 votes (121 ratings without comment)
Recipe Rating




Joy

Sunday 24th of December 2023

Want to try it but I dont have chick pea at hand can I use white beans instead or chick pea flour?we dont have vital gluten flour here in our shops can I use raw gluten instead?

Mazzy

Saturday 23rd of December 2023

I made these before and need to make them again now however I only have chickpea flour and not canned or fresh chickpeas. I can't by canned in my village and I have no time to boil any! Can I substitute with chickpea flour? Any advice on the amount or changes to the recipe to compensate? Thanks and thank you for sharing this great recipe!

Emilia Clark

Thursday 5th of October 2023

Hey! I’m looking forward to trying these. I’m curious, I’m not vegan and I’m wondering if adding an egg or two to this would be okay? For extra protein and binding?

Deb

Tuesday 22nd of August 2023

I made this recipe yesterday for the first time, I thought the uncooked ingredients lacked flavour and increased the spice. The cooked sausage was delicious and the texture superb. I’m going to experiment tonight by adding chilli flakes. I plan on making sausage rolls later in the week. Thanks for sharing a great recipe!

Mathew

Monday 17th of April 2023

Thank you very much