With homemade Seitan Sausages, you can take this classic ballpark snack to the next level. I’ve topped the vegan Hot Dogs very traditionally with ketchup, pickles, and fried onions, but feel free to experiment with adventurous toppings such as guacamole, salsa or chili sin carne.
Sometimes you crave something simple – like a hot dog – and then you end up making everything from scratch: seitan sausages, bread, fries. Can anyone relate or am I the only weirdo here? Anyways. I’m not complaining. Making things from scratch is oddly satisfying.
The Bread
Making bread from scratch is one of my favorite things to do! It always feels like cheating when I’m using store-bought buns. Maybe it’s because of the basic white bread recipe? It’s perfect for ANYTHING. You can literally make loaves, buns, pizza crust, naan,… With such a great recipe at hand, why wouldn’t you make anything bready from scratch?
The Vegan Sausages
And then the Seitan Sausages. I feel like I’ve finally cracked the code for amazing seitan (after being a vegan for 5 years – it’s about time!) and I can’t stop using the seitan in different shapes for all kinds of recipes. It’s so versatile.
The Toppings
My Hot Dog toppings are classic – ketchup, pickles, and fried onions. But you can be adventurous with the toppings as well. I had a Hot Dog topped with guacamole in Barcelona a few years back – delicious! Or add chili sin carne for a messy but amazingly rich and creamy meal. Salsa is a great topping for the summer!
Fun fact: As a teen, I worked in a pickle factory for a summer job. I couldn’t eat pickles for years after that. Stuffing pickles into glasses at 6 am isn’t the coolest thing to do. But now I’m slowly getting into the pickle game and I like it. I kind of get why pickles are such a popular topping now.
Fries are the classic Hot Dog side dish. I made my own and I’ve included instructions for it in the recipe notes if you want to make them too! Super simple and delicious!
With homemade Seitan Sausages, you can take this classic ballpark snack to the next level. I’ve topped the vegan Hot Dogs very traditionally with ketchup, pickles, and fried onions, but feel free to experiment with adventurous toppings such as guacamole, salsa or chili sin carne.
- 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
- 4 Hot Dog Buns *
- Ketchup
- Pickles
- Fried Onions
- 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 further 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 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. Twist the ends so that the seitan is completely closed off. 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.
- Heat the sausages in a grill pan or contact grill for nice grill marks. Then add them into your hot dog buns, top with ketchup, pickles and fried onions and enjoy!
*I made my own hot dog buns by using this basic white bread recipe and formed smaller buns instead of loaves. Easy as that. Keep in mind that the baking time is shorter so keep an eye on them.
For quick and easy fries, wash potatoes, cut them in equally large fries (or use a french fry cutter), toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper, transfer them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400°F/200°C until golden and crispy.
Did you make these vegan Hot Dogs with homemade Seitan Sausages? Leave a comment and please rate the recipe for other users! If you post a photo on instagram, use the hashtag #elephantasticvegan and tag me via @elephantasticvegan to make sure I’ll see it ^.^ I love to see all your lovely creations! Thanks! <3
This post was first published on July 24, 2014. Updated on July 06, 2018.
i’ve kind of given up on seitan, because the last few times i’ve tried making it, i feel like it’s always come out too gooey and doughy. this is making me want to give it another go!
I’m soooo proud of this recipe because the seitan is SO MUCH better than all the store-bought seitan I’ve ever had! I really hope you give seitan one last try (and that you love it of course!) :)