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Sarah

Vegan Pepperoni

Vegan pepperoni that's easy to make and perfect for topping your pizza, sandwiches, or using on a charcuterie board!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 1 Stick
Course: Snack, Vegan Meats
Cuisine: American
Calories: 405
Ingredients Equipment Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
  • 2 tbs nutritional yeast
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon fennel seed
  • 1/4 teaspoon anise seed
  • 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 3 tsp brown sugar
  • 1 Tbs Tapioca Starch
  • 1/2 cup water
  • ½ tsp vegan beef bouillon I like Better Than Bullion
  • 4 tsp liquid smoke
  • 2 tablespoon soy sauce

Equipment

  • Steaming basket If you don't own a steaming basket large enough, see notes
  • Mixing bowl
  • Oven

Method
 

  1. First, put the fennel, anise, and mustard seeds in a bag (or use a spice grinder if you happen to own one of those) and crush them. You don't want them to be a powder, but you also don't want entire seeds in your pepperoni.
  2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix.
  3. Add wet ingredients and mix until they’re incorporated and you have a blob of dough that’s holding together.
  4. Let rest in the bowl for 15 minutes.
  5. Then shape into a loaf that resembles a stick of pepperoni. Roll your seitan tightly in foil. If you have really thin foil you may want to use two layers.
  6. Steam for 60 minutes, or until it’s 180-200℉ internally. If you don't own a steamer that's big enough, see tips.
  7. Let rest until it’s cool enough to handle, then unwrap it from the foil and bake it in the oven at 350℉ for 15 minutes, turning it a little bit every 5 minutes.

Notes

Don’t worry if it doesn’t look quite right during the shaping phase, it’ll be ok once you roll it and steam it. 
If you don’t have a steamer (I don’t) or if your steamer is too small for your pepperoni, you can make a make-shift one out of a large pot and a cooling rack. Just put a few inches of water in the pot and place the cooling rack on top. Put your foil wrapped seitan on the rack and then cover in a couple layers of foil to hold the steam in.
If you'd like your pepperoni to have more spice, add 1-2 tsp of red pepper flakes in with your dry ingredients.