More Seitan - Corned Beef

[Guest guest]

If I can talk hubby into letting me buy a new crockpot over the weekend,

I'll try this for St. Patrick's Day.

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BRYANNA'S NEW SEITAN " CORNED BEEF "

Makes about 12 generous servings.

 

 

You can freeze the cooking broth and re-use it-maybe adding another half a

batch, if necessary, to make sure there's about 7 c. total liquid. Actually,

you can keep this and other seitan cooking broths going as " perpetual

broths " , the way the Chinese do with " red cooking " -just make sure you

freeze the leftover broth in between cooking batches of seitan. Strain off

the old seasonings before adding new (the pickling spice, onions, etc.).

 

DRY MIX:

2and 1/4 c. pure gluten powder (Vital wheat gluten)

1/2 c. Minute tapioca (buy in any grocery store, unflavored)

1/2 c. pinto bean flakes OR soyflakes OR old-fashioned oatmeal (rolled oats)

or other grain flakes, toasted, if possible, OR hominy flakes OR flaked or

granulated dry TVP

1 and 1/2 tsp. onion powder

3 T. nutritional yeast flakes

3/4 tsp. garlic granules

3/4 tsp. ground white pepper

 

WET MIX:

liquid from a 14 oz. (395 ml) can of sliced beets (use beets in a salad or

soup)

(or possibly some fresh beet juice-I forgot to measure this-maybe 1/2 a

cup?)

NOTE: IF YOU HAVE NO CANNED BEETS, just use more water with 1 T. paprika

2 T. soy sauce

2 T. ketchup

2 T. maple syrup

COLD water to make 2 and 1/2 c. total liquid

 

THE COOKING BROTH:

Mix in a large pot and bring to a boil, then keep at a simmer, covered:

 

5 and 1/4 c. water

3/4 c. soy sauce

6 T. c. ketchup

3 T. maple syrup (this might be a little sweet-you can play with this)

2 medium onions, minced, OR 1/3 c. dehydrated onion flakes

3 T. balsamic vinegar

1 T. salt (this sounds like a lot, but it doesn't make it overly salty-it's

a lot of broth)

3 cloves garlic, crushed OR 1 tsp. garlic granules

1 T. paprika

1 T. pickling spice (** see note below)

6 whole cloves

 

Mix the Dry Mix ingredients in the bowl of your electric mixer with dough

hook attachment, or place them in the bread machine in the order given. Add

the Wet Mix and knead for about 10 minutes. (If your bread machine has a

dough cycle-two kneads with a long rest in between-use that cycle.

Otherwise, just run it through the kneading part and then unplug it and let

it rest in the cover container, then plug it in again for another knead,

then remove it,) Let rest for about 1 hour, covered. You can make your

Cooking Broth at this time and have it ready. Then knead it for 10 more

minutes.

 

The dough should be quite shiny and smooth. Avoid breaking it up when you

take it out of the bowl. Knead by stretching and patting or rolling into a

flat rectangle. Fold in half and repeat, doing this 6 times, and folding so

that the gluten strands are always going in the same direction. If the dough

gets stubborn and won't relax, just cover it and go away for about 20

minutes, and it'll be fine. Form the dough into a piece that will fit into

your pot, only about 1 " thick, however. (You can cut the roast in half, if

you like.) Oil or spray lightly and let rest while you get the pot ready.

 

Oil or spray the inside of your slow-cooker or pot. It has to have room for

the roast to expand. Pour about 1 c. of the hot Cooking Broth in the bottom

of the pot, then place the roast in. Cover with the rest of the broth. It

should just cover the roast-if not, make a bit more broth (say, 1/4 of the

recipe). Cover tightly and simmer on LOW (180 to 200 degrees F) for 6-8

hours , turning once halfway through if you are awake.

 

Cool in the broth, then refrigerate well-wrapped. It freezes well, too. Any

leftover broth can be frozen for using again, as noted above. It can be

ground for " corned beef hash " , etc.

 

The roast can be reheated and served with cabbage, carrots and potatoes, and

mustard, or thinly sliced for sandwiches.

 

 

**IF YOU HAVE NO PICKLING SPICE OR CAN'T FIND IT, here's how to make it:

From the book " Better Than Store-Bought " .

 

PICKLING SPICE

 

4 cinnamon sticks (each about 3 inches long)

1 piece dried gingerroot (1 inch long)

2 tblsp mustard seeds

2 tsp whole allspice berries

2 tblsp whole black peppercorns

2 tsp whole cloves

2 tsp dill seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds

2 tsp whole mace, crumbled medium fine

8 bay leaves, crumbled medium fine

1 small dried hot red pepper (1 1/2 inches long), chopped or crumbled

medium fine, seeds and all

 

Wrap the cinnamon and gingerroot loosely in a piece of cloth and bash them

with a hammer until well crumbled. Discard any stringy parts of the ginger,

then mix with other ingredients.