I absolutely love this recipe!
It takes a little more time to prepare than my other seitan recipes, but it is SO WORTH IT.
Start this the day before you want to eat it.
The result is a perfectly juicy, beefy, delicious roast that'll happily feed 4-5 people.. if you have any leftover it's amazing with mustard in a sandwich or you can even freeze it for up to a month a defrost as needed.. happy days! So, let's get moo-ving (HA)
You will need these things first:
A slow cooker and large piece of muslin cloth/cheese cloth. For the beef: 300g Vital wheat gluten, 1/2 tin of chickpeas, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1tbsp onion powder, 1 tbsp Marmite/yeast extract, 2 vegan beef stock cubes (I use OXO), 1 medium cooked beetroot, 400ml boiling water, 1 tsp black pepper, 2 tbsp tomato puree.
For the broth and glaze: 2 vegan beef stock cube, 2 tbsp marmite, boiling water, 1 tsp black pepper, fresh thyme sprigs, fresh rosemary sprigs, 1 medium red onion.
1. First, if you're using a fresh beetroot you should go ahead and peel, cube, and boil it in lightly salted water until soft.. then let it cool. You can also use the pre-cooked packaged beetroot for this, but make sure it isn't pickled! that'd be weird.
2. Add the cooked beetroot, chickpeas, soy sauce, garlic and onion powders, 1tbsp marmite, 400ml vegan beef stock (using 2 stock cubes), black pepper and tomato puree to a blender and blend until smooth. It will be LUMINOUS PINK. Don't panic, it's meant to be. Pour the mixture into a large bowl with the vital wheat gluten and mix until you get a soft ball of dough. Knead this for 2-3 minutes to stretch out the gluten.
3. Form a beef joint shape and wrap in your cheese cloth/muslin cloth. This will allow the seitan to keep it's shape whilst also letting it absorb the delicious broth, keeping it moist!
4. In a slow cooker, add 1 roughly chopped red onion, 1 vegan stock cube, 1 tbsp marmite, 1 tsp black pepper, sprigs of thyme and rosemary, and mix with boiling water to fill the slow cooker half way. Add your wrapped beef joint to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours, turning over half way through.
5. The beef will have swelled and firmed up (and it will smell amazing) Remove from the slow cooker and leave to cool overnight in the fridge. This is very important to get the texture right!
Save the cooking broth to make a delicious gravy the next day.
6. When you're ready to cook the next day, unwrap your roast. To a hot frying pan, add a knob of butter and a sprig of fresh rosemary. Get your beef in there and sear it on all sides to get a nice bit of crust and all the buttery, herby flavours on there. Transfer into a roasting pan with the rosemary. In a small bowl, mix 1 beef stock cube and 1 tbsp marmite in a dish with a small amount of water to make a paste. Brush over the roast, sprinkle over some black pepper. Add a ladle of the cooking broth and the cooked broth-y onions to the pan to prevent drying out and cover in tin foil.
7. Roast for 40 minutes at 180-200 degrees, removing the foil for the last 10 minutes of cooking. THAT'S IT. Carve it, marvel at it, eat it, enjoy it!
You can use the left over broth to make an amazing super simple gravy.. just reheat in a saucepan, reduce by half and then thicken with a cornflour/water mix to your desired thickness.
HAPPY EATING!!
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