Friday, October 2, 2009

Vegan MoFo Day 2: Chili Rubbed Seitan Tacos

I think I make entirely too much Mexican food. My love of pickled jalapenos and large amounts of guacamole is intense. But I don't necessarily think there's anything wrong with that. I just worry I'm becoming too one dimensional: creole or mexican. It's just so good......

Anyway, I just wanted something that was spicy and flavorful. I'm discovering more and more that homemade seitan is WAY better than store-bought seitan. If you haven't tried to make it yourself, I encourage you to do so. It's cheaper than buying it and really not that hard. I find that I can control the texture more and get better shapes than the cube chunks you get when you buy it.

Don't worry too much about using these exact chilies. You can use whatever you have or can find. There are endless possibilities for flavor combinations.

[[Chili Rubbed Seitan]]

5-6 serrano chilies, seeded and chopped up
1-2 poblano peppers, seeded and chopped up
2-3 tbs safflower oil, plus more for frying
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup cilantro, finely chopped
a little salt, pepper, and cumin
opt: add a little chipotle powder for some smokiness

-- Slice seitan into strips and pat dry if you had them in stored in a liquid. Place in a shallow dish
-- Put all ingredients in a blender and combine until a coarse paste is formed.
-- Pour over seitan, be sure to coat all sides. Allow to marinade for about an hour.
-- When ready, heat oil in a pan and fry with a little marinade.
-- Eat them in a taco with some tofutti sour cream and guacamole or in a burrito or whatever. They're crispy and spicy and perfect for almost anything. Hell- throw 'em in a stir fry!

8 comments:

Andrew Warner said...

"I just worry I'm becoming too one dimensional: creole or mexican."

Wouldn't that be two dimensional?

Unknown said...

haha Originally I wrote "too two dimensional" but I didn't like how "too two" sounded. So I just put one dimensional and figured you all would know what I meant.

But thanks for pointing it out! :)

Anonymous said...

that is my kind of taco!

chow vegan said...

There's no such thing as too much Mexican food. :-) Your tacos totally look spicy and flavorful. Yum! I've got to try making my own seitan one of these days...

Bex said...

I hear you on the guac and my husband is on a 3 jar a week habit with the pickled peppers.

Susan said...

I have a jar of pickled jalapenos just idling away in the door of my fridge. Perhaps they are waiting for a taco like this?

Monique a.k.a. Mo said...

Chili rubbed seitan just sounds so damn sexy!

Jen Treehugger said...

No such thing as too much Mexican food in my books, I could eat it all day every day. That looks so awesome!