Oven Roasted Vegan Brisket
I’m sure many of you’ve had vegan meat before. To be honest, the first time I tried seitan, it was in a vegan restaurant, and I HATED it! It was very chewy, quite bland and extremely greasy for some reason. It took me three years to give it another shot, and this time I had to experiment with it myself. I won’t tell you how many times I tried and failed recipes with this, but I can say that I wasted a lot of Vital Wheat Gluten (which is what seitan is made of) during that process. Eventually, I came up with this technique: Mixing the vital wheat gluten with some shredded king trumpet mushrooms and/or green jackfruits to enhance the texture, and create the perfect spice mix for the taste and flavors. The result is my very tender and juicy oven roasted vegan brisket.
Jump to RecipeMushrooms and Jackfruits
To begin, wash and slice the king trumpet mushrooms vertically in two, so as to get a total of 8 pieces. I know this type of mushroom can be hard to find. I usually get mine from an asian store, but if for some reasons you can’t find it, you can skip this step and just use jackfruit enhance the texture. you’ll just need to to use more jackfruit. For my jackfruit, I love the Trader Joe’s brand (which you can get here). Back to the mushrooms: On a baking tray lined with parchment paper, place the mushrooms. Coat them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Pop the tray in the oven at 400F for 30 minutes.
Once the mushrooms are out of the oven, let them cool down for 10 minutes or so. Then taking one piece of mushroom at a time, hold the cap with one hand (make sure it’s no longer hot), and use a fork to shred the stems. If some of the shredded pieces are too thick, separate them with your hands. Set the mushrooms aside.
Remove the green jackfruit from the brine, rinse them and use a fork the mash/shred them. Place the shredded jackfruit in a bowl, add some salt and pepper to taste. Set the jackfruit aside.
Marinade
In a bowl, add the reduced sodium tamari sauce (you can also use soy sauce), vegan worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, coconut sugar, ground cumin, and cayenne pepper. Mix everything up using a small whisk or fork to combine. Set it aside.
Cut a fresh beet root in small pieces, add them to a bowl, and add in the vegetable broth. This is to get a reddish broth so that we can achieve the red meat color. Don’t worry, the beet will have no impact on the overall taste or flavor. Set the broth aside.
Oven Roasted Vegan Brisket
In a large mixing bowl, add the vital wheat gluten, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper and smoked paprika. mix everything to incorporate. Then add half of the reddish vegetable broth, use your hands to mix it up. The gluten should be activated and some lumps should start forming. Add the shredded jackfruits and mushrooms. Incorporate the mushrooms and jackfruits with your hands while continuing to add the broth.
There will be some resistance from the gluten to adhere with the mushrooms and jackfruits, but it does not need to be perfect. Slightly knead the though for no more than 3 minutes or so. Try to poke in any stubborn pieces of mushrooms or jackfruit, but the less perfectly shape and the more structured the ‘meat’, the better.
In a baking dish, add the olive oil and place the brisket. Pour in the marinade. Slice some garlic chunk in two and place them on the corners, add in the rosemary and thyme. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and pop the brisket in the oven and bake for 40 minutes at 400F.
Remove the brisket from the oven, remove the aluminum foil, brush up the top with any remaining marinade or a mixture of hot sauce, tamari sauce and olive oil to gloss it up. Switch the oven setting to broil on high, and pop the dish back in the oven for 15 minutes. Brush the brisket with the tamari sauce and hot sauce mixture. The brisket is ready to serve.
Oven Roasted Vegan Brisket
Ingredients
Brisket
- 3 Cups Vital Wheat Gluten
- 1.5 Cup Vegetable Broth
- 1/2 Piece Beet Root
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Pepper
- 2 Tbsp Garlic Powder
- 2 Tbsp Onion Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
- 10 Pieces Jackfruit Green
- 4 Pieces King Trumpet Mushrooms
- 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
Marinade
- 1/2 Cup Tamari Sauce Reduced Sodium
- 1/4 Cup Liquid Smoke
- 1/4 Cup Worcestershire Sauce Vegan
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Pepper
- 2 Tbsp Garlic Powder
- 2 Tbsp Onion Powder
- 2 Tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Ground Cumin
- 1/2 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
Gloss
- 1/4 Cup Tamari Sauce Reduced Sodium
- 1 Tbsp Hot Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Instructions
Mushrooms and Jackfruits
- Wash and slice the mushrooms vertically in two, so as to get a total of 8 pieces.
- On a baking tray lined with parchment paper, place the mushrooms. Coat them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Pop the try in the oven at 400F for 30 minutes.
- Once the mushrooms are out of the oven, let them cool down for 10 minutes or so. Then taking one piece of mushroom at a time, hold the cap with one hand, and use a fork to shred the stems. If some of the shredded pieces are too thick, separate them with your hands. Set the mushrooms aside.
- Remove the green jackfruit from the brine, rinse them and use a fork the mash/shred them. Place the shredded jackfruit in a bowl, add some salt and pepper to taste. Set the jackfruit aside.
Marinade and Broth
- In a bowl, add the reduced sodium tamari sauce (you can also use soy sauce), vegan worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, coconut sugar, ground cumin, and cayenne pepper. Mix everything up using a small whisk or fork to combine. Set it aside.
- Cut the beet root in small pieces, add them to a bowl, and add in the vegetable broth. This is to get a reddish broth, the beet will not affect the flavor. Set it aside.
Brisket
- In a large mixing bowl, add the vital wheat gluten, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper and smoked paprika. mix everything to incorporate.
- Then add half of the reddish vegetable broth, use your hands to mix it up. The gluten should activated and some lumps should start forming.
- Add the shredded jackfruits and mushrooms. Incorporate the mushrooms and jackfruits with your hands while continuing to add the broth. There will be some resistance from the gluten to adhere with the mushrooms and jackfruit, but it does not need to be perfect. Slightly knead the though for no more than 3 minutes or so. Try to pop in any stubborn pieces of mushrooms, but it does not need to be perfect.
- In a baking dish, add the olive oil and place the brisket. Pour in the marinade. Slice some garlic chunk in two and place them on the corners, add in the rosemary and thyme. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and pop the brisket in the oven and bake for 40 minutes at 400F.
- Remove the brisket from the oven, remove the aluminum foil, brush up the top with any remaining marinade or a mixture of hot sauce, tamari sauce and olive oil to gloss it up. Switch the oven setting to broil on high, and pop the dish back in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Brush the brisket with the soy sauce and hot sauce mixture. The brisket is ready to serve.
