I want to give credit where credit is due, and this recipe idea gets all it’s credit from a person named J Sweeney! J left me a comment recently about taking our vegan deli sliced turkey recipe and adapting it to make a roast beef.

It maybe took me 2 minutes from the time I read the comment until I was standing over my food processor making this recipe happen.

J had asked for suggestions on turning the turkey to vegan roast beef and I had ideas but needed to test them out. I knew it need a beet for color and a change of spices and seasoning. I have brisket and pastrami recipes where I use jackfruit instead or tofu and that works very well to accomplish the textures I am trying to accomplish there. But tofu would be better suited for deli sliced vegan roast beef. So I that’s what I did, and thanks to J for sparking me to even try to make this recipe, it worked and is delicious.

Vegan deli meats are actually really easy to make at home and way cheaper than buying per made versions. You can control the seasoning, and you know every single ingredient that is going into you vegan deli meats.I love knowing what my family is eating and I love saving a ton of money because with a house full of kids and few teenagers, we go through a LOT of sandwiches!

Now, when I say let this recipe rest, I mean it! If you bake this roast beef and decide to slice it right away, DO NOT COME SASSING ME WHEN THE TEXUTE SEEMS OFF!! It needs to rest. That is what will help the “roast beef” to firm up and slice deli thin. Sorry, I didn’t make the rules about seitan, and I don’t really love rules, but this is one I always follow. It’s for the good of the vegan roast beef, y’all!

If you are not a fan, or never have been a fan of roast beef, try one of our other deli meats, they are linked at the bottom of this recipe. I would go as far as to say you would be hard pressed to find a better vegan turkey recipe anywhere. That’s a bold statement, but seriously, for as easy as it is to make, and for how convincing and delicious it is, you will probably never look for another vegan turkey lunch meat recipe, again. And maybe the same will be true for this vegan roast beef, as well.

So thanks J Sweeney for the inspiration, and I hope y’all are happy with this vegan roast beef effort. I know I was, and am so glad you reached out and that this was the result!

*This recipe calls of super firm tofu, the kind vacuum sealed and not sitting in a tray of water. If you choose to use extra firm tofu packed in water, the results will vary. Too much liquid will alter the texture of this vegan roast beef. I highly suggest looking for the super firm tofu.

INGREDIENTS:

1 block super firm tofu, the kind in a vacuum sealed pack
1 cup vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup raw beet, cubed (one small beet)
2 tablespoons - 1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon No Beef, or Vegetable Better Than Bouillon
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons corn or tapioca starch
2 tablespoon neutral tasting oil

Spice Coating:

2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Add the peeled and cubed beet to the food processor. Let it run for a minute and get the beet good and broken down.
Break up the tofu and place it into a food processor along with the beet. Run the processor for around a minute until the tofu is broken down.
Add all of the remaining ingredients and let the food processor run for a couple of minutes. You want the mixture to form a dough. Letting the processor run will help knead the dough. We want this seitan to be firm so we need it to knead for a bit. If the dough seems too dry, you can add water, just a teaspoon at a time until the dough comes together. I added NO water to my dough. The other liquid ingredients and the beet added enough moisture to mine.
Once you have a smooth but firm dough, remove it from the food processor and place on a clean counter. Knead the dough with your hands for about a minute, forming a kind of oval shaped loaf with the dough.
Take a piece of aluminum for about 3x bigger than the loaf of dough, and lay it out flat. Coat the foil in spray oil or wipe it down with any oil you have. Sprinkle half of the spice coating in the center of the foil. Place the loaf on the seasoning and roll it around. Sprinkle the remaining seasoning over the top and press it in. The goal is to fully coat the loaf in the seasoning!
Place the loaf back in the center of the foil and fold up the sides, pinching at the top to seal it up, then twist the ends to fully seal the foil.
Place on a baking sheet and put in the oven on the middle rack. Bake sealed for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes carefully open up the foil, and continue baking for another 30-40 minutes.
Remove finished vegan roast beef and let cool at room temp. Seal the foil back up and place the vegan roast beef in the fridge over night to rest. This step is important to get the texture we are trying achieve. If you try and serve it before it rests it will not be nearly as firm.
Once the vegan roast beef has been in the fridge over night, you can remove it and slice it to serve. It should at this point be firm enough to slice using a mandolin or a sharp knife. Store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 10 days.

TROUBLE SHOOTING THIS REICPE:

*I used high protein tofu in a vacuum sealed package and this what I strongly advise using. It is much firmer than regular firm tofu and has less moisture and a more chewy texture. If you opt to use regular firm tofu you will need to press it first and remove as much liquid as possible. You may need to adjust the amount of water in the recipet as well. Add the water last, adding just enough to accomplish a firm dough.

*If you find your turkey has A LOT OF LITTLE HOLES, and a more BREAD LIKE TEXTURE this can be caused from under kneading the dough, BUT more likely cooking the seitan at too high of a temperature, or for too long. Check your ovens temperature with an oven thermometer. Your oven may just be cooking hotter than it registers. Also gas and electric ovens tend to cook differently. If you do not have an oven thermometer you can reduce the heat in your oven by 25 degrees, and keep the seitan covered for 50 minutes and open for 10.

If you like this recipe, then try these: