Vegan Sausage Recipe

Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:

A few notes on the ingredients that I know will get the most questions:

• Vital wheat gluten - The main ingredient. I recommend weighing this with a digital scale so you get the correct amount. Cups are not an accurate way to measure flour-like substances. Note that vital wheat gluten is an essential ingredient in this seitan sausage recipe. There is no substitute, and the sausages cannot be made gluten-free. You can buy VWG in a lot of bigger grocery stores these days, or online. The best value one I've found is Anthony's from Amazon. If you are in the UK, you can buy vital wheat gluten from Holland & Barrett or Amazon.co.uk.
• Oats - Really important for texture in this recipe.
• Soy sauce, nutritional yeast, bouillon/stock cube, tomato puree, paprika, garlic, black pepper, salt - All important for layers of flavour and colour. If you are soy-free you can use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce, and smoked paprika can be used instead of paprika.
• Sage and fennel - For authentic sausage flavour.

You'll notice that the ingredients are pretty much vegan pantry staples. For the best results, I recommend not making any subs. This seitan sausage recipe has been tested many, many times and will give excellent results if followed exactly.

So how exactly do you make your own vegan and vegetarian sausages? The process is pretty simple. Let me show you how:

In a food processor or blender, pulse up the oats to break them up a bit.

Mix the oats with the vital wheat gluten in a bowl.

Put all of the other ingredients into a food processor and process until liquidy.

Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and mix to make a stiff dough.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces and shape into rough sausage shapes. They won't look pretty at this stage!

Roll each piece of dough up tightly in parchment paper and twist the ends closed so they look like Christmas crackers. The rolling and twisting compacts the seitan sausage dough, forcing it into a better sausage shape.

Lay the sausages out on a big piece of foil, fold over the top and seal the edges to make a big airtight packet, then bake them.

Once baked, let them cool down, then open the foil. Store the sausages in the parchment wrappers in th e fridge or freezer until you use them.

Once removed from the oven, the vegan sausages are completely cooked through, but it is best to cook them again before serving to get them nice and golden. Methods for this include:

• Pan-fry in a skillet over medium heat, turning frequently until golden on all sides.
• Cook on a grill pan until nice char marks appear.
• BBQ/Grill outside until golden.
• Air fry at 350°F for about 10 minutes or until golden.
• Oven bake at 350°F until golden and heated through. About 15 to 20 minutes.
  

You can reheat/brown the sausages without oil if you prefer, but they do benefit from being cooked with oil to keep them moist and to get a really lovely, deep, golden colour and sheen. Also, we're talking sausages here, and a good sausage should be a little greasy!

These homemade vegan sausages are rustic, hearty, and packed with protein. They can be enjoyed any way you please, for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner.

My favourite ways to enjoy vegan sausages include:

• In a sausage sandwich with plenty of the British fave HP sauce (as in the photo above!)
• In recipes like sausage rolls, corn dogs, toad in the hole, vegan sausage casserole, and vegan stuffing.
• Cooked up in a skillet with peppers, onions, and garlic, then piled up into hot dog buns.
• On salads, pizza and pasta dishes (you can make vegan sausage crumbles or slice them).
• On the side of Red Cabbage with Apples.
• With mashed potatoes, vegan gravy and vegan Yorkshire puddings.
• As part of a full English breakfast with vegan scrambled eggs, grilled tomatoes, baked beans, vegan bacon, mushrooms, toast, etc.

Making Ahead & Storing

This vegan sausage recipe isn't one you want to be starting midweek when you need dinner on the table fast, because they do take a little time. But once made, they are so handy to have stashed away in the fridge or freezer for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. All they need is a quick sear in a pan or on the grill so your meal can be ready really quickly.

I like to keep the sausages wrapped in their parchment paper for protection, then I pop them in an airtight container or freezer-safe container/bag. They will keep for up to 7 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer. Defrost overnight in the fridge before using.

Seitan Sausage FAQs