How to Make Vegan Sausages
This is our go-to recipe for THE most meaty, mouth-watering, and memorable seitan sausages of all time! With only 10 ingredients and 1 hour, you can make perfect vegan sausage right in your own kitchen. They are a fantastic addition to a mountain of mashed potatoes and peas, smothered in gravy for the perfect cozy winter dinner.
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We have some seriously mouthwatering comfort food for you today, friends. We’re making seitan sausages!
And these are the real thing, baby! Now to be clear, these are more of a British “banger” style sausage…think mash and mushy peas. But don’t you worry, we’ve got a vegan Italian sausage in the works for all of you as well!
I know there’s a lot of meat alternatives like Field Roast and Beyond Meat available at many grocery stores these days (and not just health food stores and Whole Foods anymore!).
But we’ve been making this vegan sausage recipe for years, and if you follow us on our IG Stories (or way back in the old Periscope days!) you’ve definitely seen us make these before.
We try to always keep our freezer stocked with these meatless sausages – especially in the winter when we’re craving bangers + mash at least once a week!
We have some seriously mouthwatering comfort food for you today, friends. We’re making seitan sausages!
Why You’ll Love These Vegan Sausages
And these are the real thing, baby! Now to be clear, these are more of a British “banger” style sausage…think mash and mushy peas. But don’t you worry, we’ve got a vegan Italian sausage in the works for all of you as well!
I know there’s a lot of meat alternatives like Field Roast and Beyond Meat available at many grocery stores these days (and not just health food stores and Whole Foods anymore!).
But we’ve been making this vegan sausage recipe for years, and if you follow us on our IG Stories (or way back in the old Periscope days!) you’ve definitely seen us make these before.
We try to always keep our freezer stocked with these meatless sausages – especially in the winter when we’re craving bangers + mash at least once a week!
Ingredients for This Seitan Sausage Recipe
We love how this recipe is made with pantry staple ingredients. If you’re already a seitan enthusiast, you likely have these ingredients in your kitchen right now!
Vital Wheat Gluten
The main ingredient in any seitan recipe! If you’re not already familiar, vital wheat gluten is the protein found in wheat and gives the perfect texture to vegan meats like this vegetarian sausage recipe. It looks like a thick flour.
We buy ours on Amazon and loooove Anthony’s Goods if you’re looking for a bulk supply. If you’re looking for a smaller supply to give it a try first, we recommend Bob’s Red Mill.
All-Purpose Flour
Along with the wheat gluten in this recipe, we also add a Tbsp or two of all-purpose flour. This adds a bit of a tender, meaty texture to the seitan!
Bean Puree:
This sounds much fancier than it is. All you’ll need to do to make your bean puree is dump a can of beans + a can-full of water in a blender + blend til smooth.
It adds more protein and color, and (we find) improves the texture of the seitan.
Refined Coconut Oil
Adding refined coconut oil to our seitan recipes – especially for traditionally fatty meats like corned beef or sausages – has been a total game-changer as far as texture is concerned because refined coconut oil mimics animal fat super well!
One thing to note, however, is to be sure to use a coconut oil labeled “refined” and NOT one labeled “virgin” or “unrefined”. I know I repeat myself all the time here, but it is KEY. You do not want your sausages to taste like coconut. Refined coconut oil, people.
Flavor + Seasonings
And finally, you’ll add a few staple ingredients to give these sausages a mouthwatering flavor.
These include things like: ground fennel seeds, thyme, paprika, and vegan Worcestershire sauce (love this stuff).
If you’re wondering what makes traditional Worcestershire sauce not vegan: it contains anchovies. We also add in a little of our nutritional yeast based “chickenless” bouillon powder.
Feel free to switch some of these up depending on what flavors you like. Here’s where you can get creative and fun!
Substitution Options for Vegan Sausages
The base recipe for these vegan sausages has to stay as-is for the most part, but certain elements of the recipe can be slightly altered. Remember though, changing any ingredient in a recipe can change the outcome. Let us know if you try any of these swaps in the comments!
For the Beans: The recipe calls for pinto beans, but you could also use small white beans or chickpeas. Black beans would alter the color a bit more than I’d like personally, but you do you!
For the Herbs and Spices: Like I said, this is where you can get creative! Use some onion powder and/or garlic powder. Add in some Italian seasoning or fresh herbs. Maybe a little bit of smoked paprika, chili powders, or cayenne pepper for some heat…you get the idea.
How to Make Homemade Vegan Sausages
If you’re just getting started making seitan, this is the best recipe to dip your toes into it!
Please note: This is a rough overview of the process of making homemade vegan sausages. More complete and specific directions can be found in the recipe card below.
First, you’ll make your bean puree in your blender and set up your steaming mechanism. We use an electric steamer, but a covered colander over a large pot of boiling water works as a steamer basket!
Next, you’ll make your seitan dough. This is a very similar process to a lot of baking recipes: You’ll grab a large bowl and whisk together the dry ingredients.
Then, you’ll pour in those wet ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon. Once the dough reaches a rough crumbly texture, you’ll get your hands in there and knead it until it comes together completely, about 30 seconds.
Finally, you’ll cut, shape, roll, and steam those sausages!
The recipe makes 8, so after you cut them into equal-ish pieces, you’ll wrap ‘em each up in their own little tin foil blanket, twisting the ends like a Tootsie roll. After 30 minutes in the steamer pot, they’re DONE!
How to Serve Seitan Sausages
While our favorite way to serve these sausages will ALWAYS be with a mountain of mashed potatoes, gravy, and a very generous scoop of peas, you can use them for just about any recipe that calls for animal-based sausages!
Make plant-based sausage + peppers to pour over pasta, serve them with your morning tofu scramble, or slice ‘em up and add them to alllll the cozy winter soups.
Here are some more ideas:
- We love to serve these veggie sausages atop a giant pile of our vegan buttery mashed potatoes with some green peas and gravy. The classic!!
- I like to cut them up and serve them the next day at breakfast with some tofu scramble or in a vegan breakfast casserole
- With baked potato or sweet potatoes and some spicy seared green beans
- You can also wrap these sausage links in some vegan puff pastry (or tear them into sausage crumbles) to make homemade sausage rolls
How to Store Homemade Vegan and Vegetarian Sausages
Allow any leftover vegan sausage links to cool to room temperature before placing them in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Stored properly, they’ll be good for 5-7 days.
If you want to freeze any leftover sausages, again, allow them to cool fully.
I also like to wrap each individually with a little plastic wrap or parchment paper so they don’t stick together before placing the in a freezer safe bag.
More Seitan Recipes
- Slow-Cooker Vegan Corned Beef
- Seitan Ham with Pineapple Mustard Glaze
- Vegan Thanksgiving Seitan Roast
No matter what you decide to do with these vegan sausages, we’d love to hear how it goes!
You can rate the recipe and leave a comment below, or tag us in your delicious photos on Instagram. If you’re not already following along, we’re @theplantpowercouple with the “the”.
Enjoy the recipe, friends. Until next time!
Seitan Sausages
Ingredients
For the Bean Puree:
- 2/3 cup drained pinto beans
- 1/3 cup hot water
Dry Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups gluten
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp dried thyme roughly ground
- 1 Tbsp salt
- 2 tsp ground fennel seed
- 1 tsp veggie bouillon powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
Wet Ingredients:
- Bean puree
- 1/2 cup refined coconut oil melted
- 1 Tbsp vegan worcestershire
Instructions
- First, make the bean puree: Add both ingredients to the food processor and blend on high until smooth.
- Next, prepare your steaming mechanism + make your seitan dough: Add the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and use a whisk to combine. Use a wooden spoon to create a well in the center of your mixture and pour in the wet ingredients, including the bean puree. Stir the mixture until it’s rough and lumpy but there are no more floury spots. Then, get in there with your hands and knead the dough together for no more than 30 seconds.
- Now, it’s time to wrap and steam your sausages: Prepare 8 squares of tin foil (about 6-8 inches long each). Place the seitan dough on a cutting board and slice it into 8 equal-ish pieces. For me, it’s helpful to cut it in half, and then cut those halves in half, then cut those 4 pieces in half. Lay your first tin foil square flat on the counter and use your hands to shape the first piece of dough into a long sausage. Place the seitan across the bottom of your tin foil and carefully roll upward until it’s completely wrapped. Twist the ends as needed, kinda like a Tootsie roll. Repeat for each sausage. Throw these sausages in the steamer, cover, and let them steam for 30 minutes.
- If you’re freezing the sausages, allow them to cool completely before adding them to a freezer-safe container or zip-lock bag. If you’re cooking them right away, heat a large cast iron pan on medium high and add a Tbsp of refined coconut oil. Let the coconut oil melt as you carefully remove the sausages from the steamer and (even more carefully), unwrap them. Add the sausages to your cast iron pan and cook for 1 minute on each side, or until you get that nice brown char.
- Serve with a pile of mashed potatoes and peas, smothered in gravy. They’re also kickass in a sausage + peppers situation, or however you would use animal-based sausages! Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 10 days or the freezer for 2 months. Enjoy!
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