Homemade Gluten Puffs

Making gluten the traditional way is time consuming. It calls for mixing 8 cups of flour with 3 to 5 cups of water and forming a dough. The dough is then kneaded and rinsed under running water to remove the wheat starch. After about 20 to 30 minutes of kneading and rinsing, which to me seems like a considerable amount of time, the resulting 2 or so cups of stretchy gluten is evident. At that point the gluten needs to be simmered in broth for at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours or more or deep-fried to make gluten puffs

Luckily there are some shortcut methods for making gluten that make it a convenient food to prepare. I have had the most luck using high gluten flour or vital wheat gluten, although I have found that until you become familiar with the texture you are aiming for during the mixing and kneading process, the results will vary somewhat.

The added benefit of using this method is that you can flavor the gluten during the kneading process by adding herbs and spices of your choosing other than the traditional ginger and garlic. You can use poultry seasoning or chicken flavor broth powder to make a "chicken" flavored seitan, or a blend with paprika, cayenne, fennel, garlic, and Italian seasoning for a "sausage" flavor. Flavoring is limited only by your imagination.

Ingredients:

4 ozs Vital wheat gluten

5 ozs lukewarm water

1/4 tsp salt

Method:

Put the wheat gluten in a large bowl.

Dissolve salt in lukewarm water and pour over the wheat gluten.

Mix into a dough and knead 8 to 10 times.

Cover dough and let it stand for 2 hours.

Heat a wok with 2 cups of oil and when temperature is 350 f, drop tiny pieces of dough to fry until golden brown.

The puffs are now ready for a variety of recipes.

Serves