All right, so you may have noticed I like Asian food, Asian flavors, and anything Asian inspired. I can’t help it, I think garlic and ginger together is probably my favorite flavor, and my favorite scent. Should I make garlic ginger soy candle? Perhaps, but I digress, anyways, this Mongolian Seitan does not disappoint. It is crispy, sticky, sweet and salty, and eyes rolling back into your head delicious.
Am I a genius? Possibly, I’m not sure. What I do know is that this was a brilliant idea. My husband makes the best seitan, and every time he makes a big batch, the gears start turning. I decided to treat this loaf just like flank steak(I think?) and cut it into thin strips. To make it super crispy, I dredged it in cornstarch, fried real quick in a little sesame oil. The sauce is a mixture of all things good in the world, and it smells divine. I reduced the sauce for a few minutes on it’s own, and then when the seitan it ready, you toss it all together and let it thicken up again!
So, you can make your own seitan, or you can use store bought if you don’t feel up to making it, but it is actually way easier than you may think. However, once the seitan is made, or if you buy it, this recipe takes like 15 minutes. You can have a super healthy, protein heavy dinner ready in just a few minutes. I would make add some steamed veggies and rice, and you have the perfect meal. This recipe also provides extra sauce for drizzling on top, so you can top your rice and veggies with it too!
So, friends, go forth and get your garlic and ginger on. You pretty much can’t go wrong with these flavors, and you also really can’t go wrong with this recipe. I don’t believe you can mess this up! You can make this as spicy as you want for the cold weather! It is warming, sticky, crunchy, sweet, salty, and to die for!
- 8-12oz. Seitan, store bought or homemade
- 1/3 C. Cornstarch
- 3 Tbsp. Coconut or sesame oil
- 2 Tbsp. Sesame oil
- 1/2 C. Soy sauce
- 1/2 C. Water
- 3 tsp. Ginger, grated
- 3 Cloves of garlic, grated
- 1/2 C. Coconut sugar
- Green onions
- Red pepper or chili paste
- Sesame seeds
- Make the sauce, add all the sauce ingredients to a small sauce pan, and bring to a boil, whisk until everything is combined and coconut sugar has dissolved. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes, until it reduces slightly. Set aside.
- While the sauce is simmering, make the seitan. If you have a loaf of seitan, slice into thin strips, if you have store bought that has already been sliced, just use as is.
- Pour the cornstarch into a bowl, and dredge each piece of seitan into the cornstarch shaking off the excess.
- Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet on medium high, when the pan is hot, add the seitan, just enough to cover the bottom, don't over lap. You may need to do a few rounds. Fry the seitan for a minute or two on each side, until it gets nice and crispy.
- Remove seitan from the pan, clean the oil out of the pan and put all the seitan back into the pan. Sautee on medium high, and add about half of the sauce. Cook down and add a little more sauce at a time until is it as saucy as you would like it. You don't have to use it all,you can save some to pour a little on top
- Cook for a few more minutes until the sauce has reduced and coated the seitan.
- Serve immediately! I suggest, rice and veggies to go with, and adding the garnish on top!
- You can find prepackaged seitan at most grocery stores if you don't want to make your own.
- If you don't want to use seitan, this would also be a perfect method for tofu!
