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Home » Recipes » Vegan Meat Substitutes

Modified: Jun 1, 2025 · Published: Oct 7, 2022 by Jim Mee Sha · This post may contain affiliate links · 22 Comments

Juicy Vegan Roast Beef

Jump to Recipe

Juicy, tender, and packed with flavors, this vegan roast beef is the perfect festive main that will wow even meat eaters! A simple recipe that only requires 10 minutes of prep time and 50 minutes of cooking.

A partially sliced piece of vegan roast beef on a wooden chopping board with garlic cloves beside.

You will be surprised by the texture and flavor of this vegan roast beef! It is moist and umami with a satisfying bite. Like my vegan steak, seitan ribs, and vegan gyro, this recipe is made from seitan, a popular meat substitute. 

I especially love the versatility of this recipe. It is great served as a main dish, but you could also use it to make sandwiches, top salads, or a meat substitute (like in this vegan beef stroganoff).

Jump to:
  • 🧂What you will need 
  • 📃Ingredients notes and substitutions 
  • 🔪How to make
  • ✔Helpful tips 
  • ❄Storing suggestions 
  • 🥔How to serve 
  • 💚Why you will love this recipe 
  • ❔Commonly asked questions
  • 🍽More vegan seitan recipes
  • 📖 Recipe

🧂What you will need 

Ingredients needed like kidney beans, vital wheat gluten, water, soy sauce, and seasonings.

📃Ingredients notes and substitutions 

  • Vital wheat gluten - This is the main ingredient used to make seitan. It is mainly made from the wheat protein - gluten. 
  • Red kidney beans - Adding some beans cut the dough, preventing seitan beef from becoming too tough. You can substitute it with other beans like navy beans, chickpeas, or pinto beans. 
  • “Beef” broth powder or bouillon - Gives seitan a subtle umami flavor. I highly recommend going with Hella Phat bouillon powder. 
  • Tomato paste - Gives vegan roast beef a nice red hue to mimic traditional roast beef. 
  • Red wine vinegar (not shown) - This can be substituted with white wine vinegar or more water.

🔪How to make

Wet ingredients of seitan in a food processor.
  1. Step 1: In a food processor, place all ingredients except vital wheat gluten. Blend until a smooth paste forms.
Dough of vegan roast beef in a food processor.
  1. Step 2: Add vital wheat gluten to the food processor and pulse until a dough forms.
Kneading seitan dough on a grey background.
  1. Step 3: Knead for 2 minutes, and shape the dough into a loaf resembling beef. Optionally, top it with some beef seasonings.
Shaped seitan dough wrapped in aluminum foil.
  1. Step 4: Wrap it in aluminum foil. Steam for 50 minutes. Allow it to cool for 30 minutes.

💡Tip

Avoid overkneading the dough as it might cause the seitan to turn too tough and chewy.

Vegan roast beef in a cast iron skillet on a folded white checkered teacloth.
  1. Step 5: Optionally, you can sear your roast beef in a pan to give it crispy edges.
Partially sliced vegan roast beef on a wooden board.
  1. Step 6: Slice up your vegan roast beef, and it is ready to be served!

✔Helpful tips 

  • Adjust dough texture - Different brands of vital wheat gluten have slightly different absorbency.
    • The dough should be moist but not sticky. If it is too tight, add more water, a tablespoon at a time. 
    • The reverse is also true, so add more flour if the dough is wet!
  • Allow to cool completely before serving - Vegan roast beef can be quite soft straight after cooking but will firm up as it cools. For the best texture, allow it to cool completely before slicing and serving. 
  • Refrigerate seitan overnight - For the best texture and flavor, I recommend making roast beef the day before and refrigerating it overnight. When ready to serve, heat it in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 180C/350F. 
  • Make it in an Instant Pot - Fill the pot with a cup of water, and insert a steamer rack. Place wrapped seitan dough on the steamer and cook at high pressure for 45 minutes.

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Partially sliced vegan roast beef on a wooden board with dishes containing mustard and beef seasoning beside.

❄Storing suggestions 

Fridge - You can either refrigerate the whole loaf of vegan roast beef unsliced, or slices of it. Place the seitan in a zip-top bag or airtight container to prevent it from drying out. It can be refrigerated for 4-5 days. 

Freezer - I recommend slicing and portioning the beef into individual portions before freezing. Seitan roast beef can be frozen for 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating. 

Reheating - You can reheat the whole loaf or slices of beef in the oven preheated to 180C/350F for 20-25 minutes (or until hot). Optionally, sear slices of roast beef in a pan or add them to any dishes that call for beef.

🥔How to serve 

  • As a hearty holiday or Sunday roast - Serve it with gravy alongside other side dishes such as braised celery, air fryer potato slices, roasted vegetables, or Yorkshire pudding. 
  • Make salad - Slice it up thinly and serve it on a bed of greens to make a roast beef salad.
  • Roast beef sandwich - Make a simple roast beef sandwich with thinly sliced vegan roast beef, horseradish sauce, vegan cheddar, and bread of choice! 
  • Soups and stews - Add it to creamy soups like my lentil carrot soup for extra flavor and texture. I also love adding thinly sliced roast beef to my vegan pho. 
  • Make stir-fries - Slice it up into strips or chunks. Add it to your favorite veggie or noodle stir-fry for a heartier, higher-protein meal.

💚Why you will love this recipe 

  • Hearty, flavorful, and have the perfect meat-like consistency 
  • Relatively simple and easy to prepare 
  • Jam-packed with protein - a serving contains more than 20g of protein 
  • Highly versatile and can be used to make sandwiches, wraps, salads, or served as a holiday main!

❔Commonly asked questions

What is vegan roast made of?

This vegan roast beef mainly consists of seitan, a popular meat substitute that has a distinctive chewy and meaty texture. Seitan is made from vital wheat gluten, a flour mainly consisting of the wheat protein - gluten.

Can I substitute vital wheat gluten with other flour?

Unfortunately, vital wheat gluten cannot be substituted with other flour. Seitan relies on the high gluten content of wheat gluten to develop its distinctive chewy, meat-like texture. 

Other flours, such as all-purpose or whole wheat, simply do not have sufficient gluten to develop a proper structure for seitan.

Partially sliced seitan beef on a chopping board topped with chopped cilantro.

🍽More vegan seitan recipes

  • Seitan ribs on a wooden board with newspaper beneath topped with chopped cilantro.
    Meaty Vegan BBQ Ribs (seitan ribs)
  • Carved vegan meat in a bowl topped with lemon slices and parsley with onion, a fork and flatbreads beside.
    Seitan Kebab (Vegan Doner Kebab)
  • Partially sliced chorizo sausage on a chopping board with dish of mustard and ketchup beside.
    Flavorful Seitan Vegan Chorizo Sausages
  • Strips of seitan bacon on a plate lined with parchment paper on a blue teacloth.
    Smoky Vegan Seitan Bacon

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📖 Recipe

A partially sliced seitan beef on a wooden chopping board with mustard and beef seasoning beside.

Juicy Vegan Roast Beef

Meesha
Juicy, tender, and packed with flavors, this vegan roast beef is the perfect festive main that will wow even meat eaters! A simple recipe that only requires 10 minutes of prep time and 50 minutes of cooking.
4.72 from 21 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 50 minutes mins
Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings
Calories 136 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • ¾ cup red kidney beans or chickpeas, navy beans, or pinto beans
  • ¾ cup water
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari/shoyu
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard or yellow mustard
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 2 teaspoons vegan "beef" stock powder or boullion
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 ¾ cups vital wheat gluten
Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions
 

  • Place all ingredients except vital wheat gluten in the food processor and process until a smooth batter forms.
  • Gently add wheat gluten to the batter. Pulse until a dough forms. If the dough is too wet/dry
  • On a clean kitchen surface, knead for around 2 minutes. Shape it into a loaf to mimic beef.
  • Steam it in a steamer basket for 50 minutes.
  • Let it cool down slightly for 30 minutes. You can either enjoy your seitan as it is, or sear it in a skillet to slightly char it.

Notes

Helpful tips
  • Avoid over-kneading -I find that 2 minutes is the sweet spot, but you can knead for up to 3 minutes if you prefer tougher seitan. I would not recommend going beyond that. 
  • Allow to cool completely before serving - Vegan roast beef can be quite soft straight after cooking but will firm up as it cools. For the best texture, allow it to cool completely before slicing and serving.
  • Using leftover vegan roast beef - Check out the section in the post above, "How to use vegan roast beef" for inspiration! 
 
Storing - You can either refrigerate the whole loaf of vegan roast beef unsliced, or slices of it for 4-5 days. Slice and portion seitan beef before freezing for 3 months.
Reheating - You can reheat the whole loaf or slices of beef in the oven preheated to 180C/350F for 20-25 minutes (or until hot). Optionally, sear slices of roast beef in a pan or add them to any dishes that call for beef.

Save this recipe!

Email yourself a link to this page and come back later.

Also get a FREE high-protein vegan recipe eBook + weekly new recipes! Unsubscribe anytime.

Nutrition

Calories: 136kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 23gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.1gSodium: 329mgPotassium: 212mgFiber: 2gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 339IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 49mgIron: 2mg

Nutrition info calculated is just a rough estimate and is provided as a courtesy. Bear in mind that value will vary based on variables like specific brand or type of product used. To obtain the most accurate representation, it is highly recommended that you calculate it on your own with the actual amount and type of ingredient used.

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Comments

    4.72 from 21 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Steve says

    December 18, 2023 at 3:32 am

    5 stars
    Delicious and adaptable to make lunch meat

    Reply
    • Sarah says

      March 24, 2025 at 2:28 am

      Hi there, we have made this a few times and experimenting! We realized last week that we haven't been covering the roast in foil before steaming it in the instant pot, so I'm excited to see how different it comes out this week! I noticed this time that you can use red wine vinegar. Do I completely substitute the water for the vinegar? Or do a mixture of water and vinegar? Thanks!

      Reply
  2. Luke Allison says

    January 20, 2023 at 6:16 pm

    Tried this for the first time. I used tinned mushrooms in the place of beans. It came out fairly well but I also agree that it's a bit rubbery. I think 50 minutes of steaming is too long and 35 would be adequate. Nothing that a little olive oil can't fix. Thanks for this recipe. I'll use it as a starting point.

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      January 24, 2023 at 10:00 am

      You are welcome! Feel free to experiment around, and do let me know how it goes.

      Reply
  3. Michael says

    December 03, 2022 at 4:13 am

    What do you use for the beef seasoning?

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      December 03, 2022 at 8:22 am

      This is the particular one I am using - https://amzn.to/3B7vFrA. As it is on the saltier side, I recommend lightly sprinkling it on top for decoration. 🙂

      Reply
  4. Jackie Carey says

    November 06, 2022 at 7:29 am

    Thanks for this recipe, it looks yummy! I do have a question before I try making this: the recipe says to "add ALL ingredients" (except the vital wheat gluten) in the food processor. Then further down the recipe says to "Shape it into a loaf to mimic beef, and sprinkle on your beef seasonings". Does this mean the beef seasonings are NOT part of the "ALL ingredients" as noted above? I'm unclear as to whether the beef seasonings are added to the food processor OR they're sprinkled on top of the final loaf. Thanks again, can't wait to try this! 🙂

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      November 06, 2022 at 9:07 am

      Oh, sorry about that confusion! The beef seasoning is meant to be sprinkled on top. 😊

      Reply
  5. Karen Coles says

    October 15, 2022 at 8:12 am

    How do you “steam it?” I have no clue how to do that.

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      October 15, 2022 at 10:35 am

      Bring about 1-2 inches of water in a pot to a boil, and fit in the steamer basket. Place the wrapped seitan into the steamer basket and cover the pot. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  6. Kris says

    October 15, 2022 at 4:23 am

    Is it possible to substitute something for the vital wheat gluten? I need to be gluten free. Would oat flour work?

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      October 15, 2022 at 10:35 am

      Sorry, this recipe will not work with other kinds of flour, and can't be made gluten-free.😅

      Reply
  7. Ivonne says

    October 13, 2022 at 12:13 pm

    5 stars
    Where I live, nutritional yeast is quite expensive, can I ommit it or replace it for another ingredient?

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      October 13, 2022 at 5:03 pm

      Yes, you can omit it! You might need to reduce the amount of water used by 1-2 tablespoons. 😁

      Reply
  8. Sue I says

    October 10, 2022 at 5:04 pm

    Just wondering about the steaming part. Do you think I could steam in in my instant pot? I assume I would have to reduce the time but not sure by how much. Wondering your thoughts.

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      October 11, 2022 at 2:30 pm

      Although I have never tried it, I think it will work! From past experience, I would recommend steaming for 45-50 minutes. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  9. Graham says

    January 04, 2022 at 11:17 pm

    4 stars
    I made this and increased the oven time to 1 h and 40 min at approx. 190 degrees C. Let it sit as recommended for at least 30 min and it turned out great. Thank you, really enjoyed it.

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      January 05, 2022 at 4:33 pm

      I am really happy to hear that! 😊

      Reply
  10. Travis says

    December 05, 2021 at 1:10 am

    1 star
    I followed this recipe to a T and it did not turn out very well. The middle was very soft and dough like and not like any faux meat texture. Not sure what went wrong.

    Reply
    • Meesha says

      December 06, 2021 at 4:39 pm

      Sorry to hear that! Did you let seitan cool down completely before slicing into it? The dough will be quite soft right after baking but will firm up as it cools. And you could also knead the dough longer if you prefer very firm seitan. Hope that helps!😁

      Reply
    • Mike S says

      November 06, 2022 at 2:20 am

      4 stars
      Mine came out a bit chewy. Any way to add more 'juicy' back to it? Maybe broil and baste???

      Reply
      • Meesha says

        November 06, 2022 at 9:06 am

        Yes, you can simply baste it in some vegan "beef" broth, or regular broth, along with herbs and spices of choice. Hope this helps!

A headshot of Mee Sha leaning on a handrail.

Hi, nice to meet you! I am Mee Sha, a final-year dietetic student passionate about nutrition, cooking, and food. This blog was created to share my favorite plant-powered recipe!

More about me →

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