How to Make Vegan Hot Dogs

summertime is here and it is the best time of year to make some vegan hot dogs! this recipe is made with vital wheat gluten and they are meaty and delicious.

While there are many vegan hot dogs on the market, some good, some bad. But after making this homemade recipe I will only be having these all summer long. While they are a bit time consuming to make the result is so well worth it. They are great for grilling and getting nice and crispy.

the ingredients

• Vital Wheat Gluten: this is the base of our vegan hot dogs. It will give the meaty texture. Vital wheat gluten is the protein that is found in bread and is is great for making seitan with.
• Firm Tofu: this adds softness and texture to the vegan hot dogs.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: this adds a slight note of acidity.
• Olive Oil: since our vegan hot dogs are very low in fat this will add a touch of fattiness. I like to use extra light olive oil.
• Liquid Smoke: this adds a smokey flavor, I like to use a hickory flavored liquid smoke.
• Carrots: this will add some color to the vegan hot dogs.
• Seasonings: you will need a bunch of seasonings to add flavor: salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. We will also use paprika for color.

blend, blend, blend

The first step in making the vegan hot dogs is to blend all the ingredients with water (except the vital wheat gluten). This will form into a thick but very smooth liquid which will add moisture to the seitan. You want to blend this for about 45 seconds. Making it very smooth will ensure the vegan hot dogs have a soft, smooth texture. If you don’t want to use tofu you can try replacing it with cannellini beans. However, I like how the tofu adds a little extra protein in there.

kneading time

The trick to making any seitan is kneading it. This will help the gluten to start to form and it results in a firmer, better texture for the seitan. For this recipe you will knead the vital wheat gluten with the liquid mixture about 5 minutes or until it turns into a smooth, shiny ball. It should bounce back when you poke it. It is important to do this by hand and not in a stand mixer as the stand mixer may over knead it. It can result in the texture not being right. So, take your time and just be patient.

roll with me

Once you have made your seitan it is now time to roll it into hot dogs. You can make as many vegan hot dogs as you like. I found 4 works best for a standard hot dog size but if you don’t mind them being a little smaller you can do 5 or 6. I like to use a bun to help me to determine how long they need to be. The gluten will be very tight from kneading so don’t be concerned if it takes a few minutes to roll them out. Also, they don’t need to be perfect once they steam they will plum up.

why do we need so steam the vegan hot dogs?

After you roll the hot dogs out, you will first wrap them tightly in parchment paper and then roll them up in foil. You will twist the ends of the foil almost looking a big, long candy wrapper. Then you will steam the vegan hot dogs for 30 minutes. Steaming the seitan is the way it becomes cooked! I personally can’t believe how different these look after being steamed. It helps it to be moist but meaty.

grilling time

After we have steamed the vegan hot dogs they are ready to eat. However, I am going to very strongly urge you to grill them or crisp them in a pan. This helps to create an outer crispy layer and more of that “skin” and “snap” feel. While you can of course eat them steamed it is almost like just having a boiled hot dog if you ever ate those. You can either grill these or just pop them right in a pan to get some crispy outsides.

more seitan recipes

why you’ll love this recipe

I think you will really love this recipe a few reasons. First, it is super high in protein – one vegan hot dog has over 18G plant protein! Two, the end result is so worth the work. Three, they are a little time consuming to make but they aren’t difficult to make. Finally, it is such a cool thing to be able to say you are making your own homemade mockmeats!

homemade vegan hot dogs faq

• Is this recipe soy free? No, it does contain tofu and liquid smoke. If you are soy free you can try swapping the tofu for cannellini beans and leave the liquid smoke out.
• Is this recipe gluten free? No, the main ingredient is vital wheat gluten. Unfortunately, there is so no substitute for this.
• Is this recipe nut free? Yes.
• Do I have to use oil? If you want to leave it out you can.
• How long will these last? Up to 3-4 days in the fridge.
• Can I freeze them? I think it should be fine.
• How do I reheat these? In a pan on the stove or pop them back on the grill.
• Do I have to wrap them in foil? Something I received a few comments on, on Instagram was about wrapping the vegan hot dogs in foil. If you don’t care about the shape and how it looks you can try steaming them without anything, however, I am not entirely sure if it will yield the proper result. Otherwise, you can also just wrap them very tightly in the parchment paper and twist the ends. Again, it may not end up with intended result.

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