The newest vegan cookbook to hit shelves is Food Is the Solution by Matthew Prescott.
You may know Matthew as the Senior Food Policy Director for the Humane Society of the United States. His talents extend beyond that, however. He is also a great chef (and photographer!) who is, for the very first time, sharing a full collection of his favorite sustainable plant-powered recipes with the world.
This gorgeous hardback book is filled with inspiring quotes, mind-expanding infographics, and artful food photos, and is worthy of prime placement on your coffee table. It takes you through the environmental challenges we’re facing in our world today and how food can be a central force to overcome them.
The first half of this book will empower you with knowledge and resolve to take action on issues that could make or break our world. The second half will empower you with recipes so that you can put that resolve into action by cooking up delicious planet-friendly vegan meals right in your kitchen.
Matthew has kindly offered to share one of his favorite recipes from the book—his beloved smoky seitan kebabs—with our World of Vegan readers. Enjoy!
Seitan actually dates back over 1,500 years to ancient China, where Buddhist monks discovered the wheat meat after soaking wheat dough in water. They were left with a high-protein wheat gluten and found it made the perfect meat substitute! In 1961, the term “seitan” was coined by George Oshawa, a Japanese advocate of the macrobiotic diet. Seitan has long been a staple in diets across various Asian cultures and has taken countless forms—from mock duck to baked spongy gluten. Asian cuisine has long been one of the most vegan-friendly and it is quite common to find seitan on the menu at an Asian restaurant that also serves meat! Seitan is now a meat-free staple around the world and can easily be found at standard supermarkets and on the menu at many eating establishments.
Salt and Spice and Everything Nice
Seitan is incredibly versatile—you can make it as spicy or salty as you’d like! While this recipe provides specific spices to include for the seitan kebabs, here are some ideas of what you could use to flavor your wheat meat:
Seitan stores well in both the fridge and the freezer. In the fridge, it will keep for up to about 4-5 days when stored in an air-tight container. In the freezer, it will last for about three months when stored properly in a tight container. If freezing, it’s also advised to wrap it in cling wrap and/or foil to keep some of the moisture in. Feel free to go wild with your favorite marinade, too!
This Smokey Seitan Kebabs With Peanut Sauce recipe is excerpted from FOOD IS THE SOLUTION: What to Eat to Save the World by Matthew Prescott. Copyright © 2018 by Matthew Prescott. Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. Article written by Michelle Cehn and edited by Amanda Meth. All rights reserved. Photography by Matthew Prescott.
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Delicious!! looks so good perfect for a bbq day!
So good! I especially loved the peanut sauce. Worth the effort!
When I was young, I used to go to a Thai restaurant and order “chicken on a stick” (that’s what I would call it), and it was my favorite!! It’s been decades since I’ve had anything even remotely similar—until now! These are sooo good, and I love the creative way to use seitan to create vegan meat skewers.
Yum! These kebabs look so fun to make!
Love a good kebab! So yummy!
Homemade seitan is so satisfying and these kebabs are sooo tasty!