Better than any vegan hoagie you've tasted!
Hi there! We've made it to the miiiiiiddle of the week, and I am seriously cherishing each bit of summer before it ends. Would you believe I haven't been to the beach ONCE this entire summer? OR even a dip in the pool?! It's seriously a shame considering I've gone home to Long Island most of the summer, and we're literally surrounded by bodies of water. UGH. Need to get down to business this weekend before August is over in a blink of an eye!
OK I know what you carnivores are most likely thinking as you read this, because I hear it from my sister ALL the time. "Get your own food," is what she barks at me, anytime I tell her about my newest vegan replica dish. BUT when the meal comes out even better than the original, isn't that the best? Victory! AND, are vegans supposed to be restricted to just quoina + salads?! Noooooooooope
So, if you live in the NYC/Brooklyn area, and you're a vegan foodie, chances are you've either heard of Champs Diner, or you've been. IF you're like me and only just discovered this magical diner, you are probably as thrilled as I am. An ENTIRE diner that is completely vegan-plant based.. from burgers & nachos to shakes and cakes. You wouldn't BELIEVE the amount of options they have! Anytime I go to a restaurant that has some veggie options, I am usually restricted to picking something between 3 meals. Can you imagine how hard it is to go to a place where the entire menu is not only drool-worthy, but completely edible for any Vegan? YES it's hard. Like difficult enough where Ryan and I ordered enough dishes to fill 2 tables (literally) and we had a ton of left overs. OK.. I know. It's a "first world problem" and it's not one I'm here to complain about, but only to express my love for Champs <3. Get there now!
When we were there, one of the dishes we've ordered was a Philly "cheesesteak". A serious oxymoron right? But this sub was SO GOOD. I've never actually had a real authentic meat-cheese packed Philly sub, BUT i'd imagine it tasted as good as this. I mean, Ryan said it tasted like the real thing so I'm just going to take his word on it. And you know what I cooked first thing the next morning? THIS VEGAN VERSION MYSELF! I had to recreate this sandwich Ryan wouldn't stop raving about, and I knew a trip to Champs in Brooklyn on the daily just wasn't something that was going to happen. I have to say, this is prettttty spot on. And SO easy! If you don't feel like taking the extra step and making my cheese-less sauce, you can totally get a vegan version from the store and melt it on (but I like it this way better of course ;) ).
Hope you'll try this guilt-free veggie sub for yourself, and get all the protein your veggie body needs! Enjoy! xx Sam.
I N G R E D I E N T S:
- 1 large green pepper (or 2 small), diced
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- Small handful of mushrooms, diced
- The Best Nacho "Cheese" Sauce
- Subs or rolls, to serve!
SEITAN "STEAK" - 1 8oz packet of seitan, sliced into strips
- 4 Tbs of tamari (or sub. soy sauce)
- 1 tsp of pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp of paprika
- 1/2 tsp of garlic powder
PREP: Begin by prepping the ingredients for your cheese sauce and whip that up! Everything cooks fairly quick and should all be finished around the same time, so it's also best to get all the veggie slicing and ingredients measured out of the way. In a small dish, add all of the ingredients (minus the seitan) for your "steak" and mix well to combine a slurry. Take your sliced seitan and add to the bowl, pushing down firmly to really soak up all of the juice! Let marinate until ready to cook.
COOK!: In a large pan over medium high heat, add a small splash of oil. Once hot, add your peppers, onions and mushrooms + sugar and a pinch of salt & pepper. This will help them caramelize up nicely. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until they begin to brown but NOT burn. If it gets too hot, just lower heat a bit. Once their about done, push them to the side of the pan and reduce heat to medium. Next, add your seitan to the pan with just a little of the sauce left in the bowl. Cook while moving around until heated through and flavors are absorbed. Mmmmm. You should cook for about 5-7 minutes in total, adding the balance of the sauce a little at time as it dissolves. It will really begin to look like steak! Towards the end, you can start to mix in some of the pepper-onion-mushroom goodness to get some of the juices on them too. YUM.
ASSEMBLE!: On a toasted sub, add the seitan, peppers + onions + mushrooms, and top off with the cheeeeeeseless sauce. S'GOOD! And completely guilt free (+ protein PACKED!)
*Notes: This Seitan Steak recipe was adapted from The Happy Pear. They have the best vegan recipes, all the way from Ireland!