Seared Seitan with Tarragon Pan Sauce

The best vegetarian gravy we’ve found, this will be at every Thanksgiving from here on out.

Tarragon adds a feeling of elegance and rich flavor to pan sauce that’s made with seitan. Serve it with green beans and mashed potatoes for a classic, comforting meal.

Ingredients

For the seitan

  • 16 oz seitan (cubed; sub firm tofu)
  • 2 cloves shallots (diced)
  • 2 tsp tarragon (finely chopped, fresh)
  • 1 tbsp cooking oil
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tsp mustard
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 1 1⁄2 cups stock

For the green beans

  • 1 lb green beans (trimmed)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsp mustard
  • 1⁄2 tsp balsamic vinegar

For the mashed potatoes

  • 1 lb russet potatoes (cubed)
  • 2 tbsp Greek yogurt (sub sour cream)
  • 2 tbsp butter

Instructions

Prep

  1. Seitan / Shallots / Green beans – if prepping right before cooking, get oven heating first. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead.)
  2. Tarragon — finely chop tarragon. (Can be done up to 1 day ahead.)
  3. Potatoes — peel and cube potatoes.

Make

  1. Heat oven to 425°F / 218°C.
  2. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water and some salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Remove lid from potatoes and simmer until potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork, 12 to 15 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, toss green beans with olive oil, mustard (portion for green beans), and balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and spread out on a sheet pan. Roast until tender, shaking the pan halfway through cooking, 18 to 20 minutes.
  4. Once green beans are roasting, heat a large skillet with cooking oil over medium heat. Add seitan and sear on all sides until golden, 6 to 8 minutes.
  5. Add butter (portion for seitan) to pan with seitan. When butter melts, add shallots and tarragon. Saute until shallots are soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in apple cider vinegar and mustard (portion for seitan).
  6. Add flour to seitan and stir until no dry spots remain. Slowly pour in stock while whisking. Simmer sauce until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside, covered, to keep warm.
  7. Drain potatoes and let sit in a colander for ~5 minutes to allow the steam to escape (this creates creamier potatoes vs. liquidy potatoes).
  8. Use a masher to mash potatoes with sour cream, butter (portion for potatoes), and some salt.
  9. Serve seitan and sauce over mashed potatoes. Enjoy green beans on the side.

Notes

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