Vegan Pepperoni

Vegan Pepperoni Recipe – perfect for sandwiches, a party platter or your favorite pizza! It's loaded with peppery, spicy & smoky-sweet flavors that'll keep you coming back for more.

Course Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine American, Vegan

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 45

Total Time 55

Servings people

Calories 116kcal

Author Melissa Huggins

Equipment

1 Large Mixing Bowl
1 Small Mixing Bowl
1 Large Pot with Lid
1 Steamer Basket
1 Whisk

Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

½ cup vegetable broth , low sodium
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce

Dry Ingredients

1 cup vital wheat gluten
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 ½ teaspoons granulated garlic
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon fennel seeds , lightly crushed
1.5 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper , more to taste
1 teaspoon granulated onion
½ teaspoon red chili pepper flakes

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a large bowl, whisk all the dry ingredients to combine well.
In a small bowl whisk all the wet ingredients to combine well. Now pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl of dry ingredients and stir with a spoon or spatula just until it just starts to come together (it will start to thicken and form a dough). Using your hands, incorporate everything well by kneading for 1-2 minutes (*the dough will be thick & rubbery). Move the dough around in the bowl to sweep up the dry mixture on the bottom.
Split the dough in half and roll each piece into a sausage-shaped log (it doesn't have to be perfect). Now wrap tightly in parchment paper followed by aluminum foil. Make sure the foil is overlapped or it will open during cooking. Twist the ends tightly to seal.
Place about 1 " of water into a large pot that will fit your steamer basket. Place your basket on the bottom and cover pot with a lid. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn heat to med-low to maintain a low boil and place pepperoni log into basket. Cover and steam for 45 minutes. *Keep an eye on the water so it doesn't fully evaporate. Add more hot water if needed.
After steaming, let the wrapped pepperoni sit on a cooling rack for 20 minutes undisturbed. Now remove wrapping and let it cool before chilling it for at least an hour. This will help it firm up and make it easy to slice. Keep in airtight container in the fridge for 5-6 days.

Notes

If you can't find vegan Worcestershire sauce, you can use barbeque sauce or vegan steak sauce. You can also use a combination of 2 teaspoons of ketchup, 1.5 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of low-sodium soy sauce.
Vital Wheat Gluten - this is essential for the recipe and cannot be substituted with anything else.
Measuring Vital Wheat Gluten - For an accurate measurement, you can weigh the VWG to get exactly 125 grams. If you don't have a kitchen scale, use the spoon and level method - don’t scoop the VWG with a measuring cup directly from the container. Instead, aerate it first, then scoop it out of your container with a spoon and then into a measuring cup. Don’t pack or tap the cup. After filling, lightly sweep a butter knife across the top to remove the excess.
It's very important to measure all of the ingredients accurately and follow the instructions precisely or this will alter the end results.
Kneading is very important and should be done for 1-2 minutes. Any less and the pepperoni can turn out spongy. Also, if you over knead, it can turn out tough and rubbery.
The parchment paper is optional and you don't need it to get the sausage shape. I use it to avoid aluminum exposure to the food.
If you top the pepperoni on pizza, add a little spritz of oil before cooking. This will keep it from getting dry.

* Recipe adapted from The Easy Vegan.

Nutrition