High Protein Tempeh, Lentil and Bean Steak

Ingredients

• 100 gr tempeh
• 1/4 teaspoonful salt
• 1 spoonful soy sauce
• 4 cups of cooked black beans
• 1 cup of cooked lentils
• 1 cup of cooked chick peas
• 1.5 cup oat flour
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• Salt, pepper, garlic (Optional and to taste)
• Olive oil

Sauce

• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 stalk spring onion
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoonful sugar

Saute all in a pot.

Preparation

1. Combine cooked all except olive oil and oat flour separately then mix all ingredients in a food processor until you get an easy to handle “dough.” 
2.  Then slowly add the oat flour mixing by hand as you go until it is mixed with the tempeh/bean mixture and you can shape the steaks accordingly.
3. Preheat a frying pan. Add olive oil to coat the pan, and fry the steaks until they are a golden color (about 2 minutes each side until it gets crispy) Remove from pan and serve immediately with a favorite sauce.

CHOCOLATE-CHILI STEAK

• 4 cups water
• 16 ounces tomato sauce
• 14 ounces salsa verde (green salsa)
• 1 cup pure chili powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dried onion flakes
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground corriander
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 2 pounds steak, (you can also use Ostrich as an option)
• 10 ounces diced tomatoes and green chiles, drained
• 15 ounce can black beans, drained
• 16 ounces corn, cooked
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup flour

1. Fill a pot with the water, tomato sauce, and salsa. Heat on low to slowly bring up the temperature.
2. Add dry spices to the heated water mixture and then bring the pot to a boil on high heat. Once the pot is boiling, lower heat to medium-low and cover.
3. Cook for an hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Just before the 1 hour mark, mix together the warm water and flour to make a pasty fluid. Then, add it along with the diced tomatoes & chiles, black beans and corn.
4. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes. Stir once at the 15-minute mark.
5. 
   
6. In a separate frying pan, cast iron preferred, rapidly sear the steak over high heat. Spoon sauce (as required) over steak and serve with potato wedges & veges.
7. You could serve with shredded cheese and coarse chopped raw onion on the side.

Helpful Hints

It helps to mix all the spices in a large bowl prior to needing them. Use a mortar and pestel to grind the dried corriander, or, if you don't have one, rub it in your hands to break it down.
Don't try to sear the steak all at once.

Vegan Seitan Steak

I'm no Vegan but my partner is and it kills me to pay R100 for a 300g piece of processed plant protein. So I did a bit of digging and found this.

It's vegan, mouth-watering, tender, chewy, juicy, flavourful and meat-like. Amazing! BBQ or pan fry then serve whole or slice and put on top of salad for a steak salad. So delicious and satisfying!

Ingredients

For the vegan seitan steaks:

• 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten
• 1 cup cooked lentils (I used canned)
• 6 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon liquid smoke
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

For the vegan seitan steak marinade:

• ¼ cup water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup or agave

Instructions

To make the vegan seitan steaks:

1. Add all of the vegan seitan steak ingredients to a food processor and pulse to combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed until everything is well mixed. Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor you can first mash the cooked lentils with a fork or potato masher, then add everything together in a large bowl and mix well.
2. Turn the mixture out onto a clean work surface and begin to knead it together. It may be a bit crumbly at first, but keep kneading it for a few minutes until it comes together into a tight ball. Do not over-knead the dough, the more you knead it, the tougher the steaks will be, so knead it just until it comes together.
3. Cut the ball into 4 sections, then use a rolling pin to roll out each section into ½" thick steaks. The dough will be very tough and stretchy, but just keep working at it until you get your desired steak shapes.
4. Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a boil. 
5. Put the steaks in the steamer basket and cover with a lid. It's ok if they are overlapping a bit. Steam for 25 minutes, flipping the steaks halfway through so they steam evenly. They will double in size.
6. In a large ziplock bag or air-tight container, mix together all of the marinade ingredients. The oil won't really combine, but that's fine. 
7. Remove the steaks from the steamer and coat in the marinade. Let marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes before cooking, or for as long as several days when kept in the fridge.

To serve the vegan seitan steaks:

• When you are ready to enjoy the vegan steaks, heat a frying pan, grill pan, or barbecue.
• When hot, fry or grill the steaks a couple of minutes on each side until grill marks form.
• Brush the steaks with leftover marinade while cooking to keep them juicy, and also right before serving.

Serve however you desire. I like mine served with a potato and some greens. I also enjoy mine sliced and put on salad. So many possibilities!