Recipe: Korean BBQ Seitan Salad

I was already over a year into my five year stint as a vegetarian the first time I had seitan. Up until then, the only faux meat I had encountered was in the form of Boca Burgers or the nasty water chestnut veggie patties that were served in my college's cafeteria. I was amazed not only by the texture of that funny little wheat gluten (I could have sworn it was meat!) but also by the taste. The professor who made me that dish was a whiz at cooking with seitan - he opened my eyes and palate to a whole new world of vegetarian cooking.

While I do eat meat these days, I still love my seitan. Today's Meatless Monday dish, Korean BBQ Seitan Salad, is my version of that awesome dish my professor made me all those years ago. This is a simple way to cook with seitan and it's an extremely versatile dish - it can be served on its own as a hearty salad, or can be used for a sandwich/wrap filling.

Korean BBQ Seitan Salad
Makes 2 servings

INGREDIENTS
1 package of seitan strips - approximately 1 lb (this is my favorite brand - you can also make your own)
1/2 jar Korean BBQ sauce (I use CJ Bibigo Korean BBQ Sauce)
2 thinly sliced roasted red peppers (jarred or freshly roasted)
Toasted sesame seeds
Mixed greens - approximately 10 oz.
1 tsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. Remove seitan from liquid and marinate in half of the BBQ sauce (approximately 1/4 of the jar) for 30-60 minutes. The longer you let it sit, the stronger the BBQ flavor!

2. Coat pan with olive oil and sauté seitan over medium-low heat until it's golden brown (3-5 minutes). Make sure you watch it carefully because it is *very* easy to burn.

3. Reduce heat, add remaining BBQ sauce (1/4 of the jar), and top with peppers. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until sauce has cooked down.

4. Spoon seitan over salad greens and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.