Saturday, November 11, 2017

Vegan Sausages


I am by no means a vegetarian or vegan. I do, however, like to enjoy vegan and/or vegetarian dishes every now and again. We have posted several veggie burger and meatball recipes on our blog but have not posted any sausages until today. 
Sausages and wieners are pretty hard to replicate as far as texture goes - in my opinion. They are usually just too funky for me. This recipe though.... I really like the texture and the flavor is pretty tasty too. I made them a bit smaller - like breakfast sausage size - but when I make then again I'm going to make them the size of a hot dog wiener so I can try it on a bun like a hot dog. 
This recipe makes a good amount - I believe 21 smallish sausages - and, once steamed, they freeze beautifully.


Vegan Sausages

Ingredients
2 cans (540 ml each) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed & drained
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3/4 cup potato starch
3 Tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic granules (or 2 cloves minced garlic)
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions
In a food processor or blender, process chickpeas until smooth paste. Note - this can take some time as you have to keep stopping and scraping the sides, just be patient. :)
When smooth, scrape into a mixing bowl. Add in the tomato paste and potato starch.
In another mixing bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients. 


Stir all the ingredients together in one bowl. Pinch off some of the mixture and form into a sausage shape. I made mine about the size of a large finger. Repeat until all the mixture is used up. 


Take a piece of plastic wrap and wrap each sausage - leaving enough on each end to twist up like a candy wrapper. (See photo below for clarity) 


Place sausages in a double boiler (or steamer) and steam for 20 minutes. Be sure to only cook them in a single layer at a time - I had to do 3 separate steaming batches. (FYI - remember to check the double boiler/steamer that the water in the bottom has not evaporated off in between cooking the sausages)
After 20 minutes, remove from the double boiler (or steamer) and let cool. When cool enough to handle, gently remove the plastic wrap. 


Place in fridge until ready to eat. They are good in the fridge for 3 or 4 days BUT can be frozen in an airtight container for much longer. 
When ready to eat - you can BBQ them or fry them in a pan. They hold together wonderfully. 
I fried a big pan of onions and mushrooms first......


Then cooked my sausages in a nonstick pan until heated through. I didn't add any extra oil but you certainly can add a little if you like.  


Then I served the sausages on top of the caramelized onions.


They look like "real" sausages, don't you think? (FYI - the larger sausages on the end are another experiment of mine. They are vegetarian sausages, not vegan, and I will post the recipe for those once I tweak the recipe a bit!)


Even the inside looks sausage-y. 
I would love to hear your opinion if you give these a try. I made my office coworkers who are vegetarian taste them and give me feedback. Overall I think they were a hit. 
I really enjoyed them and will definitely add them to my "Meatless Monday" rotation. 
FYI - I believe these are also gluten free if you use a gluten free soy sauce or a sub like coconut aminos.
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According to MyFitnessPal, the nutritional counts are: 76 calories, 12 carbs, 2 fat, 2 protein, 2 fiber, 0 sugar (5 sugar in the whole recipe). This is per sausage if you make 21 sausages. 



We're sharing over at Carol's Chatter. Be sure to click over and say Hi!

97 comments:

  1. You made your own! Hope you'll bring them over to Food on Friday: November. Cheers from Carole's Chatter

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  2. Can I use corn starch, smoked paprika instead liquid smoke,dry chickpea and then cooked,real onion and garlic?Would it be the texture the same?How much dry beans do I need?

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    Replies
    1. I want to know this too

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    2. I'm sorry, I can't help you with that. I've never tried it that way. If you do give it a try, please let us know how they turn out.

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  3. These look amazing! I'm just wondering if they would still turn out if I didn't use the plastic wrap? I don't feel comfortable using plastic wrap on my food that's heated.

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    1. Use aluminum foil instead or cheesecloth

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    2. You shouldn't use foil against the food either. You can use parchment paper and then wrap in foil (or probably even plastic wrap.

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    3. What is your reasoning behind not using aluminum foil when you steam?

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  4. Soy sauce has gluten in. My child has celiac and can't eat soy sauce

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    Replies
    1. Use Coconut Aminos instead. I recently learned it is a gluten-free alternative to soy sauce.

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    2. Or regular Bragg's Liquid Aminos can be used.

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    3. They also make gluten free soy sauce. My best friend is gluten intolerant and has gluten free soy sauce

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    4. Aluminum is worse than plastic in cooking. My method which worked OK wrap in parchment paper and MW for few seconds. Watch them. They burn fast.

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    5. Doesn’t matter if you use aluminum if you use deodorant you get aluminum anyway

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  5. You can find GF soy sauce. Or use tamarind sauce. Lee Kim Kee makes a GF soy sauce.

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    Replies
    1. I think you mean Tamari, not tamarind. Quite a different flavor!

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    2. I'm GF and allergic to tomatoes- I'm going to try tamarind instead of tomatoes.

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  6. I'm not vegetarian but eat veggie foods and have been looking for a "sausage" recipe. Am adding this recipe to my "folder" of many, many others. Thank you for sharing!

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    1. We hope you enjoy it! Thanks for stopping by :)

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  7. Hello can you tell me is potatoe starch a powder?
    Thanks
    Sandra

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    1. But what is potato starch? They look perfect, I've all the other ingredients but I've never heard of potato starch! Help please. Thank 😁

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  8. Hi, love this receipt but have made it twice now and it is too salty. I cut down on the veggie stock powder - used Vegeta. What did you use please? Thanks.

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    1. We use Knorr veggie bouillon. We don't find it too salty but, of course, that is going to be personal taste :) Hope that helps.

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  9. Hi, I would just like to enquire if I can use chickpea flour instead of chickpea so it's easier? If so, how much?

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    1. You need to use the canned chickpeas as they are what makes the sausages moist and help them bind together. Chickpea flour wouldn't work for that.

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  10. Hi there !!
    Those badboys are in the steamer now (cheese cloth!) — i made a number of sizes to see how they come out, respectively ...I might have added a little too much water seeing as the dough was really moist.
    I used tamari sauce (gluten free soy sauce) and hickory smoke-
    Anyways your recipe sounds amazing, and it’s starting to smell real good:)
    Can’t wait to try them:)!!!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for letting us know about the changes you tried - please let us know how they turn out :)

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  11. Did you shell the chickpeas or leave them on? Its an arduous process but I shell them for my hummus to make it creamier, so I wondered if you did or not for these.

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    1. I did not. I just made sure to thoroughly rinse them. :)

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    2. To easily shell chickpeas, put them on a clean tea towel, cover and gently roll them around; the shells just pop off!

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  12. Why do they need steaming?

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    Replies
    1. You steam them to cook them and so they will hold their shape.

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  13. What could you use instead of potato starch as my son cannot eat anything with starch in it. The recipe looks really good and am eager to try it. Dot Harding

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    1. I'm just guessing here but maybe brown rice flour or rice flour?

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    2. Could we use chick pea flour instead of potato flour? Brown rice flour I could try i suppose but I’m thinking carbs are higher...

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    3. I am not sure if your son could have tapioca flour (which is also sometimes called tapioca starch), but generally it's good for binding. Another thought is perhaps either Chia seeds powder of milled flaxseed soaked in water are also used as egg replacement in some recipies in order to have the binding effect, which I think the potato starch was used for in the recipe.

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  14. Can they be microwaved instead of steaming? Tks

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    1. I would think that would completely change the texture of them. That being said, I'm not really sure. If you try it, let us know how it turns out for you. I don't think they would turn out as well if they were microwaved.

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  15. Here I am with an update. First of all congrats for a wonderful recipe the best I ever made. Now re my query yes they can be microwaved but watch it they cook extra fast. As a guide I cooked mine at 300W for only ONE minute and turn over after thirty seconds. No need to wrap them in anything they hold their shape excellently.
    A bit salty for my taste next time instead of 3T bouillon powder I subs 2.5T. Instead of liq smoke I used smoked paprika.

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    1. Thank you so much for the update! Good to know they turned out :)

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  16. Cannot wait to try them!!! At last sausages with controlled additives!!! Thanks a lot!!!

    I use cooked dry chickpeas in my hummus, so I am positively sure you can use them here too

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  17. Why did you mix in the liquid ingredients with the chickpeas by hand instead of using the food processor?

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  18. Does this recipe call for dried oregano leaf or ground oregano seed?

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  19. Replies
    1. I wouldn't recommend it. That being said, you could give it a try and see how it goes. Or maybe just cut it in half. Let us know how it works for you if you give it a try.

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    2. I'm wondering if you could substitue whole nuts/seeds like cashews or sunflower seeds for the oil. I want to try this recipe but I think I will blend cashews until they are creamy and use that in the recipe instead of oil. I might need to add a little water or soymilk to acheive the right consistency.

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    3. I know that pureed sweet potatoes or pumpkin make a good replacement for oil in baking, not sure if it would work here

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  20. Will try I'm on Plant Based eating and oil is a no no but this looks so darn good. Will let you know. Some recipes you can use applesauce as a binder is this what the oil is used for as a binder?

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  21. One of the best vegan sausage I made and ate. Made them several months ago, froze them and had to last night as hotdogs on the BBQ, still very moist and good. I made the sausages too big, like european sausage, will make more of a wienner type next time.

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  22. Can anyone tell me if these were mushy or not? I’m very excited to make them, but am tempted to put them in the oven. My past experience with bean burgers only being pan seared was not good.

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  23. Thanks for giving us the tasty recipe

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  24. Thank you for taking the time to post this recipe. I can't wait to try them. They look amazing! Anything with chickpeas has got to be good!

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  25. Thank you So much for this Important and Useful Information.

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  26. Such a great recipe. Made them today and the whole family loved them. Will definitely make them again. Thanks for posting this recipe.

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  27. Hi can you cook them from frozen in the oven? :)

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    1. I've never tried them this way. If you give it a try let us know how it works out.

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  28. Have you tried with the paste vege bulleon? As I don’t use powdered myself?

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    1. Sorry Tarrick, I've never heard of paste vege bulleon.

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    2. I have used the packaged cubesa few times still taste great.

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  29. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  30. Sometime, try using a variety of beans; I like to do half garbanzo and half dark red kidney beans. The kidney beans add a gaminess that makes your brain think "meat" when you're shoveling them down (cause they're delicious). Also, try stirring in a small amount of cooked grains (I default to cooked wheat berries and groats) to give that texture of ground meat; you wouldn't need much, maybe 1/3 cup for this size recipe, just to vary the texture a bit. The wheat berries are large and plump and give the mouth feel of a chunk of dense muscle tissue, while the groats melt a bit and remind of you of melted connective tissue. Sounds kinda gross when said that way, but it tastes great. Makes the best veggie chorizo/taco meat you've ever had.

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  31. Heating plastic releases cancer-causing chemicals to penetrate food. please research this before wrapping food and steaming it. ;)

    Holistic Nutritionist Reader

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    1. Very true Meg. Foil is also problematic as well. I'm going to look into some sort of non-toxic natural leaf or husk to use. Mexican steam foods in corn husks. Will have to research it more.

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  32. I was thinking the same thing. Could one use parchment paper?

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  33. Do you have a print version of your recipes?

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  34. Awesome recipe. I really like and appreciate it. Thanks

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  35. Really Awesome Blog Thanks for Sharing...

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  36. Has anyone tried these in a patty shape?

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  37. To hanini #7. You wrapped in parchment then MW .What is MW?

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  38. Hi, again. I have used vital wheat gluten, where you used potato starch.. Live all hints! Will def try these! Prob w cheese cloth.. Wondering about corn husks,banana leaf, or grape leaf to wrap?!

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  39. Nice article as well as whole site.Thanks for sharing.

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  40. Has anyone tried to use agar agar in a recipe like this?

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  41. Do you really need to steam them, why not just cook them seeing there is no Gluten Flour in them???

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  42. I am going to cook these straight in the pan once made. Seeing there is no Gluten Flour stated in the recipe I can't see any real reason to steam the sausages. I'm sure it will work...your thoughts please??

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  43. These are good, why such hugh carb count though?

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    1. Hi Dusty, my guess would be because of the chickpeas and potato starch.

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  44. Many sausage and seitan recipe use parchement paper covered with foil for steaming. The parchment is safe, while the foil holds the shape.

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  45. What would be the drained weight as can only get small cans here and they dont work out for the weight.my sausages were soft and mushy and fell to bits when frying so wondering if not having enough or to much chickpeas caused this

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    1. I only ever go by the can size but I did find this by Googling, maybe it will be helpful for you. "1 19oz (540ml) can, undrained = 14.5 oz (410g) by weight, drained = 2 cups, drained"

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    2. Also, did you steam them first before frying them? Because you definitely need to do that.

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  46. Instead of liquid smoke or any kind what can I use instead? Thanks so much

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    1. I've only ever used liquid smoke to flavor them. You could leave it out but it would change the flavor.

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  47. I’ve been looking for a great sausage recipe!!! Has anyone sliced these up after steaming into little discs and added them to gumbo, jambalaya, or anything like that? If so, how did they hold up?

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  48. Recently I have come across recipes using pea protein. It seems that it is gain hold. Can I add to this? Thanks.

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  49. I recommend freezing coconut oil and adding chopped bit to the mix to ensure your sausage is not dry.

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  50. I've used this recipe before. They are wonderful!

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  51. Just recently discovered this recently. Best veggie sausage I've ever tasted, and so simple to make. Many thanks for sharing

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  52. I would think you could use spring roll wrappers to wrap the sausage in. I feel like it would be like a sausage casing because you can eat it. It’s edible and no worries using tinfoil or plastic wrap.

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