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This Vegan “Chicken” Piccata is everything you loved about the classic Italian-American favorite – it’s zesty, buttery, briny and made 100% vegan with our homemade seitan “chicken.” Serve it over pasta or mashed potatoes for the ultimate dinner!
A Vegan Take on an Italian-American staple
It’s no secret that we love recreating the classic Italian recipes we grew up with, so adding our personal take on Chicken Piccata to the blog was a no-brainer.
It’s just as dinner-worthy as our Tuscan Vegan Chicken, “Chicken” Marsala, and Sherry Tofu, but with one unique twist: It’s made with homemade “chicken” fillets instead of tofu cutlets.
Since going vegan in 2013, we’ve perfected a few 5-star seitan recipes, including The Best Vegan Chicken Nuggets you have to try next! They have the same chewy, chicken-like consistency and spot-on flavor; you won’t believe it’s 100% vegan!
Key Ingredients You’ll Need
Here we’ve listed the key ingredients you won’t want to go without, but for a complete list of ingredients with measurements, see the full recipe card at the bottom of this blog post!
For the Seitan “Chicken”
- Tofu: For the best texture and consistency, we recommend using firm, drained tofu (pressing isn’t required!).
- Seasonings: Nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, poultry seasoning, and salt season the vegan “chicken” without overpowering the overall dish.
- Vital wheat gluten: An essential ingredient in any seitan recipe. Substitutions are unfortunately not possible.
For the Piccata Sauce
- Flour: Helps to pan-fry the “chicken” until golden and crispy and thickens the sauce to perfection.
- Aromatics: For a classic piccata sauce, you’ll need shallot, fresh garlic, and most importantly – capers!
- Dry white wine: In addition to deglazing the pan, dry white wine adds a necessary acidity that brightens the overall sauce.
- Lemon: Key for the signature zesty tang. For the best flavor, make sure to use lemon juice and lemon zest!
- Broth: We love the added savoriness of vegan chicken broth, but if necessary, you can also use your favorite store-bought or homemade vegetable broth.
Equipment Needed
- Food processor
- Steamer basket
- Large skillet
- Wire rack
Making the Vegan “Chicken” Piccata
Making seitan “chicken” from scratch is more time-consuming than our Vegan Chicken Parmesan recipe that’s made with Gardein’s premade Chick’n Scallopini, but trust us when we say that making seitan is not only easy, but so worth the added effort.
Once the homemade “chicken” is prepared, you simply have to:
- Pan-fry the “chicken” until golden brown.
- Prepare the quick and easy lemon-butter sauce.
- Assemble, and enjoy!
To save time on weeknights, make the seitan “chicken” pieces in advance when you have more time.
How to Make Homemade Seitan “Chicken”
- Make the seitan dough. To a large cup food processor, add the tofu, nutritional yeast, seasonings, and salt. Process until completely smooth, then add the vital wheat gluten and process again. A ball of uniform dough should form.
- Briefly knead until well incorporated.
- Form the “chicken” fillets. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and flatten them into fillet-like shapes, about 1 centimeter thick.
- Steam for 30 minutes. Prepare a steamer basket and arrange the seitan fillets in the steamer basket. It’s okay if they’re overlapping a bit. Cover and steam for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- Let cool to room temperature.
Serving Suggestions
Traditional chicken piccata is typically served over homemade pasta or mashed potatoes, but is also delicious served over rice.
Pair it with pan-fried asparagus or your favorite roasted vegetables for a well-rounded meal!
Storage Instructions
Once coated in the lemon-butter sauce, this vegan “chicken” piccata is best served fresh but leftovers will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
If you’re preparing the seitan fillets in advance, they can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days before pan-frying and serving in vegan piccata sauce.
We have not tested freezing our seitan fillets for easy meal prep, but it may work. If you give it a try, please leave a comment to share your results with others!
More Vegan Italian American Recipes You May Enjoy:
Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you make this recipe. We love to see your photos!
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Vegan “Chicken” Piccata with Seitan Recipe
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4-6 servings
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This Vegan “Chicken” Piccata is everything you loved about the classic Italian-American favorite – it’s zesty, buttery, briny and made 100% vegan with our homemade seitan “chicken.” Serve it over pasta or mashed potatoes for the ultimate dinner!
Ingredients
“Chicken” seitan fillets:
- 7 oz firm tofu, drained
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon poultry seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (90g) vital wheat gluten
Piccata:
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons vegan butter, divided
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons capers
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 cup vegan chicken broth
- Juice & zest of 1 large lemon
- Salt & black pepper, to taste
- Fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
Prepare the “chicken” fillets:
- Add the tofu, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, poultry seasoning, and salt to a food processor. Process until completely smooth. Add the vital wheat gluten and process again until it forms a ball of dough.
- Remove from the food processor and briefly knead just to ensure everything is well incorporated.
- Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and flatten them into “fillet” shapes, about 1 centimeter thick.
- Prepare a steamer basket over a pan of simmering water. Arrange the seitan fillets in the steamer basket–it’s okay if they’re overlapping a bit. Cover and steam for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.
- Once the fillets are done steaming, allow to cool before continuing. You can prepare the seitan fillets in advance and store in the fridge until ready to prepare the piccata.
Pan-fry the fillets:
- Add the flour, salt, and black pepper to a shallow bowl and mix together. Coat each seitan fillet with the flour mixture.
- Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of vegan butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the butter is melted and foamy, add the fillets. Cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes on each side.
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Remove from the pan and place on a wire rack. Depending on the size of your skillet and fillets, you might need to do this in multiple batches.
Make the piccata:
- Once all the fillets are browned and removed from the pan, add the shallot, garlic, and capers. Sauté for 3 minutes until the shallot is softened. Add the wine and mix to deglaze the pan, scraping any browned bits. Simmer until the alcohol is cooked off, about 1 minute.
- Add the broth, lemon zest, and lemon juice and stir together. Lower the heat to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
- Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of vegan butter into cubes and add to the sauce. Stir constantly until the butter has melted and the sauce is emulsified.
- Add salt and black pepper to taste. Add the seitan fillets back to the sauce and toss to coat.
- Top with fresh parsley and enjoy!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Italian
