Ours is a house divided on the subject of meat substitutes. I’m generally against, citing a thing against “fake” food. (He who argues in favor has been known to on occasion buy Kraft cheese. Perhaps things like veggie bratwurst and boca burgers, for which I have a good deal of affection and can be great for a quick effort-free meal, suffer mainly by association).
But, whatever, we agree on these tacos. Seitan is made from wheat gluten, but has a good amount of protein and a satisfying texture, if not flavor – this is where a good marinade comes in. I’ve also used the marinade for veggie tacos with portabello mushrooms instead of the seitan.
1 package prepared seitan
Juice of 1 lime
Olive Oil
Ground Cumin
Ground Coriander
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
Ground dried chipotle or other chile
Paprika
Dried Oregano, preferably Mexican
Vegetables: 1 large onion, zuchinni, 1 red bell pepper, others?
Tortillas
Your seitan probably comes in a sealed package filled with liquid. Drain the excess liquid off and slice the seitan into strips or chunks, such as you want in your tacos.
Mix marinade ingredients: Lime juice, olive oil, a few pinches cumin, a smallish pinch of coriander, garlic, chile to your taste, a few shakes of paprika and a few pinches of oregano (sorry, this is as precise as it gets).
Combine seitan and marinade in a bowl, or better yet, a ziploc bag so everything gets nice and soaked in. Let sit for an hour, or overnight, or a couple days.
When ready to cook: prepare any vegetables you want to add. I like sliced onions, zuchinni, sometimes a red pepper – but add whatever you like.
Heat a bit of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Yes, high heat. Drain marinade from seitan but reserve what drains off in a bowl.
Once oil and skillet are very hot, add seitan. Stir quickly, don’t get splattered with hot oil but get it starting to brown.
Add in veggies. Keep things on high heat, adding some of the reserved marinade when things start to get dry (but a little bit of burning here is not a bad thing). Beware of splatters. Keep cooking, adding marinade as you like, until the veggies are good and cooked and maybe a bit browned in spots.
Spoon into to warmed tortillas, top with sour cream, cheese, salsa, guacamole, whatever you like.

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