New Year’s Vegan “Pork” and Sauerkraut

According to some folks, especially those in Pennsylvania, in order to have good luck in the new year, you should dine on pork and sauerkraut on New Year’s Day. This, according to legend, is because pigs root forward, a symbol of success. I’ve never seen a pig rooting, but I did make eye contact with a certain pig about 10 years ago, and that encounter was one of a series of events that led to my current diet, which usually does not include animal products.

So, what if you want good luck in the new year but don’t want to actually eat a pig? Well, happily, I found Pennsylvegan’s recipe for pork and sauerkraut that uses seitan instead of pork. This recipe involves making your own seitan, using wheat gluten. To cut down on cooking time, you can also use already-prepared seitan from your grocery store.

After I prepared the seitan and added it to the sauerkraut, I threw in a few ingredients that appear in most traditional pork and sauerkraut recipes, such as brown sugar, beer, apples, and onion.

End result? My husband and my father said it tasted pretty good. Me? I was never a fan of the dish even when I used to eat meat. Did it bring me good luck? Hard to say.

Below you’ll find a pictorial account of the making of my version of the Pennsylvania vegan good-luck dinner. A list of ingredients and directions follow. What do you think?

I purchased some vital wheat gluten, and away I went.

Mix the gluten with some water, and it looks like pizza dough.

After kneading it the gluten mixed with water for five minutes, cut it into little pieces. — After kneading the gluten mixed with water for five minutes, cut it into little pieces. Make a broth with all of the ingredients pictured and water.

Bring the broth to a boil and drop in the pieces of seitan individually. Wear an apron so you don't spot your shirt, like I did. . . or just be more careful than I was. — Bring the broth to a boil and drop in the pieces of seitan, piece by piece. Wear an apron so you don’t spot your shirt, like I did. . . or just be more careful than I was.

There will be this much broth and this much seitan. You must simmer away the liquid.

You must stand by and stir every ten minutes. The seitan will puff up, but will recede when you stir. — Give it a stir every ten minutes. The seitan will puff up, but will recede each time you stir.

This is what it looks like about two hours later. — This is what the seitan looks like about two hours later.

Get yourself some sauerkraut. — Sauerkraut. This kind is imported from Poland, so it must be good.

Most of the regular pork & sauerkraut recipes I saw add apples, onion, beer, and brown sugar, so I did, too. — Most of the traditional pork & sauerkraut recipes I saw add apples, onion, beer, and brown sugar, so I did, too. I meant to save a swig of the beer for myself, but I forgot :/

In a crockpot, mix the seitan, sauerkraut, apple pieces, onion, beer, and brown sugar. Cover and cook for at least two hours. — In a crockpot, mix the seitan, sauerkraut, apple pieces, onion, beer, and brown sugar. Cover and cook on high setting for at least two hours.

Finished product. All flavors mingling together.

Ingredients:

Seitan:
1 1/3 cup wheat gluten
1 cup water

Broth:
4 cups water
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. liquid smoke
4 tbsp. nutritional yeast
2 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. oregano
4 tsp. mustard seed
1/2 tsp. sage

Sauerkraut:
1 large jar or package sauerkraut
1 apple, cut into chunks
1 small onion, sliced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 bottle beer

Seitan: Mix wheat gluten and water together. Knead five minutes. Cut into small pieces.

Broth: Mix all broth ingredients together. Bring to a boil.

Add the seitan to the broth and simmer until most liquid evaporates or is absorbed (about 2 hours). Stir every ten minutes.

In crockpot, combine seitan with sauerkraut ingredients. Mix well. Cook on high heat 2 hours. Serve 4-6.

Ann Silverthorn is a blogger who also writes about a wide variety of topics in numerous genres, including non-fiction and fiction.

Twitter: @annsilverthorn

Instagram: ann_silverthorn

Updated: 12/28/2017

New Year’s Vegan “Pork” and Sauerkraut

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