seitan

Vital wheat gluten hydrated and cooked into a dense, chewy, meat-mimetic protein block long used in Chinese Buddhist temple cuisine as 'mian jin' or mock meat. Kneading and rinsing wheat flour (or reconstituting isolated gluten) yields a stretchy matrix that braises, steams, deep-fries, or grills into remarkably beef- or poultry-like textures. Not suitable for celiac or gluten-intolerant diners.