Mock Beef Bourguignon

• 2 medium bowls
• whisk
• 2 small bowls
• baking dish
• 2 cookie sheets
• parchment paper
• paper towels
• colander
• Dutch oven or other large pot

• ¾ pound seitan, tempeh (if using tempeh, steam for 7 minutes before using), or mock ground beef, cubed
• ½ c soy sauce
• 2 t barley miso
• 2½ c dry red wine
• ½ c mirin or sake
• ¼ c balsamic vinegar
• ½ c canola oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 oz fresh or ½ oz dried porcini mushrooms
• 3 c boiling water
• 2 red bell peppers, de-stemmed, seeded, cleaned, and chopped
• ¾ pound fresh shiitakes or other mushrooms
• 1 T olive oil
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• 28 oz chopped tomatoes (if canned, drain)
• 2 T tomato paste
• 1 c peas, fresh or frozen
• salt
• black pepper
• cayenne pepper
• several T chives, chopped

Combine soy sauce and miso in another med. bowl, then add ½ c red wine, mirin, vinegar, canola oil, and garlic and whisk until blended. Pour all but ¾ c over the seitan and let marinate for 30 minutes.

If using dry porcini mushrooms, place in small bowl, cover with boiling water, and set aside for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375.

Arrange the seitan in a single layer in the baking dish. Add enough marinade to cover halfway. Bake until most of the marinade is absorbed – 30 to 40 minutes.

Meanwhile,

1. Place a sheet of parchment paper on each cookie sheet. In a bowl, stir 2 T marinade with red peppers, then spread on a cookie sheet and bake for 40 minutes. Turn over the peppers every 10 minutes.
2. De-stem and cube the shiitakes, toss with ½ c marinade, spread on the other cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes, turning them over halfway through.
     
   Note: If your oven isn’t large enough to accommodate two cookie sheets plus a baking dish, you can put the peppers on one side and the mushrooms on the other side of a single cookie sheet.

Place two layers of paper towels in the colander and put a bowl underneath. Pour the porcinis through, rinse them off, and chop. Reserve the soaking water.

Heat oil in the Dutch oven over medium-low heat, add onions, and sauté for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft. Add remaining 2 c wine, increase to high heat, and cook about 15 minutes, until about half of the wine has boiled away. Turn to medium heat, add tomatoes and tomato paste, and cook for 5 minutes.

Add roasted peppers, both kinds of mushrooms, seitan, 2 T marinade, and 2 c porcini water (or plain water if you used fresh porcinis). Cover, bring to a boil, then lower heat to simmer. Add peas, salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes, sprinkle with chives, and serve.

Adapted from Myra Kornfeld’s The Voluptuous Vegan.