Do You Know That Vegetarian Meat AKA Seitan Is Beneficial?
Have you ever come across meat labeled ‘vegetarian’? No need to be surprised. This meat is imitation meat made from vegetable ingredients as a plant based meat substitutes. Imitation meat for vegetarians is also known as seitan. This imitation meat is made from a protein in wheat called gluten. The manufacture is done by kneading wheat flour with water to form sticky dough strands. The dough is then rinsed with water while continuing to knead it slowly to remove the starch in it.
After rinsing, the remaining product is pure gluten with a chewy and sticky texture. This is what is known as seitan.
Although only made from wheat flour, this vegetarian meat is healthy because it is rich in protein and minerals. Simply by consuming 28 grams of seitan, you can get 104 kcal of energy and 21 grams of protein.
These processed products are also low in carbohydrates and fat. Seitan in the same amount contains only 4 grams of carbohydrates and 0.5 grams of fat.
So, is imitation meat from seitan healthy? Of course, yes, for those of you who want to increase your protein intake.
Seitan is a fairly healthy alternative food for vegetarians.
This vegetarian meat is called healthy because it is very rich in protein. The amount of protein can even be compared with the protein from chicken and beef.
By consuming 28 grams of seitan, you can meet nearly 50 percent of protein needs in a day.
However, the protein content in seitan is incomplete because this product does not contain the amino acid lysine that the body needs. The body can only get lysine from food intake.
Then, soybeans are one of the food ingredients that most often trigger allergies. These protein-rich beans are used in many vegetarian products such as tempeh and tofu.
Seitan does not contain soy, so it is safe for people with allergies. However, this product cannot be consumed by people who have gluten intolerance or have celiac disease.