Vegan Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

I’m craving these Vegan Philly Cheese Steaks for dinner again. It’s also coincidentally our most popular recipe 😊

So I know a little bit about this #veganuary thing that’s happening now. My husband and I went vegan three years ago, and January 2018 was our first month being vegan.

We were both nervous but, I’d have to say Paul was probably more nervous about having to give up a lot of the food that he was used to eating. Meaty sandwiches being one of them. Personally, I never really cared for me, though cheese was definitely my kryptonite.

Spoiler alert: we really didn’t give up anything. Paul’s favorite food is pizza and we eat it a lot, And I’m constantly trying to cook foods that we will both love.

That’s where this vegan Philly comes in!

I am not from Philadelphia. I’ve only been there once for a conference during graduate school.

My point with that statement is to say that this is probably not a super authentic Philly cheesesteak recipe. It is, however, super delicious, super easy, and definitely super vegan.

This recipe features my easy Instant Pot Seitan, though I do provide instructions in that recipe for how to make it on the stove top if you don’t have an Instant Pot. You can also just use store-bought seitan, tofu, or a name brand vegan meat substitute!

Vegan Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

This easy Vegan Philly Cheesesteak recipe is ridiculously delicious and makes a fun lunch or dinner to share -- or not! A satisfying seitan sandwich recipe.

Course Lunch

Cuisine American-Inspired

Keyword Seitan Sandwich, Vegan Cheesesteak Sandwich

Total Time 20

Servings sandwiches

Calories 386kcal

Author Liz & Paul

Ingredients

1 batch Zardyplants seitan or store bought, see note 1
1 batch Zardyplants provolone see note 2
2 medium white onions sliced thinly
2 green bell peppers sliced thinly
1/4 cup soy sauce low sodium, divided
Sub rolls or other bread/lettuce wraps
16 oz white button mushrooms optional

Instructions

If you are making my recipe, I like to start the veggies and cheese while the pressure is releasing naturally from the pressure cooker (or if steaming on the stove top, during the last 10 minutes of the cooking process).
Start onions sauteing in a pan over medium high heat. You know the drill with me, I cook without oil so I just add a splash of water when things start to stick, just to deglaze the pan. If you use oil, you can start with a splash of that.
After the onions have become fairly translucent, add the peppers and mushrooms. Let those cook down for about 10 minutes and turn down the heat to medium. Add 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce (or Bragg's liquid aminos * if avoiding soy) during the cooking process. There shouldn't be any need to add anymore liquid as the mushrooms release some of their own.
Whenever the seitan is done, it needs to be rested for 10 minutes. Just tastes better and juicier that way! Continue to cook the veggies if you like, over low heat. If you like them crunchier, turn off the heat for a bit.
Toast your bread if you want to.
After the seitan has rested enough, slice it into quarter inch thick slices and cut those pieces in half lengthwise. Throw all this delicious stuff in the pan with the veggies over medium heat and toss in the other 2 tablespoons of reduced sodium soy sauce or liquid aminos.
Alright, time to assemble this deliciousness. Add a couple scoops of seitan and veg to your sub roll, then add a healthy dollop of my vegan cheese or a couple slices of store bought if that's how you roll. Then add some more seitan and veggies. Finally, make your best attempt to close it up, grab a napkin, and enjoy!
Note on leftovers: only make as many sandwiches as you'd like to eat--this will keep the bread from getting tough in the fridge. Refrigerate leftover seitan and veg separately from leftover cheese. Both will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.

Notes

Note 1: You'll need approximately one batch of my vegan instant pot seitan. However, if you don't have it or don't want to make it, I'd recommend at least 2 pounds of store prepared seitan. You could also try soy curls, tofu, or even just chickpeas, but please don't tell the Philadelphians. Keep in mind though, those store bought dudes won't have the same flavoring, so add some low sodium soy sauce or liquid aminos, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and chili flakes (if desired).
Note 2: I made a standard batch of my vegan melty mozzarella for this recipe but I omitted the onion powder and increased the garlic powder to a full tablespoon instead. Very provolone-y! You can also use any prepared vegan cheese you like--Field Roast Chao might be pretty dang good in this, but I'm OBSESSED with my provolone concoction. Not that I'm biased, no, that would be wrong.