If you’re a fan of heat, buffalo wings may well be the perfect food. Years ago, when I ate meat, I would have them. But I never cared much for the meat itself so much as that sauce. A veggie version of these was at the top of the list when I became a vegetarian.

The hot sauce is really important. Frank’s RedHot is the authentic choice and supposedly the one that was used when the first buffalo wings were created in Buffalo, New York in 1964.

However, any hot sauce will work. If you’re using Frank’s, though, you want to be sure to use the hot sauce and not the prepared buffalo sauce that they make. For something different you can also try these with barbecue, teriyaki, honey mustard, maple, or just about any kind of sauce.

You could bake these in a 400°F oven until browned if you like. But, I chose to indulge a little and pan-fry these in some butter. Sort of a happy compromise between deep frying and baking.

Serve these alongside the classics: celery sticks and plenty of sauce for dipping. I always preferred ranch for my wings. Blue cheese is probably more typical.

If you don’t want to make seitan from scratch, you can buy it. But this also works very well with baked tofu!

Seitan Buffalo Wings
1 recipe chicken-style seitan or 1 pkg extra-firm tofu, baked
1 cup buttermilk or 1 cup unsweetened soymilk mixed with 1 Tbsp vinegar, set aside to curdle
4 Tbsp unsalted butter or margarine, melted
6 Tbsp Frank’s RedHot, or other hot sauce
1 Tbsp white vinegar
½ tsp Tabasco sauce
1/8 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp garlic powder

Cut the seitan into the size pieces that you want and place in a medium bowl. Cover with the buttermilk or curdled soymilk mixture and set aside for 30 minutes.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a medium skillet. When it’s nice and hot pull the wings out of the buttermilk marinade and toss into the pan. Cook 5 minutes. Flip and cook another 5 minutes, until brown.

Meanwhile, prepare the buffalo sauce. Mix the remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter with the hot sauce, vinegar, Tabasco, Worcestershire, and garlic powder in a large bowl. When the wings are ready, toss them right into the sauce, mix well, and set aside for a few minutes.

Serve hot! With blue cheese, ranch, or your favorite dressing. Celery sticks always make these seem healthier. And that’s how vegetarian buffalo wings work.