These are based on the famous Chickpea Cutlets from Veganomicon, but they take a few shortcuts to make the whole process quicker. They satisfy my occasional cravings for chicken fingers. I frequently double this recipe and freeze the rest for easy weekday meals.
2/3 cup hummus
2-3 shakes liquid smoke
1 Tbsp peanut butter (optional)
1 tsp soy sauce (optional)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3-1/2 cup vital wheat gluten (aka wheat gluten flour)
olive oil for pan-frying / spraying
Mix the hummus, liquid smoke, peanut butter and soy sauce together until it forms a smooth paste. Stir in the bread crumbs.
Using a strong spoon (or just clean hands), add a quarter cup of wheat gluten and stir/knead until incorporated. Keep adding wheat gluten and kneading until the dough starts to feel springy. Knead for a few more minutes. When it's ready, the dough should spring back when you squeeze it.
Take a small fistful of dough and smoosh it with your hand for a minute or so. Then roll/stretch it into a tube and flatten it into a chicken-finger-esque shape. The patties should be very thin.
You can either pan-fry the fingers in a thin layer of olive oil for 5 minutes per side (until golden brown with darker spots) or spray them with oil and bake them at 400 degrees for 10 minutes on each side. The texture will be slightly chewier if you bake them, more tender if you pan-fry them.
Serve with a green vegetable of some sort and barbecue or honey mustard sauce for dipping.
