From what I remember I more-or-less followed the recipe from here and used TVP instead of chickpeas: https://naturallieplantbased.com/vegan-tikka-masala/

For the TVP I usually hydrate it in veggie stock, use a bit of soy sauce and vegan Worcestershire sauce and some spices including garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, and maybe change it up a bit depending on the dish.

A very very important tip is to add toasted sesame oil, for me this is absolutely not optional! It brings out all the other flavours and really elevates the dish to another level. If the dish would be a 5/10, adding toasted sesame oil would take it up to 8/10 just on its own, it's that crucial!

If you have any questions or comments please let me know! I love this dish so much.

I wasn't sure if the cubes were vegan so I made it myself.

It turned out pretty good but it did take some time and effort! I found recipes to say that cooking the roux takes 10-12 minutes but for me it was more like 30+ minutes to get it to darken to the right colour. Have any idea why that might be? I used vegan butter and all-purpose flour.

If the foil too is unnecessary and could be avoided, I do not see why not.

Thank you! Yes, it's dredged in a seasoned flour mixture, (salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika from what I remember) breaded with Panko then shallow-fried in a small pot.

Nothing shitty about this, it looks pretty good. I've never tried silken tofu, got any tips or recommendations?

Looks great! And it wouldn't be very difficult to make it 'healthy' for those who would like. Just sub the butter out for olive oil and use something like lentils and chickpeas for filling, still tastes delicious.

Fresh shiitake mushrooms cost around 3eur for a 150g package. A bag of dried shiitake which is like 150grams is around 5eur and it lasts me a long time. I usually take 2-3 dried shiitake mushrooms at a time when making soup or stock, they impart a very strong flavour when they're rehydrated.

Yeah, they're in strip form like these here

Yes, large dried TVP strips. I usually rehydrate them in a mix of veggie broth and dark soy sauce for some colour and umami before adding any extras for the final flavour profile.

I found a few drips vegan worcestershire sauce to add a very satisfying umami complexity to the final product.

That is a good point. Gyros cannot be self-contained like burritos though and need some external support to help them stay in one piece. What alternative would you suggest?

Thank you! I've seen a couple of your posts and I'm jealous of your plating skills :)

A good tip is to quickly rinse it with cold water before rehydrating it. It removes any lingering 'dried' taste that it might've had.

If you have a soy allergy you can try a chana masala with chickpeas, or use a pea-protein alternative instead of TVP.

Seitan would also work depending on how you prepare it. You can find many recipes on how to make seitan shreds.

Textured vegetable protein. Has a meat-like texture to it and is very versatile depending on how you cook it and spice it.

The main difference is that I made a mushroom duxelles layer between the seitan and the pastry. I also used chinese black vinegar instead of balsamic for some extra umami, and switched some of the spices/herbs up to my personal tastes. I've also added a layer of whole mushrooms in the middle of the seitan loaf, as you can see when its cut open in the second picture.

I made this mostly free-hand a while ago but I'll try to list the main points.

For the sauce, I used hoisin sauce, dark and light soy sauce, black vinegar, a bit of agave syrup and mirin for sweetness and that photogenic glaze.

The vegetables were green and yellow bell peppers and brown mushrooms stir-fried with garlic and chili oil.

The TVP was hydrated in simmering veggie stock and dark soy sauce. I usually marinade it a little (10-15mins) with a bit of vegan worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and maybe a drop of toasted sesame oil. Pan fry it in plenty of fat (it's important because TVP has no fat whatsoever on its own).

Add the sauce to the vegetables, let it simmer a little and add the TVP and coat it nice and well in the sauce. Garnish with green onions and chili flakes. Done.

For the rice, it's just prepared as the packet says and garnished with chili flakes and green onions.

I hope this helps!

Edit: I might have added corn starch to the TVP to give it a crispier outer layer but I'm not sure.

Thank you! All in all, I try to keep a healthy diet with plenty of vegetables and whole foods, but I don't shy away from things like seitan, TVP, etc. for rounding out a dish.

I guess it would work if you're careful with the placement of the sauce.

Shepherds pies are delicious and so satisfying. I think Jamie Oliver's tip with squeezing the oil over the potatoes before putting it in the oven is really good. Gives the potatoes a very nice crispy and delicious outer layer (and it looks great too!) Timestamp here: https://youtu.be/vkTfd0SihMM?feature=shared&t=354