It’s no secret that fast food is, well, THE BEST. You know me. I can dive into a salad if it’s well dressed and filled with tasty stuff (preferably bread), but there’s a reason why my motto is #feedyourface. I’m all about vegan ‘ish that’s battered, fried, and covered in as many gluttonous toppings as you can handle… like the ultimate vegan fried chicken sandwich!
I recently found out that KFC is releasing a new vegan sandwich, and nearly lost my marbles! Then just the other day Beyond Meat said they were bringing a bucket of vegan chicken to ONE location in Atlanta to test the market! 2019 is the future, people. There’s so many fast food brands releasing DOPE options for us vegans that are more than a measly garden salad.
But I’m sure you’ve also see the great chicken sandwich debate that’s been firing up online? Well it’s time to put the battle to bed, because my sandwich is the real deal. Can I get a hell yeah?! I’m talkin’ a THICK breaded n’ fried vegan chicken patty that’s coated in all the right spices, vegan mayo, lettuce, and tangy dill pickle slices. Just call me Lauren the vegan fast food wizard!
BTW, if you have an extra big appetite for vegan-ized fast food, I’ve got even MORE ideas on the blog. Try making my vegan big mac, vegan double down, or in-n-out animal style fries. Talk about a feast! Now, let’s get into how to make the ultimate vegan fried chicken sandwich.
the ultimate vegan fried chicken sandwich
Treat yo' self to a totally vegan-ized fast food chicken sandwich!
Ingredients
fried vegan chicken
- 4 C vegetable oil, for frying
- 1 pkg Gardein chicken scallopini, thawed in the fridge (4 pieces)
- 2 sesame seed buns
- 2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise, divided
- 1/2 C green leaf lettuce, chopped into 1/4 inch ribbons, divided
- 1 garlic dill pickle, sliced widthwise into 1/8-inch slices
batter
- 1/2 C unsweetened nondairy milk
- 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/8 C buffalo style hot sauce
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 C all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tbsp sea salt
- 1/2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper or ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground sage
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp celery salt
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
Instructions
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In a medium to large heavy bottom pot, heat up frying oil to a temperature between 325°F to 350°F.
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Gently press two vegan chicken scallopini cutlets together to double up the thickness and set aside.
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Prepare your dredging stations. To make the liquid batter, combine nondairy milk with apple cider vinegar and hot sauce in a large bowl. Mix the cornstarch with a small amount of the milk mixture to make a slurry and then add it to the bowl.
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In another bowl, combine the flour with the sea salt, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, ground white pepper, ground sage, coriander, paprika, celery salt, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon, ground cumin and ground allspice.
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When the oil reaches 350°F, dunk the vegan chicken into the liquid batter first, letting the excess drip off. Then place it in the dry batter to coat evenly. Place the vegan chicken back into the liquid batter and then back into the flour mixture to double dredge.
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Fry the chicken separately in 2 batches. Carefully place 1 battered vegan chicken into the hot oil, using a splatter guard if desired. Fry for 3 to 4 minutes, flipping halfway. Remove from the hot oil with tongs and place on a paper towel lined plate to absorb any excess oil. Repeat with the second piece of battered chicken.
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To assemble your sandwich, on the bottom of the sesame seed bun, spread 1 tablespoon of vegan mayonnaise, add 1/4 cup of lettuce, the vegan chicken, half the pickle slices and the top bun.
20 thoughts on “the ultimate vegan fried chicken sandwich”
Sooo good!!! And took no time to cook since the cutlets were premade. Absolutely delicious. I just did 4 single cutlets as the doubles were huge portions in my opinion.
LOVE the recipe but can’t seem to find the cutlets in my area. I may improvise w/ Gardein CHIKN tenders and definitely add tomato, onion & jalapeno to the finished sammy. Thanks for the great idea!!!
Just made these and they rocked! The only *different* that I did was as someone else remarked was did single cutlets. I’m using the leftovers for wraps tomorw. These were awesome. Thanks!
Just made these and they rocked! The only *different* that I did was as someone else remarked was did single cutlets. I’m using the leftovers for wraps tomorw. These were awesome. Thanks!
Let me just say that the presentation looks great and so delicious, will try the recipe with a friend and will let you know!
This was great, thanks Lauren! Couldn’t find the cutlets in my area so I made them myself – very easy to do, but takes a few hours prep time. I think next time I will sub a quarter cup of the flour for cornstarch to give them that “extra crispy” crunch!
oh wow you made homemade chicken!!! awesome 😀
this recipe turned out so bomb! i have to be honest i did not have faith it would work out- mostly bc i don’t have much experience frying food but I tried it and was really successful. thanks for helping me have fried “chicken” for the first time in 9 years of vegetarianism.
PS I used Quorn brand “filets” rather than Gardein and it worked just as well.
wow! fantastic. So glad you gave it a try 😀
I was so excited to make this and really wanted to love the recipe. I highly recommend leaving out the cinnamon, nutmeg, and possibly also the allspice. They made the flavor strange, and all we could taste were the two spices, so that ruined the chicken flavor. The amount of ingredients purchased for this recipe was not worth it, unfortunately. I love your other recipes though!
Yum! Thanks
This looks not just delicious but very healthy!
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oh.my.god. this sandwich was SOOOO GOOOOOD!!!!
Can this be made in an air fryer?
no because the batter is wet
God this sandwich is amazing! Thanks for the recipe!! I left the cinnamon out as someone commented before me and I think it works better that way. I need to stop eating comfort food though! As a new vegan it’s what appeals to me more but…what about supplements? Would you recommend any (no plastic please). Right now I take Terraseed which has zero plastic
do you mean vitamin supplements? I take Vit D, b-12, and iron regularly. I am not a nutritionist so I would definitely seek out some vegan nutrition resources for better experts advice!
Not a fan of Gardein products. I’ll find something else and then give this