These vegan chicken fingers are the perfect comfort food! They’re crispy, a bit spicy, and absolutely delicious. And they’re super easy to make!
Why This Recipe Works
Soy curls are the perfect base for this recipe. They have a meaty texture and soak up marinades and sauces very well.
Their preparation is super easy. Soy curls come dry and all you have to do is rehydrate them with boiling water.
Panko bread crumbs make them super crispy. They work so much better than regular bread crumbs in this recipe. They really do the trick!
Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce adds some nice flavor and spiciness. And don’t forget about the vegan ranch dip or vegan aioli. It will perfectly complement the plant-based chicken fingers.
Preparing them in an air fryer makes them incredibly crispy and they’re so much lower in fat than a deep-fried version.
What Goes Into This Recipe
- Soy Curls – The come dry and need to be rehydrated with water or vegetable broth. Find them online or in your local health food store
- Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce – You could also use any other Buffalo sauce of your choice
- Almond Milk – make sure it’s unsweetened
- Flour – all-purpose flour works just fine
How To Make This Recipe
1. Step: Place the soy curls in a pot or large bowl and add boiling water or vegetable broth. Let them soak for 10-15 minutes. They will double or even triple in size.
2. Step: Drain them and cool them down with cold running water.
3. Step: Squeeze out any extra water with your hands.
4. Step: In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, the plant-based milk, the water, the garlic power, the paprika powder, the salt, and the black pepper.
5. Step: Stir until well combined.
6. Step: Fill a bowl with panko bread crumbs.
7. Step: Dip the soy curls into the flour batter.
8. Step: Then roll them in the panko bread crumbs.
9. Step: Place them in your air fryer and set it to 350 °F.
10. Step: Cook them for 10-12 minutes.
11./12. Step: Pour the Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce in a bowl and evenly coat the soy curls from all sides by carefully stirring them a few times.
13. Step: Place them back into the air fryer and cook them for 5 more minutes at 350 °F.
14. Step: In the meantime, prepare the vegan ranch dip. Finely chop fresh parsley and dill. Place the vegan mayonnaise in a small bowl and add the parsley and dill. Season with salt and pepper. Stir until well combined.
Recipe Notes:
- I recommend serving this recipe immediately. The “chicken” fingers are super crispy when they come out of the air fryer, but unfortunately they will be a lot less crispy when they cool down.
- If you don’t have an air fryer, you could also make this recipe in the oven. They will be a bit less crispy but still amazing. You will have to increase the baking time to 20 minutes (at 350 °F), but make sure to check on them regularly so they don’t get too dark.
FAQs:
Can The “Chicken” Fingers Be Reheated?
Yes, you can easily reheat leftovers. Just place them in your air fryer again and cook them at 350 °F for 5 minutes.
Can I Make Them Without The Buffalo Sauce?
Yes, you could make them without the buffalo sauce. In this case, I would recommend adding some more spices to the flour batter like vegan poultry seasoning, Italian spices, or Mexican spices.
Related Recipes:
I Love To Hear From You Guys!
I hope you like this vegan chicken as much as we do around here.
If you give it a try, I’d love to know what you think about it. Just leave me a comment and a star rating below. Your comments really make my day!
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Sina
Vegan Chicken
Equipment
- air fryer
Ingredients
For the vegan chicken:
- 1 cup dried soy curls (TVP)
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika powder
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 cup Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Sauce
For the vegan ranch dip:
- 1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon freshly chopped dill
- 1 teaspoon freshly chopped parsley
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place the soy curls in a pot or large bowl and add boiling water or vegetable broth. Let them soak for 10 minutes. They will double or even triple in size.
- Drain them and cool them down with cold running water.
- Squeeze out any extra water with your hands.
- In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, the plant-based milk, the water, the garlic power, the paprika powder, the salt, and the black pepper.
- Stir until well combined. Fill a bowl with panko bread crumbs. Dip the soy curls into the flour batter. Then roll them in the panko bread crumbs.
- Place them in your air fryer and set it to 350 °F.
- Cook them for 10-12 minutes.
- Pour the Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Sauce in a bowl and evenly coat the soy curls from all sides by carefully stirring them a few times.
- Place them back into the air fryer and cook them for 5 more minutes at 350 °F.
- In the meantime, prepare the vegan ranch dip. Finely chop fresh parsley and dill. Place the vegan mayonnaise in a small bowl and add the parsley and dill. Stir until well combined.
Notes
- I recommend serving them immediately. They’re super crispy when they come out of the air fryer, but unfortunately they will be a lot less crispy when they cool down.
- You could also make this recipe in the oven. You will have to increase the baking time to 20 minutes (at 350 °F), but make sure to check on them regularly so they don't get too dark.
- To reheat them, place them in your air fryer again and cook them at 350 °F for 5 minutes.
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