The Best Vegan Chicken - Full of Plants (2024)

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⭐️ Why You Should Try This Recipe

• Mindblowing texture. The texture of this vegan chicken is so fibrous and meaty that you will never believe it’s actually vegan! It is tender and slightly chewy with a subtle stretchiness.
• Cheaper than Tofurky. If you are familiar with Tofurky’s Chick’n, this homemade version has almost the same texture for much cheaper. You will never buy plant-based chicken at the supermarket again!
• High in protein. Thanks to the use of tofu, white beans, and wheat gluten, this vegan chicken is very high in protein, with 28g per serving!
• Two ways to make it. I am sharing two ways to make this vegan chicken. One that makes use of beans and another one that uses green jackfruit for those who don’t tolerate beans.
• Versatile. You can infuse the chicken with your favorite marinade and then grill, bake, or sauté it. It’s the perfect vehicle for flavor!
• The reviews speak for themselves. With 80 reviews and an average note of ★★★★★, readers love this vegan chicken recipe! Melissa said: “Thank you for such an INCREDIBLE seitan recipe…it’s just absolutely amazing. The BEST seitan recipe, EVER! ♥”

📘 Introduction

I have always been a fan of Chick’n by Tofurky. The thing is, it quickly gets expensive at almost $5 a packet, so I decided to make my own. After looking at the ingredients of Tofurky, I found out they were using a base of vital wheat gluten combined with tofu. Tofu makes the seitan less chewy, and more tender and gives it a better texture overall.

After countless tests, I finally succeeded in creating a vegan chicken that has the same fibrous texture and chewiness. Ready to make your own plant-based chicken?

🫛 Ingredient Notes

This plant-based chicken recipe requires just 6 ingredients and a few spices! Here is what you will need:

• Tofu – It dramatically helps with the texture, making the seitan slightly less elastic and more tender. Use firm tofu, also sold under the name “regular” tofu.
• White beans – Cooked white navy beans add tenderness to the seitan, making it less chewy. Don’t worry, you cannot taste them!
• Vital wheat gluten – Wheat gluten is essential to getting a fibrous and meaty texture! For information, the vital wheat gluten I use contains 79g of protein per 100g. I haven’t tried with other brands, but you should be good as long as your gluten has 70-80g of protein per 100g.
• Oil – For richness and to prevent the dough from being too sticky.
• Miso – The addition of miso brings saltiness and umami.
• Onion and garlic powder – For a sharp aroma and to create more complex flavors.
• Pepper – Use ground white pepper. Combined with the onion and garlic powder, it will give the chicken extra flavor.
• Salt
• Baking soda – A pinch of baking soda helps mellow down the vital wheat gluten flavor.

Bean-free alternative

For those who cannot tolerate beans or want to make this chicken bean-free, you can replace the white beans with drained young green jackfruit. To do so, drain a 20-ounce can of green jackfruit. Cut the hardcore parts and discard them. Next, measure 7 ounces (200g) of jackfruit and use it as a replacement for the white beans.

Be aware that jackfruit is not used for its texture here since it will be puréed.

🍗 How to Make Vegan Chicken

1. Prepare the dough

1. Add the ingredients to a blender. The first step is to prepare the wet mixture. Add the firm tofu, drained white navy beans, oil, water, miso, salt, and spices to a blender.
2. Blend until smooth. Blend on high speed for 20-30 seconds or until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

2. Knead

1. Transfer to a stand mixer. Next, transfer the wet mixture to a stand mixer and add the vital wheat gluten and flour.
2. Knead. Fit your stand mixer with the kneading attachment and knead the seitan for at least 20 minutes on speed 2. The seitan won’t have that meaty and fibrous texture if you don’t knead enough.

Note: Use a stand mixer to knead the dough, do not use a food processor. I broke the blade of my food processor when testing this recipe the first time. The dough is very elastic, so it works best in a stand mixer.

3. Wrap the loaves

Once your dough has developed a nice texture, it’s time to wrap it and cook it. Wrapping the dough tightly in foil prevents it from expanding and developing a spongy texture.

1. Divide into 2. Start by dividing the dough into 2 balls.
2. Shape each into a loaf. Shape each ball into a loaf of 5-inch long (13cm).
3. Wrap. Wrap each loaf in a sheet of parchment paper. Next, wrap each loaf very tightly in a layer of aluminum foil. Wrap in a second layer of aluminum.

❄️ Freezing

You can freeze this vegan chicken for up to 3 months. To do so, shred it or slice it into pieces and transfer it to a freezer bag. You can also freeze the loaves whole and shred them after thawing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.

🧄 Marinades

This vegan chicken is mildly flavored so that you can season it to your liking. Letting it marinade is a great way to infuse it with a ton of flavor. Here are delicious 6 marinade ideas:

• Coconut Curry – Combine 1/4 cup coconut yogurt, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 1 tablespoon oil, 2 teaspoon maple syrup, 1 teaspoon curry powder, 1/4 tsp chili, and 1/4 tsp salt.
• Cilantro Lime – Combine 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro, 2 tablespoons lime juice, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 minced clove of garlic, and 1/4 tsp salt.
• Sesame & Peanut – Combine 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter, 3 tablespoons coconut milk, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, 1 tablespoon lime juice, and 1 teaspoon maple syrup.
• Teriyaki – Combine 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tbsp white rice vinegar, 1 minced clove of garlic, and 1 tsp toasted sesame oil.
• Five-Spice – Combine 3 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon sugar, ½ teaspoon five-spice powder, ½ teaspoon Korean chili flakes, and 1 teaspoon oil.
• Smoky BBQ:Combine 3 tablespoons ketchup, 1 tablespoon coconut sugar, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, ½ teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce, and one minced clove of garlic.

🥪 Where to Use Vegan Chicken

This vegan chicken is highly versatile. It can be baked, sautéed, or grilled. You can use it:

• In salads: Shred it and add it to your favorite salads.
• In curries: Add shredded chicken at the beginning of cooking if you want it to soak up the flavors of the sauce and become very tender. Add at the end if you want a slightly firmer texture. It would be perfect in this Vietnamese Curry or Thai Green Curry, or to make vegan butter chicken!
• In pasta dishes: Finely shredded, sautéed, and added to spicy noodles, yum!
• In stir-fries: Marinade your chicken before adding it to stir-fried vegetables.
• In sandwich: Thinly sliced and combined with lettuce, vegan mayo, or paté.
• To make vegan chicken nuggets: You can use this recipe as a base to make vegan fried chicken! Feel free to check out our Vegan Chicken Nuggets recipe.
• In soups, bakes, pizza, and so much more!

📔 Tips

• Follow each step carefully. Please read the recipe carefully before starting and follow each step precisely. While it’s not a complicated recipe, it must be followed to the letter if you want to get a fibrous texture.
• Do not make substitutes. Except for the white beans that can be replaced with green jackfruit, I do not recommend making any other substitutions.
• Make it smoky. If you want to make smoked chicken, add 1/4 tsp of liquid smoke to the dough.
• Knead for a minimum of 10 minutes. Be patient and knead the dough for the whole 10 minutes. At first, the dough will look more like a cream, but as you knead it, the gluten will absorb the moisture and develop its final texture.
• Chill entirely before shredding. Do not try to shred the chicken while it is still warm. The seitan must chill to develop its fibers.

I hope you will love this vegan chicken! It’s SO meaty, versatile, and would even surprise meat-eaters! It’s definitely the best vegan chicken recipe!

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