This is the tastiest and easiest Vegan Fried Chicken ever! It is crispy on the outside, but meaty on the inside. The “chicken” itself is only ONE ingredient! No vital wheat gluten or seitan or any other soy product is needed. This delicious “vegan chicken” is 100% plant-based and allergy-friendly. We even used a gluten-free coating. Are you interested?
When it comes to fake meats, we prefer to choose plant-based alternatives. We love chopped cauliflower and walnut for minced meat in Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese or eggplant for meatballs in Vegan Eggplant Meatballs Spaghetti or large portobello mushroom caps for Vegan Burger Patties. But after we found oyster mushrooms we just couldn’t get enough of it and we make Vegan Shredded Chicken, Vegan Philly Cheesesteak and Vegan Gyros.
Best vegan chicken alternative
So here we go. Drumroll, please! The best plant-based alternative to make chicken nuggets is oyster mushrooms, not king oyster but the regular, pearl oyster mushrooms. I have 5 reasons for you to consider:
- allergy-friendly -> no soy, no nuts, no gluten
- pantry staple -> mushrooms are usually in all vegan grocery or shopping list
- easy to buy -> usually available in all local stores (unlike seitan or vital wheat gluten)
- cheap -> way cheaper than company branded products
- quite neutral in taste -> they soak up any seasoning or marinade you add
- tough spongy texture -> perfect to replicate chicken
So what do you think? Isn’t it a perfect ingredient for a nutritious and healthy plant-based diet? We have even written a Guide to Oyster Mushrooms with the Best 20+ Oyster Mushroom Recipes to give you even more ideas to enjoy this awesome ingredient.
Turning mushrooms into “chicken”
It is super easy to prepare oyster mushrooms. Oyster mushrooms are grown on trees so it is highly unlikely that they are dirty. If you think yours need a bit of cleaning, use a wet paper towel or kitchen cloth. Dry them before using. We never peel mushrooms especially oyster mushrooms, but sometimes cut off the end of the stem if it doesn’t look good. No need to cut or shred them. They are perfect the way they are. See the below photo with all ingredients you need to make vegan fried chicken from oyster mushrooms.
Making a crispy gluten-free coating
All of our recipes are vegan and gluten-free and this one is no exception. The most popular ingredient to make breaded and fried food is panko breadcrumbs, which are sadly not gluten-free. But fret not, we have a crispy gluten-free breadcrumb alternative that will blow your mind. We dare to say it is even better and crispier than your regular coating. And the most important ingredient is crushed corn flakes.
- Wet batter – dairy-free milk, yellow corn flour (not corn starch), onion powder, garlic powder, smoked sweet paprika powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, and black pepper
- Dry mix – crushed corn flakes, corn starch, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked sweet paprika powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, and black pepper
How to make Vegan Fried Chicken?
Prepare the spice mix
In a small bowl mix together onion powder, garlic powder, smoked sweet paprika powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, and black pepper. It is quite similar to the spices used to make Southern fried chicken.
Get the batters right
- Dry mix aka breadcrumbs -> We used the small chopping bowl of our immersion blender to crush corn flakes to a fine, breadcrumb-like texture. Then mix it with 1 tsp of our homemade fried chicken spice mix as well as a bit of corn starch. We added the corn starch to get the coating extra crispy.
- Wet batter aka “egg coating” -> Mix in a shallow bowl dairy-free milk, yellow corn flour (not corn starch) and 2 tsp of our homemade fried chicken spice mix. It should have a texture of a pancake batter, slow-flowing but not too dense. In time the flour will thicken the batter a bit, so add 1 tsp of water to thin it again.
Bread the oyster mushrooms
- Have both wet batter and dry mix in two separate shallow bowls.
- Dip the oyster mushroom first in the wet batter. Coat it evenly. I found it is easier to use your fingers to do that instead of using a fork or spatula.
- Transfer gently the coated mushroom to the dry mix. Sprinkle the top and pat it gently. Make sure the crushed corn flakes-based mix sticks to it evenly.
- When it is coated you can place it on a plate or fry it immediately. The coating will hold on room temperature for an hour or so without a problem if you need to wait before frying.
How to deep fry vegan “chicken”
You can get the crispiest result if you deep fry the breaded oyster mushrooms in oil.
- Pour sunflower oil to a skillet or pot.
- Heat oil on medium/high heat. You can test whether it is hot enough by dropping a bit of coating in it. If it sizzles, you are good to go. Why do you need the oil to be hot? If it is not hot enough it will take a long them to get them crispy and in the meantime the mushroom will soak up a lot of oil.
- Gently drop the breaded “chicken” in the oil. The oil is hot so pay attention to drop it gently without a splash. Don’t overcrowd the pan as the oil will cool down and the oyster mushrooms will need longer time and thus will soak up more oil.
- Fry oyster mushrooms for 2-3 minutes until the coating gets crispy.
- When they are ready, transfer them to a paper towel so the excess oil is absorbed.
FAQs and substitutions
Can you use an air fryer?
I don’t have an air fryer to test it properly, but the air fryers main purpose is the deep fry food without oil. Place the breaded oyster mushrooms on the basket of the air fryer in one layer. Turn the air fryer on and set the temperature high. Fry for a couple of minutes.
Can you bake them in the oven?
We tested this recipe in the oven as well. We place the breaded oyster mushrooms on a non-stick parchment paper that we sprayed with a bit of oil. We also sprayed the mushrooms with oil. We baked in a pre-heated oven of 390 Fahrenheit (200 degrees Celsius) for approx. 20 minutes flipped midway. Sadly, the coating will not be as crispy as when you deep fry them. But in my opinion that is the case with every food. The difference between baking and deep frying is huge.
Can you use other flours?
We only tested this recipe with these ingredients as we wanted the crispiest gluten-free coating possible. However, you can choose gluten-free breadcrumbs instead of crushed corn flakes or you can try chickpea flour instead of yellow corn flour or tapioca starch instead of corn starch. If you need other tapioca starch substitutes, check out this list. In any case, let us know in the comments.
This Vegan Fried “Chicken” recipe is meat-free, egg-free and dairy-free. It is suitable for a vegan, vegetarian diet. It is soy-free, nut-free, and gluten-free, but not WFPB-friendly (whole foods plant-based) unless you use and air fryer or bake them in the oven.
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More vegan recipes using oyster mushrooms
We have even written a Guide to Oyster Mushrooms with the Best 20+ Oyster Mushroom Recipes to give you even more ideas to enjoy this awesome ingredient. Here are some of our favorites as well:
- Vegan Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Vegan Gyros
- Vegan Philly Cheesesteak
- Vegan Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Vegan Chicken Fajitas
Vegan Fried Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 7 oz Oyster mushroom not king oyster, but pearl oysters
Fried chicken seasoning (3 tsp)
- ½ tsp Garlic powder
- ½ tsp Onion powder
- ½ tsp Sweet smoked paprika powder
- ¼ tsp Cayenne pepper
- ¼ tsp Ground cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp Oregano
- ½ tsp Salt
- ¼ tsp Black pepper
Wet batter
- ½ cup Dairy-free milk
- ⅔ cup Yellow corn flour
- 2 tsp Fried chicken seasoning from above
Dry batter
- 2 cup Corn flakes crushed
- 2 Tbsp Corn starch
- 1 tsp Fried chicken seasoning from above
Instructions
Prepare the spice mix
- In a small bowl mix together onion powder, garlic powder, smoked sweet paprika powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano, salt, and black pepper.
Prepare dry mix for coating
- We used the small chopping bowl of our immersion blender to crush corn flakes to a fine, breadcrumb-like texture.
- In a shallow bowl mix crushed corn flakes with corn starch and 1 tsp of our homemade fried chicken spice mix.
Prepare wet batter for coating
- Mix in a shallow bowl dairy-free milk, yellow corn flour (not corn starch) and 2 tsp of our homemade fried chicken spice mix. It should have a texture of a pancake batter, slow-flowing but not too dense. In time the flour will thicken the batter a bit, so add 1 tsp of water to thin it again.
Bread the mushrooms
- Have both wet batter and dry mix in two separate shallow bowls.
- Dip the oyster mushroom first in the wet batter. Coat it evenly. I found it is easier to use your fingers to do that instead of using a fork or spatula.
- Transfer gently the coated mushroom to the dry mix. Sprinkle the top and pat it gently. Make sure the crushed corn flakes-based mix sticks to it evenly.
- When it is coated you can place it on a plate or fry it immediately. The coating will hold on room temperature for an hour or so without a problem if you need to wait before frying.
Deep fry the vegan "chicken"
- Pour sunflower oil to a skillet or pot. Heat it on medium/high heat. You can test whether it is hot enough by dropping a bit of coating in it. If it sizzles, you are good to go.
- Gently drop the breaded “chicken” in the oil. The oil is hot so pay attention to drop it gently without a splash. Don’t overcrowd the pan as the oil will cool down and the oyster mushrooms will need longer time and thus will soak up more oil.
- Fry oyster mushrooms for 2-3 minutes until the coating gets crispy. When they are ready, transfer them to a paper towel so the excess oil is absorbed.
Deirdre
This looks AMAZING, and I love the idea of using mushrooms!