Enjoy the irresistible crunch from the very best Vegan Fried Chicken! Made from seitan and simple seasonings, these crispy vegan tenders make for a delicious party snack or side.
With more and more vegan fried chicken options popping up at restaurants (like the Beyond fried chicken at KFC), I wanted to try making my own copycat recipe at home. With a perfectly crispy, golden brown breading and a tender and meaty inside, this Vegan Fried Chicken is a real winner!
Most homemade fried chicken starts the same way: breading the chicken in flour and spices before it’s fried in vegetable oil. In this recipe, the chicken is replaced with hearty vegan seitan that’s been dredged in a rich vegan buttermilk and seasoned breading. The irresistible crunch and juicy, meaty inside is so satisfying and even better than the real thing.
This vegan chicken is the BEST because it’s:
- Moist on the inside and crispy on the outside.
- Perfectly seasoned- no bland vegan alternative here!
- Got best craggly, crunchy outside. Seriously, the best part!
- Delicious on a sandwich, with potato wedges, or dipped in sauce.
You’ve gotta make these strips as part of the spread at your next party. Along with my Cauliflower Wings and Buffalo Chicken Dip, your guests will be clamoring for more!
What is it made of?
Seitan! This miracle vegan meat alternative is made by combining vital wheat gluten, seasonings, and veggie broth together. After it’s done boiling in veggie broth, the finished seitan is moist and tender, just like meat.
Seitan is usually my go-to choice when I want to make meaty-tasting and perfectly tender vegan chicken, “turkey” roast, and vegan pepperoni. It might sound a little intimidating at first, but it’s really quite simple to make at home. I keep the process as simple as possible.
How to make vegan fried chicken
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
- Make the seitan chicken by stirring all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Pour the broth and oil over top and stir until it comes together. Transfer it to a clean surface and knead a few times.
- While you bring the broth to a boil on the stove, break the “chicken” into two halves. Place them in the broth to simmer for 25 minutes.
- Prepare to dredge the seitan chicken by adding the buttermilk mixture ingredients to one bowl and the flour and spices in another bowl.
- Slice the seitan into strips. Coat each piece in the dry mixture first, then the buttermilk mixture, and the dry mixture again to finish.
- Heat a pot of vegetable oil up to 350ºF. Fry each coated piece of vegan chicken on both sides until golden brown.
- Serve hot with chipotle mayo, ketchup, ranch, or barbecue sauce for dipping!
Air fryer instructions
Prepare the seitan and dredge the “chicken” pieces as normal. Place them in an even layer in your air fryer basket (working in batches if needed) and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Air fry the “chicken” at 375ºF for 15 minutes, flipping each piece halfway through. While air frying might *work*, the outcome will not taste nearly as good as frying.
Baking instructions
Again, prepare the “chicken” pieces as normal. Lay them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spray well with oil and bake in a 425°F oven for 10 minutes. Flip and bake for another 10 minutes or until the pieces are golden brown and crispy. Again, if you can possibly fry these on the stovetop the outcome will be much better than baking.
Tips and substitutions
- For less mess, designate one hand for the wet dredge and one for the dry.
- Don’t skip the cornstarch! It’s the secret to the crispiest fried “chicken”.
- Best oil for frying – Use vegetable oil or an alternative with a high smoke point, like peanut oil, canola oil, safflower oil.
- Boiling seitan in broth as opposed to baking or steaming it (like in my vegan chicken recipe) allows it to absorb as much moisture and flavor as possible.
- Instead of seitan – Make this with pressed extra firm tofu, osyter mushrooms or cauliflower florets.
- Gluten free – I recommend using the tofu method above (as seitan isn’t gluten-free) and replace the flour with cornstarch, chickpea flour, or a gluten free 1:1 blend.
What to serve with fried “chicken”?
To make your meal or backyard party complete, serve alongside any of these delicious side dishes:
- Southern-Style Vegan Buttermilk Biscuits
- The Best Vegan Mac and Cheese
- Classic Vegan Coleslaw
- Vegan Baked Beans
- The Best Vegan Cornbread
- Best Dang Vegan Mashed Potatoes
- Corn on the cob
More fun vegan foods
Vegan Fried Chicken
Ingredients
Seitan chicken
- 1 1/2 cups vital wheat gluten
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cajun seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups vegan no chicken broth *I use Better Than Bouillon
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Broth for cooking seitan
- 5 cups vegan no chicken broth
Buttermilk mixture
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Dry mixture
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon oregano
For frying
- heat safe oil, such as vegetable or peanut oil
Instructions
Prepare the seitan chicken
- In a large bowl, stir together the vital wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, cajun seasoning and salt.
- Now add the broth and oil to the bowl with the dry ingredients, and stir until the mixture starts to come together.
- Transfer to a clean surface and knead for a minute or two with your hands until it comes together as a large ball of messy dough.
- Break or slice the "chicken" into two halves. Meanwhile, bring the broth to a boil in a medium pot.
- Place the two pieces of seitan into the broth and simmer, covered, for 25 minutes. Set aside off the heat and remove the seitan, setting it on a cutting board.
Fry the vegan chicken
- In a medium sized bowl, combine all the ingredients for the buttermilk mixture. This is your wet batter bowl. Whisk until smooth.
- In another medium sized bowl, add all the ingredients for the dry mixture and stir to combine.
- Slice the cooked seitan chicken into strips. I like to cut them fairly small or thin for the best texture. They don't all have to be the same size.
- Dip each piece into the dry ingredient bowl to coat, then coat in the buttermilk mixture, then coat once more in the dry flour mixture. Designate one hand for the wet and one for dry, this will make things much easier. As you coat the "chicken" pieces, place them on a paper towel lined plate until they are all coated.
- In a large pot or pan with high sides, bring a few inches of vegetable oil (safe for frying) to 350 degrees F. Use a thermometer for safety!
- Fry until golden brown on each side, about 3-4 minutes on each side.
- Serve immediately, perhaps alongside Vegan Mac and Cheese, Vegan Baked Beans, Vegan Buttermilk Biscuits and/or Vegan Coleslaw. Enjoy!
Notes
- It’s called vegan FRIED chicken for a reason, so I recommend frying for the best possible outcome. However, if you must you can try air frying or baking. Instructions are included in the post above. They won’t taste the same though.
- For gluten free, don’t make the seitan and use extra firm tofu instead, or oyster mushrooms or even cauliflower. And replace the regular flour with gluten free all purpose flour.
- For the best flavor, I recommend using Better Than Bouillon No Chicken Base. Follow the instructions on the container and mix with water to make broth.
I love the Chicken Nuggets recipe. It’s 5 stars all the way, worth more stars if I could give them. We will make that if we want homemade chicken-type food. This fried chicken recipe was not good enough for the amount of effort that goes into it. Love the site. We’ve tried probably 15 recipes that we loved, but this one didn’t hit the mark for us.
We used to make sausage in the early 2000s with homemade seitan. I’m not sure why that worked better, but the taste just wasn’t here for us.
I only gave four stars because I’m in the middle of the recipe; I am sure I will when I finish.
So, I just discovered you; my son has decided to stop killing animals, so I have been searching for protein sources for him. I am enjoying all the seitan sites. This recipe produces a much looser so then I have become accustomed to; I think it will pay off and the moistness of the finished product, if I am able to coat it per your instructions. I’m wondering if I did something wrong and it is not supposed to be quite this soft. Have you seen other comments to that effect?
I will be sure to return when I have finished cooking, but in the meantime, I am grateful for your willingness to share.
I like the fried “chicken” a bit juicier, so yes it should be fairly soft. If you want a denser, chewier bite, you could steam the seitan instead of boiling/simmering. Hope you enjoy it!
Just tried this recipe’s batter and dry mix for fresh picked morel mushrooms. It was to die for.
Fun idea, Matt! Thank you for sharing!
DELICIOUS!!! This has become one of my go-to’s and I’ve made it a bazillion times! I make a buffalo chicken strip sandwich on sourdough with your vegan coleslaw recipe. So fantastic! Since I live alone, I put the whole pan of newly breaded tenders in the freezer for the week. And whenever I want my delicious sandwich I pull a few nuggets out. I’m so in love with what you do Nora thank you so much!
You are so welcome, Susan! Your stellar feedback so encourages me! I love creating recipes, and really LOVE hearing how others enjoy them! Thank YOU for sharing your wonderful review and feedback! Wishing you lots of happy cooking! Your sandwich idea sounds delicious!
Thank you. I’ve made this several times and everyone – even the skeptical loves it. How far in advance do you think the wet batter can be made?
So glad you like it! I’d say about a day in advance, probably not too much longer than that.
These came out really good on the first try! Will no doubt be even better next round.
Hi Rose. Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Can you please let me know how to handle leftovers (usually you have a note about how to store and re-heat leftovers) – would it be possible to make it in advance and re-heat later? Thanks!
Leftovers will keep for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. I haven’t tried freezing them but it might work okay. I re-heat these and anything crispy like this in my air fryer or oven, to crisp them back up. They are definitely best right after frying, but if needed you could make them ahead of time, then reheat in the oven or air fryer until crisp and warm. Hope that helps!
Absolutely amazing!
Thank you for your fabulous feedback!
Absolutely delicious! Thank you!
You are welcome! Thanks for your stellar review!
Why is there a difference in how you prep the seitan for regular “chicken” vs fried? I noticed in the reg version the seitan was not immersed in the water but steamed in foil.
Hi….I am a regular user of your recipes and have always found success and joy in every one! I really would like an answer to a question regarding seitan.
Posted by Angela
October 5, 2022 at 10:58 am
Why is there a difference in how you prep the seitan for regular “chicken” vs fried? I noticed in the reg version the seitan was not immersed in the water but steamed in foil.
Thanks so much!
Hi there! There are many different ways to cook seitan, and it’s often a matter of preference. You can test out which way you like the best. I liked immersing them in the water for fried chicken because it made them a bit more juicy and tender. Hope that helps!
Hi Nora!
I haven’t made this recipe yet, but was interested in using it to make fried chicken sandwiches. Do you think the method from this recipe would work well for that if I just form the seitan into patties rather than tenders or would you recommend a different approach?
Thanks in advance!
Yes, you could definitely shape them into patties for sandwiches, that sounds so good. Enjoy!
So good. This hits all the spots you want when you want “fried chicken.” It’s mouth watering: moist on the inside, crunchy on the outside, and lots of flavor. Really not difficult to make, either. Took an hour from start to finish, from clean kitchen to after-the-mess clean kitchen. I used a deep fryer and fried them in batches for about 4 minutes each. Thanks for the great recipe!
You are welcome! I’m so glad the fried chicken met your expectations! Thanks for your great comments and review! Happy cooking!
Hi Nora~! Have you cooked these any other way than frying ? I can’t wait to try!
Hi Chelly. Yes, you can air fry or bake the “chicken” instead! See the instructions for both methods in the post above.
Hi Nora,
I don’t usually write reviews (sorry!), but did want to let you know that this, and every other recipe from your blog that I’ve tried, is fantastic! I’ve been vegan almost 10 years now and enjoy cooking (and even more so, eating!!). Most of my recipes come from someone’s blog (i do sometimes adapt them to my own and my fam’s tastes). There are so many great, accessible vegan recipes out there these days that are easy, delicious, and don’t require weird, hard-to-find or ridiculously expensive ingredients (not to mention all the substitutes you can buy now that actually taste pretty good – as opposed to the “soy cheese” and processed “vegan bacon-style strips”, etc. that were literally disgusting, lol!) – it’s great because it makes it so much easier for people to go vegan/plant-based, or just eat more plant-based meals or whatever, than it was even 10 years ago when I first started on this journey. So a big thank you to you and to people like you for sharing your knowledge and recipes <3
I only discovered your blog fairly recently, in the last 6 months or so, and wanted to let you know that it has become one of my very favourite "go-to" recipe blogs – right up there with Minimalist Baker and Oh She Glows 🙂 (I'll assume that as a professional vegan food blogger you'll know those names and understand what a high compliment that is 🙂 )
Keep doing what you do, it's awsome!!-
.
Thank you for leaving a review, and such a thoughtful one at that! I appreciate the feedback so much, and I’m happy you found my site. I went vegan about 13 years ago, and for years Oh She Glows and Minimalist Baker were my go to recipe sites, along with my Veganomicon cookbook, and a few others. 🙂 Thank you!!!
Oh yes I have Veganomicom cookbook too! My daughter bought it for me in the early days. As much as I love books, I find online recipes more convenient because y’know, when you crave a particular “thing” it’s easier to Google “vegan lasagne recipe” or whatever than to go through all your actual books hoping to find one, (and usually getting distracted by some other completely non-related recipe that looks interesting and never getting to your lasagne, lol!) Anyway, thanks again. Love your blog – while sometimes I’m in the mood to cook something complicated with a heap of ingredients and steps, etc; most of the time I want something quick and easy and tasty (and sometimes, but not always, healthy!), which is exactly what you give us! xxx
Aaaand… I should add that I actually deep fried this one… I know, I know… that is BAD!!! But I figure this isn’t meant to be health food or a regular meal, more of an occasional treat… and it was SO GOOD!!!
Can i substitute soy milk for almond?
Yes, soy milk will work.
So good and simple! The seasoning was delicious and texture was great. The only alterations I made were using oat milk (because that’s what I had on hand) and making a *little* extra flour mixture and everything turned out great, thanks for the recipe!
You are welcome! I’m glad that you loved the fried chicken! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback!
If I use tofu for the chicken recipe (VEGAN FRIED CHICKEN) instead of seiten, do I still need to extract the water? Normally, I use fresh tofu and it’s sitting in water when I buy it. Therefore I extract the water from it. Again, do I need to extract the water and then cook it in the vegan chicken broth? Thank you very much for your reply in this matter!
Yes, I would definitely press the water out of the tofu first, or it will be difficult to work with. Enjoy!
Can you sub coconut milk or almond for soy milk?
I’d probably prefer almond over coconut milk.
Delicious!
I just made it. I usually use extra firm tofu for fried chicken but wanted to try something else. This was great. I made patties, nuggets and tenders. All were really good. I agree that cut thin is best for texture. I have tried several of your recipes and am a fan of what you do. Thanks……So many recipes and so little time.
This chicken is the best! It’s even worth the hassle of frying.
So glad you love it! Thanks for sharing y our review!
So delicious and juicy! However, instead of making them into nuggets, I separated the dough into four equal portions before boiling and made chicken sandwiches/burgers instead! The “patty” was a tad big, I could have done maybe five or six patties instead of four, but no regrets either way ;). I also just cooked it in a non-stick pan with a thin layer of oil to make it more healthy and the end result was still yummy! I’ll be saving the recipe so thank you for posting it, Nora!
Sounds like a great sandwich! Thank you so much for taking time to share your review and comments! I’m glad you loved the chicken!
Hi. I really enjoy your blog and your recipes. Good work.
I have a question on the Vegan Fried Chicken. Have you tried cooking this in the oven? I’m asking because since we went vegan, we are avoiding all fried foods. Thanks and keep cooking.
I have tried it, and it’s okay, but it’s not nearly as tasty of course. 🙂
You had me until I saw the amount of sodium.
Is there a way to reduce it without losing the taste?
Sure! Just reduce the salt, or use a low sodium broth, or both. Hope that helps!
Absolutely beautiful. Thank you Nora
Thank you, and you are welcome! I appreciate you taking time to share your review!