Vegan Chicken Nuggets

DESCRIPTION

These vegan nuggets are made from tofu that has been frozen and pressed and has a meaty texture. While they do not taste like chicken (it’s tofu, duh), they are delicious! They are also baked, so they are much healthier than traditional nuggets.

INGREDIENTS

• 400g extra firm tofu, frozen and thawed

Marinade

• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 60ml unflavored, unsweetened soy milk
• 3/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce (optional)
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

Breading

• 60g wholemeal spelt flour
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 60ml unflavored, unsweetened soy milk
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 100g panko crumbs
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1.5 tsp garlic powder
• 1.5 tsp onion powder
• 1.5 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• Cooking spray

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Remove as much water from the thawed tofu as possible by squeezing it gently with your hands. Wrap it in a tea towel and press again by placing a heavy object on top of it for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the marinade by mixing together all marinade ingredients in a large mixing bowl until combined. 
After tofu is pressed, pat dry and tear into bite-sized pieces. Add to marinade and stir to combine.
3. While tofu is marinating, prepare three bowls. In the first bowl, mix together spelt flour and corn starch. In the second bowl, mix together soy milk and apple cider vinegar. In the third bowl, mix together panko crumbs, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper.
4. Preheat oven to 200ºC / 400ºF, and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly grease it with a bit of oil.
5. After tofu has soaked up all the marinade, dip each piece first in flour mixture, then soy milk mixture, and finally roll in panko crumbs. Transfer to lined baking sheet. Repeat for the rest of the tofu.
6. Lightly spray nuggets with cooking spray.
7. Bake nuggets for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Serve with your favorite dipping sauces. Enjoy!

NOTES

• It’s very important that you use tofu that has been frozen and thawed for this recipe, as the freezing process is what changes the texture and makes it meaty.
• Tearing the pressed tofu with your hands instead of cutting with a knife will create more rough edges which will result in better texture in the final nuggets.
• When breading the tofu nuggets, it is the easiest to use one hand for wet ingredients and the other hand for dry ingredients.
• You can use any neutral tasting oil.

© Chloe Ting Recipes – https://chloeting.com/recipes/vegan-chicken-nuggets