Crispy Crunchy Vegan Fish Sticks
This easy vegan fish sticks recipe is quick and easy! It can be made ahead of time and frozen then popped into the oven for a fast meal. These vegan fish sticks can be fried or oven baked to crispy perfection.
Servings: 12 Fish Sticks
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 tbsp Nori flakes Grind nori sheets in a small food processor or clean coffee grinder to make flakes
- 1 tsp Soy Sauce or Tamari
- Juice of 1/2 Lemon
- 1 tsp Miso Paste
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil or any unflavored plant oil
- 1/4 cup Boiling Water
- 1/4 piece of a Veggie Stock Bouillon
Tofu
- 16 ounces Extra Firm Tofu
Breading
- 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Plant Milk Unflavored, Unsweetened Soy, Almond, Oat, or other vegan milk
- 1/2 cup Vegan Bread Crumbs
- Salt & Pepper
Frying
- 1/4 Cup Unflavored Vegetable Oil Any oil with a high smoking point (canola, peanut, grapeseed, etc.)
Instructions
Preparing the Tofu
- Remove the tofu from its packaging.
- Pat dry with a paper towel.
- Slice into 1 inch x 1 inch pieces, and set aside.
Making the Marinade
- Combine the marinade ingredients into a medium size bowl and mix well. Make sure all of the miso and vegetable stock bouillon is dissolved and well mixed.
- Add the tofu to a shallow dish and pour the marinade on top.
- Refrigerate for 2 - 8 hours. Be sure to shake the container every hour or two so that the tofu is well coated in the marinade.
Breading the Fish Sticks
- You will need two medium size plates, one medium size bowl, and a lined baking tray for this step.
- Set up your breading station as shown in the above picture. Add the flour to one plate, the bread crumbs to another plate, and the milk to the bowl.
- Add the marinade liquid from the tofu to the milk and mix.
- Season the flour and bread crumbs with a few pinches of salt and pepper.
- With one hand, dip each side of a tofu slice in the flour. Make sure every side is coated in flour, including the top and bottom.
- With the other hand, dip the tofu slice into the milk and marinade mixture. Again, make sure the entire slice of tofu is coated in the milk mixture. Place the tofu on top of the bread crumbs.
- With the hand you used to flour the tofu, roll the tofu in the bread crumbs. Make sure the tofu is well coated and every side is covered in bread crumbs. Apply a bit of pressure when pressing the tofu into the bread crumbs to ensure that they stick.
- Add the breaded tofu fish stick to the lined baking tray.
- Repeat until all of the tofu is breaded.
- Place the baking tray and fish sticks into the refrigerator and let sit for at least 30 minutes.
Frying the Vegan Fish Sticks
- Remove the fish sticks from the refrigerator and set aside.
- Add vegetable oil to a shallow sautee pan and heat on the stovetop until medium high.
- Once the oil is hot, but before it starts to smoke add the fish sticks to the pan. Do not over crowd! Make sure there is at least an inch of space between each fish stick. If you can't fit all of the vegan fish sticks into the pan, work in batches.
- Cook the fish stick on each side until golden brown. It should take 1-2 minutes per side. If the breading is cooking too fast, or the oil starts to smoke, turn the head down a bit.
- When the vegan fish sticks are done, place them on a paper towel lined plate to soak up some of the excess grease.
Notes
Serving
Serve these vegan fish sticks with tartare sauce and a slice of lemon. They are perfect paired with mac and cheese, or french fries. I've even eaten them with my homemade vegan gnocchi!
Notes
If you'd like to bake these fish sticks that's an option. They will get crunchy, however, they will not brown as much as they will if you fry them. To bake them in the oven preheat it to 220 °C (430°F). Bake for 20 minutes in total, flipping after 10 minutes. It does help to spray the fish sticks with a thin layer of oil to get them to crisp up. It's optional though.
You can freeze these fish sticks and have on hand for at least two months. I would not recommend frying them from their frozen state. If you want to fry them let them defrost in the refrigerator over night. Alternatively, you can bake them in the oven as directed above when they are frozen.