Vegan Fried Chicken & Waffles

vegan fried chicken and waffles

Vegan Fried Chicken & Waffles is a delicious combination of fried chicken made from tofu and breakfast waffles, all doused in sweet syrup. It’s easier to make than you’d think.

Waffles are so versatile, honestly they pair perfectly with both sweet and savoury foods. The most classic savoury waffle combination includes fried chicken.

The buttermilk waffle is fluffy on the inside and crisp on the outside. The vegan fried chicken is super flavourful and juicy on the inside, with a crispy golden brown skin. Everything is doused with syrup in the end!

vegan fried chicken and waffles

Using defrosted tofu instead of chicken

We’re using defrosted firm tofu to make our fried chicken.

If you don’t already know, defrosted tofu is a great replacement for chicken. Freezing then defrosting tofu changes it’s texture from tender to meat-like and chewy. It will also soak up the marinade better, so it’ll be flavourful throughout.

Read more on why this method works in this blog post.

vegan fried chicken and waffles

There are three parts to making vegan fried chicken & waffles:

  1. Marinating the tofu: The longer you let the tofu marinade, the more juicy and flavourful it’ll become. You can do this a few hours prior to making this dish but if you don’t have time to wait, you can just let the tofu marinade while you make the buttermilk waffles.
  2. Cooking the waffles: The waffles here are from my Vegan Buttermilk Waffle recipe. There is sugar in the recipe, but it’s such a small amount that the waffles aren’t really sweet themselves. Perfect for a savoury recipe like this one!
  3. Frying the tofu

and then you’re ready to assemble! The whole process takes about an hour, and it’s so worth it in the end.

How to scale this vegan fried chicken & waffle recipe

This recipe makes 2 servings. To scale this recipe, simply double or triple the amount of ingredients and follow the recipe instructions. There is a button in the recipe box below that helps you do this automatically.

If you liked this recipe, here are more tofu dishes to try:

If you made this recipe, do leave a comment and rating below because I love hearing your feedback. Make sure to tag me on Instagram @eatwkriss so that I can see your recreations!

vegan fried chicken and waffles

Vegan Fried Chicken & Waffles

Kristin Tan
Vegan Fried Chicken & Waffles is a delicious combination of fried "chicken" made from tofu and breakfast waffles, all doused in sweet syrup. It's easier to make than you'd think.
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, Western
Servings 2 people

Ingredients
  

  • 180 g traditional/firm tofu defrosted

Marinade

  • cup unsweetened plant milk (soy milk, almond milk, etc)
  • 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • ½ tsp dried sage
  • ½ tsp salt
  • black pepper to taste

Dry ingredients

  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp chili powder
  • ½ tsp salt
  • black pepper to taste

Buttermilk waffles

  • 1 cup unsweetened plant milk (soy milk, almond milk, etc)
  • 1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice
  • cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • ¼ tsp salt

To serve

  • pancake syrup or a liquid sweetener of your choice

Instructions
 

Marinade tofu

  • Gently squeeze the water out of the defrosted tofu and tear it into bite-sized chunks.
  • In a bowl, combine all the marinade ingredients. Add in the tofu chunks, making sure that everything is covered well. Let marinade on the countertop while you prepare the waffles OR in the fridge until you are ready to make the waffles.

Make buttermilk waffles

  • To make our vegan "buttermilk", combine plant milk and vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes until it thickens.
  • Pre-heat your waffle maker, and oven to 100°C.
  • In a small bowl, sift together flour and baking powder. Add salt and sugar, whisking to combine. Pour in the buttermilk and fold in with a spatula, being careful not to overmix. The batter should be thick and pourable.
  • Brush your waffle maker with oil and pour in the batter (amount will vary based on the size of your appliance). Cook until golden and crispy.*
  • To keep the waffles warm and crispy, place on a wire rack in the oven until ready to serve.

Fry "chicken"

  • In another bowl, combine all the breading ingredients. Coat the marinated tofu in the breading, pressing it firmly so that the flour sticks to the tofu. Then place on a wire rack.
  • Add oil to a pot until it is deeper than the thickness of your tofu. Insert a wooden chopstick and if bubbles start to form around the edges, the oil is ready.
  • Deep-fry tofu in batches for 3-4 minutes, making sure to not overcrowd the pot. Once the tofu is golden brown, remove and set on a wire rack.

Assembly

  • Arrange the fried "chicken" on the waffles and pour syrup over everything. Garnish with some parsley and serve immediately.

Notes

*The time will vary based on your waffle maker. The longer you cook the waffles, the crispier they become. I cook my waffles until I don’t see anymore steam coming out from my waffle maker. This takes about 5-6 minutes, which is even longer than stated in my waffle maker instructions. The waffles come out perfectly cooked through and crispy on the outside!
The waffle recipe is the same as my Vegan Buttermilk Waffle recipe. I’ve included it here for easy reference.
Keyword dinner, lunch, savoury, sweet, tofu, waffles
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
vegan fried chicken and waffles pin

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