Vegan MoFo #6 - Popcorn Chick'n

Happy Vegan MoFo week 2! I really loved posting all last week and I'm excited to share some great recipes with you all this week too!

Vegan Popcorn Chick'n. Need I say more?

This recipe is really cheap, pretty easy and so so so good you'll be wanting to make it every day! These tender, crispy, flavorful chick'n bites are delicious served with some ketchup and vegan mayo to dip. You can also use them in place of battered chicken in Sweet and Sour sauce, or any recipe that requires battered chicken pieces.

Popcorn Chick'n

Recipe adapted from here

Serves 2-4

2C dried soy chunks

3C vegetable stock 

1/2C flour

1/2C cornflour

1C breadcrumbs

1tsp garlic powder

1/2tsp onion powder

1tsp season-all

1/2tsp black pepper

vegetable oil for frying

In a medium sized bowl soak the soy chunks in the vegetable stock for about 20mins, until the chunks are puffed up and soft. Squeeze out the excess stock from the chunks and set aside.

Mix 3/4C stock (taken from the soaking liquid) with the 1/2C flour and mix until very few lumps remain. Separate into two bowls, mixing the soy chunks into one of them until each one is thoroughly coated in the flour mixture.

Transfer the chunks to a ziplock bag and add the cornflour. Seal the bag and shake well to coat, separating any chunks that have stuck together. Put the chunks into the second bowl with the flour mixture and mix well to coat. This is more difficult, don't worry too much if they all stick together!

Transfer the chunks to a ziplock bag and add the breadcrumbs and seasonings, seal and shake vigorously until each piece is coated well. You will need to separate the chunks that stick together (there will be quite a few) and continue to shake the bag to make sure they are all coated really well.

Add a couple of inches of vegetable oil to a pan (I usually use a frying pan or a wok) and place over a medium heat until nice and hot. To test to see if the oil is hot enough I add one chunk and once it starts to fry you can start frying them in batches. 

Add a large spoonful of chunks to the pan and move them around with a spoon to ensure that they fry evenly. Fry for a couple of minutes, until golden. Once the chick'n is done remove from the pan and put onto a plate lined with kitchen towel to drain off any excess oil. Continue frying until all the chunks are done. If necessary you can keep the popcorn chick'n warm in the oven at its lowest temperature for about an hour before they get too crunchy.

Serve with chips and ketchup!