Vegan Chicken with Broccoli
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The best vegan chicken with broccoli in a homemade garlic ginger sauce. Asian style protein loaded Chick’n, quick and easy to make, gluten free, meaty and perfectly chewy with crispy edges, made with whole food soy curls and an easy umami stir fry sauce. Air fryer method included.
What is “vegan chicken ” ?
- A plant-based food that mimics the texture and flavor of chicken but without any of the cruelty. It can be made from scratch out of “seitan” like we did when making the vegan ribs or using battered tofu for crispy “vegan chicken nuggets or tenders” and our popular tofu parmesan.
- Shredded jackfruit has the perfect texture for tacos de carnitas and to mimic the ultimate “vegan fried chick’n “ for which you’ll want to use oyster mushrooms coated in all the classic flavors and spices.
Different products and cooking methods work best in different dishes. In the case of today’s recipe we are simply going to rehydrate some soy curls that already have the perfect texture for this dish and infuse them with the umami Asian flavors of the homemade sauce. Stay tuned for our soy curl “vegan orange chicken” coming up soon!
About the Sauce:
In a nutshell: it’s amazing! Perfect umami flavors from tamari infused with garlic and ginger balanced by a little sweetness from maple syrup and just a little kick from a drop of your favorite hot sauce or a pinch of chili flakes.
What are soy curls made out of ?
Soy curls are cooked non-gmo whole soy beans that are dried at low temperatures to yield a convenient wholesome product high in fiber and omega-3. They contain no chemical, preservatives or additives, the natural good for you alternative to animal flesh products.
Where can i buy soy curls ?
Usually you should be able to find soy curls at your local grocery store, lately the best bet has been ordering via Amazon.
serving suggestions
- Pineapple fried rice
- Potato flatbread
- Scalloped potatoes with leeks
- Lettuce wraps
- Spicy noodles
- Coconut spinach rice pilaf
- Olive oil mashed potatoes
- On this potato pizza
- Roasted broccoli & ramen noodles.
how to make the best vegan chicken & broccoli
- Start by rehydrating the soy curls in hot water.
- Squeeze the moisture out of the soy curls and toss with tapioca to coat lightly. Air fry until crispy around the edges.
- Meanwhile whisk up the sauce and bring to a simmer. Add the air fried soy curls to the sauce to coat well.
- Toss with cooked broccoli and serve over your choice of rice, potatoes or garlic spicy noodles.
soy curl recipes to try
Vegan Chicken and Broccoli
Ingredients
- 4 oz soy curls
- 1 lb broccoli florets boiled or roasted
- 2 tbsp tapioca flour (or cornstarch) optional
the sauce
- 6 tbsp tamari
- 1/2 cup water
- 3 tbsp maple syrup or brown sugar
- 4 cloves garlic grated
- 1.5 tsp fresh ginger grated
- 1 tsp sesame seeds + more for garnish
- 1 tsp hot sauce or red chili flakes
Instructions
- Place the dehydrated soy curls in a medium bowl and cover with hot water. Allow to rehydrate for 20 minutes. Drain then use your hands to squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible.
- Transfer the rehydrated soy curls to a dry bowl and sprinkle with the tapioca or cornstarch. Toss to coat well.
- Transfer the soy curls to the basket of an air fryer and shake off any excess tapioca. (this step is easier done over the sink).
- Preheat the air-fryer to 375”F and air-fry the soy curls for 13 minutes until crisp around the edges. (Alternatively you can skip the air-fryer step and bake the soy curls instead ).
make the sauce:
- Whisk all the sauce ingredients together and bring to a simmer in a medium size skillet. Cook for about 30 seconds just enough to tame the garlic then add the air fried soy curls. Toss to coat well in the sauce.
the broccoli:
- While the soy curls are cooking make sure to steam or boil the broccoli florets until al dente. Drain well and add them to the pan with the soy curls. Toss to coat well in the sauce. Garnish with sesame seeds and extra chili flakes.
- Serve with your choice of brown rice, coconut spinach rice, mashed potatoes or noodles.
Notes
- What are soy curls made out of ?
Nutrition
Out of this world, 10 stars for both the texture and the sauce. Gotta run to have seconds now!
I made this last week. Excellent! Thank you for a recipe that uses no oil. I will definitely make again and maybe add some red and yellow pepper slices. Yum!
Florentina, the only reason I gave it a four is because using an oven ( I don’t have an air fryer) didn’t work. The curls didn’t brown. What should I do next time? The flavor was excellent!
You can just use a cast iron skillet and pan sear the soy curls in a little drop of oil until golden brown and crispy to your liking.
This meal was absolutely amazing, not one piece left for me to snack on later. Thank you for such a fabulous recipe. P.S. If you pan fry the soy curls in some oil they get crispy and awesome but granted not as healthy.
So so good! Tried it last night and everyone loved it.
Has anyone ever tried making this ahead, freezing, and reheating? We are going on a long camper trip and healthy food in the camper kitchen is a struggle.
This was absolutely fabulous!!!!
I now know the perfect way to bake soy curls in the air fryer.
The only change I made was to add some poultry seasoning to the tapioca starch.
This recipe will be made over and over in our household. Thanks