These crispy vegan fish burgers are made with tofu marinated in a blend of herbs and spices and wrapped in nori to give a mild fish flavour. They’re fried to perfection with a crisp, panko-breadcrumb coating and served with a Peruvian-inspired chilli mayonnaise, melty vegan cheese, salad and red onion on a fresh bread roll.
This beaut of a recipe is inspired by the friendly vegan restaurant Succulenta Sangucheria Vegana in Santiago, Chile. If you’re heading there soon make sure you read the blog A Vegan Visit to Santiago for the low-down on all of the best vegan eats in the city and try out the dish that inspired this recipe!
I’ve served these Fillet-No-Fish with a Peruvian-Inspired Chilli Mayonnaise based on my Aji Chilli Sauce recipe from Peru which is a glorious concoction of creamy mayo, punchy chilli and fresh lime – it pairs beautifully with this recipe.
These Fillet-No-Fish are really rather special but easy to whip up for a weekend treat. They’re:
Beautifully crisp on the outside
Firm but soft on the inside
With a mild fish flavour
A hint of seaside saltiness
AND
Generously smothered in tangy, tingly and creamy chilli mayo
I have no doubt that you will LOVE this recipe – be sure to tag me on Instagram when you make it @aveganvisit 🙂
The Video Recipe:
The Written Recipe:
Fillet-No-Fish with Peruvian Chilli Mayo
Ingredients
‘Fish’ Marinade:
- 90 ml soy sauce
- 2 sheets nori (torn up into small pieces)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion granules
- ¼ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp mustard powder
- ¼ tsp dried dill
- 1 pinch black pepper
Other ‘fish’ ingredients:
- 400 g firm tofu (pressed to get rid of any excess liquid and sliced into 4 x 1cm (1/2") thick slices/fillets)
- 4 nori sheets (whole)
- oil for frying
Peruvian-Inspired Chilli Mayo:
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 30 g red onion (diced)
- 100 g vegan mayonnaise
- 1 fresh red chillis (diced (2 chillis if you prefer it spicier))
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 tbsp lime juice (approx juice of 1 lime)
- ¼ tsp salt
Panko Coating:
- 75 g plain flour
- 50 g aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas)
- 75 g panko breadcrumbs
To Serve:
- 4 leaves lettuce
- 2 tomatoes (thinly sliced)
- 4 slices vegan cheese
- ½ red onion (thinly sliced)
- 4 bread rolls
Instructions
Marinate the tofu:
- Add the marinade ingredients to a shallow dish that is big enough to fit all of your tofu slices next to each other. Mix the marinade ingredients together.90 ml soy sauce, 2 sheets nori, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion granules, 1/4 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp mustard powder, 1/4 tsp dried dill, 1 pinch black pepper
- Place the 1cm tofu slices into the marinade and leave them for 1 hour, turning half way through. If it is easier, you can cover the marinating tofu and leave it in the fridge overnight, turning it in the morning.400 g firm tofu
Make the chilli mayo:
- Whilst the tofu is marinating make your chilli mayo. Heat the coconut oil in a frying pan and add the diced red onion; you want to gently poach it until it is soft rather than frying it until it is crispy.oil for frying, 30 g red onion
- Once the onion has softened, leave it to cool slightly and then add all of the chilli mayo ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.1 tbsp coconut oil, 100 g vegan mayonnaise, 1 fresh red chillis, 2 cloves garlic, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 tsp salt
Cooking the ‘fish’ fillets:
- Once the tofu has finished marinating, wrap each slice in a nori sheet by wetting the nori sheet and sticking it around the tofu.4 nori sheets
- Line up three separate dishes with the panko coating ingredients; 1 for the flour, 1 for the aquafaba and 1 for the panko breadcrumbs.
- Dip each tofu slice in the flour, then the aquafaba, then the breadcrumbs until the slice is roughly covered all over including the edges. You’ll see some of the nori peaking through, this is ok.
- Heat some vegetable oil in a frying pan to around 180°C (350°F), around 1cm (1/2") deep.
- Fry each breaded tofu fillet for 2 minutes on each side until they are golden all over. If you are frying multiple fillets in the pan at the same time you’ll need to fry them for longer - keep them going until they’re golden and crisp.
- Serve each Fillet-No-Fish on a fresh bread roll with a slice of vegan cheese, a generous slather of chilli mayo, lettuce, tomato slices and red onion. I recommend melting the cheese onto the fillet either by placing it on top of the fillet whilst it’s on its last 30 seconds of frying or popping the whole fillet under the grill for a few seconds before serving.4 leaves lettuce, 2 tomatoes, 4 slices vegan cheese, 4 bread rolls, 1/2 red onion