Not too long ago I posted a recipe for Chicken Fried Tofu and was truly blown away by the response! Who knew folks liked fried tofu so much?!
I’ll be honest, that’s one thing that I miss after going vegan… a good ol’ piece of fried chicken.
Clearly things have changed since the days of eating chicken, so I knew I had to find an alternative, which is why I wanted to try the fried tofu.
While I liked it, my cravings for fried chicken remained.
I knew I needed to find something that more closely resembled the texture of chicken. Welp, Chicken Fried Jackfruit seemed to fit the bill!
Though I enjoyed to tofu recipe, I admit it was a little labor intensive and required more steps and ingredients than what I’m used to.
With this Chicken Fried Jackfruit recipe, I was determined to make it simple.
I cut it down to the basics and was really happy with the results. Not too basic though… I tried frying the jackfruit as is with the hard parts and seeds still in tact and that didn’t work out so well, so I had to add in some trimming as a step.
The “buttermilk” is a trick I learned while exploring vegan pancakes and seemed to work pretty will here too.
The breading is a flavorful mix of some basic spices that you probably already have in your spice cabinet. So go ahead! Give it a try and let me know what you think!
In the mood for something spicy? Try this Spicy Chicken Fried Jackfruit that’s made in the air fryer!
P.S. If you enjoy this recipe, you’ll love my fried oyster mushrooms!
Pair this Chicken Fried Jackfruit with:
- Easy Vegan Collard Greens
- Easy Baked Vegan Mac and Cheese
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Easy Whipped Sweet Potatoes
- Easy Vegan Cornbread
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Chicken Fried Jackfruit
Ingredients
- 1 20 oz. can jackfruit in brine
- enough oil for frying (ex: vegetable) doesn't have to cover the whole chunk of jackfruit, but at least half
Breading
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 4-5 shakes of cayenne pepper to taste
- 4-5 shakes of oregano to taste
- red pepper flakes optional
Buttermilk
- 1 cup almond milk or other non dairy milk
- 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix together the ingredients for the buttermilk and set aside
- In another bowl of medium size, begin mixing together the breading ingredients and set aside
- Add enough oil to a frying pan and turn on to medium low heat
- Drain and rinse your jackfruit. Then on a cutting board, begin cutting parts of the jackfruit that are hard or contain seeds (see photo of scraps I discarded). You want to try and leave only the parts that are stringy or soft. This will help to provide a similar texture to chicken. I experimented with leaving the pieces as is and did not care for the texture
- Once the other parts have been cut away, you should be left with pieces that you want to fry. Begin by dipping the jackfruit piece in the buttermilk mixture, then in the breading, BACK in the buttermilk, then in the breading again.
- Once completed, add it to the hot frying pan. Note: you can add them one at a time, or wait until you've completed a handful of pieces to fry together.
- If the oil in the pan does not fully cover the jackfruit pieces, keep an eye on them so that they can be rotated after 2-3 minutes. You will know if they're ready when you touch them with your tongs and the outer breading has hardened and is crispy
- Repeat until all jackfruit is fried
- Once the jackfruit is fried, transfer to a plate with 3-4 layers of paper towels so that some of the oil can be absorbed. Allow them to cool for ~4 minutes before serving
- Pair with your favorite dipping sauce (or not) and enjoy!
