Best Vegetarian Chicken Recipes

VEGETARIAN CHICKEN-FRIED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM STEAKS

Steps:

• Position an oven rack at the top of the oven, and preheat the broiler. Arrange the mushrooms on a baking sheet, and broil until the sides facing up begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Flip, and continue to broil until the sides facing up are soft, about 5 minutes more. Let cool.
• Put the mushrooms, gill-side up, between 2 pieces of plastic wrap, and pound to about 1/4 inch thick with a meat mallet. Season all over with 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Whisk together the milk and eggs in a separate shallow dish.
• Lower the oven heat to 250 degrees F. Put a rack over a rimmed baking sheet. Heat about an inch of oil to 350 degrees F in a large cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• While the oil heats, dredge each mushroom in the flour mixture to completely coat; shake off any excess. Then dip into the egg mixture until fully coated; let the excess drip off. Return the mushroom to the flour mixture, and dredge a second time, until completely coated, pressing firmly into the flour mixture. Arrange on one side of the rack on the baking sheet.
• Add 2 of the breaded mushrooms to the hot oil, and cook, turning once, until crisp and golden, about 5 minutes total. Transfer the mushrooms to the unused side of the rack. When the oil comes back to temperature, repeat with the remaining 2 mushrooms and keep the first 2 warm in the oven.
• Serve the mushroom steaks with mashed potatoes and generous spoonfuls of hot gravy. Garnish with chives or scallions if using.
• Position an oven rack in the top position in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F. Toss the onions, celery, carrots and garlic with the oil and 1 teaspoon salt on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until the vegetables are charred in some places, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Bring the roasted vegetables, 1 cup water, mushrooms, thyme, sun-dried tomatoes, soy sauce, bay leaf and 1 teaspoon salt to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is gone, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 6 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and bring back to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and gently simmer until reduced by about one third, about 45 minutes. Strain the stock into a large liquid measuring cup, then squeeze all the liquid out of the solids with the back of a ladle (there should be about 4 cups of stock); discard the solids. (If not making gravy right away, let the stock cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month; warm slightly before making gravy.)
• Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the sage leaves to the butter, and stir for 30 seconds; remove the fried sage leaves, and set aside. Add the flour to the saucepan, and stir until smooth and lightly golden, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour in the warm stock while whisking constantly until smooth and thick, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Chop the fried sage, stir it and the parsley into the gravy and season to taste with pepper.

VEGETARIAN "NO CHICKEN" POT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Saute onion, celery, carrots and potatoes in butter for 10 minutes.
• Add flour to sauteed mixture, stirring well Cook one minute stirring constantly.
• Combine broth and half and half.
• Gradually stir into vegetable mixture.
• Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly.
• Stir in salt and pepper and tyme; add tofu and stir well.
• Pour into shallow 2 quart casserole dish and top with pie shells.
• Cut slits to allow steam to escape.
• Bake for 40-50 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly and cooked through.

CHICKEN GREEN CHILE ENCHILADA CASSEROLE (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375.
• Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, saute 5 minutes or until onion is tender.
• Add Chilies, cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Remove from heat, stir in chopped chicken strips.
• Combine cumin, chili powder and enchilada sauce. Pour 1/3 of sauce mixture into an 11 x 7 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
• Arrange 1/2 of tortilla quarters over sauce mixture, top with onion mixture.
• Sprinkle with 3/4 cup Mexican blend cheese, top with 1/3 of sauce mixture.
• Top with remaining tortillas and sauce mixture.
• Bake at 375 for 15 minutes.
• Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup of cheese, bake an additional 10 minutes.
• Sprinkle with cilantro if desired.

CREAMY CAJUN "CHICKEN" PASTA (VEGETARIAN CHICKEN)

Steps:

• Add Cajun Seasoning to a medium sized bowl.
• Spray thawed chik'n pieces with a little bit of Pam and toss in bowl to coat with seasoning.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chik'n pieces in butter until heated through, about 2-3 minutes.
• Reduce heat and add green onion, heavy cream, sun dried tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through until sauce slightly thickens. If the sauce gets too thick you can just add more milk and stir.
• Pour over hot pasta and toss,with Parmesan cheese.

INSTANT POT® VEGETARIAN WHITE "CHICKEN" CHILI

Steps:

• Turn on a multi-functional pressure cooker (such as Instant Pot®), select Saute function, and add olive oil. Add onion, jalapeno peppers, bell pepper, and garlic to hot oil; saute until onions begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add artificial chicken pieces and saute for another 3 minutes.
• Add vegetable broth, pinto beans, frozen cauliflower, frozen corn, oregano, cumin, pepper, and salt. Close and lock the lid. Select Soup function and set timer for 15 minutes.
• Release pressure using the natural-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, for 5 minutes. Release remaining pressure carefully using the quick-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 5 minutes. Unlock and remove the lid.
• Stir in sour cream. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh cilantro.

VEGETARIAN GREEN-CHILI "CHICKEN" ENCHILADAS

Steps:

• Pour 1 can enchilada sauce into a 9 x 13-inch glass pan, to cover bottom.
• Tear "chicken" into small pieces and place in a medium bowl.
• Add 1 can enchilada sauce, diced green chilies, sour cream, 1/2 bag cheese and taco seasoning.
• Mix well.
• Divide mixture evenly throughout 10 tortilla shells.
• Wrap tightly and place side-by-side in glass pan.
• Pour remaining can of enchilada sauce over top of enchiladas.
• Top with cheese and if desired sliced green onions and black olives.
• Bake at 350F for 30-45 minutes, or until cheese begins to turn golden.

VEGETARIAN "CHICKEN" POT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375℉. Put vegetable stock in a pan & heat to a simmer. It must be boiling when added. Brown "chicken" in a skillet with 1T oil. Season with salt & pepper. Remove from the pan & set aside. Make a roux by melting butter, adding flour, and whisking constantly until light brown in color. Set aside. In large stock pot, cook onions in oil for 5 minutes or until they begin to become clear, then add carrots, thyme, salt & pepper. Cook another 5 minutes or so. Add boiling stock and cook another 5 minutes. Whisk in nutritional yeast. Add in the roux a bit at a time and continue to cook as the sauce thickens. Finally add the "chicken", soy sauce and peas. Remove from heat and let cool a bit. Roll out one pie crust and line a 9" deep dish pie plate. Add the cooled pie filling, and top with the second pie crust. Cut some air slits into the top crust. Bake for about an hour, or until the top is nicely browned and the filling is bubbling a bit. You could omit the bottom crust and simply use a top crust if desired. You could also make small individual pies, but limit the baking time to about half an hour if you do this. I haven't tried this, so the baking time is an estimate.

AIR FRIED VEGETARIAN "CHICKEN TENDERS"

Steps:

• Pour flour onto a large plate. Place eggs in a shallow bowl. Combine bread crumbs, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, chili powder, and salt in another shallow bowl.
• Coat imitation chicken strips in flour, dip into eggs, then dredge in bread crumb mixture, and place on a plate.
• Heat an air fryer to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).
• Place a row of coated strips in the air fryer basket. Spray with a light coat of cooking spray.
• Cook strips in the air fryer for 6 minutes. Open fryer to flip strips with tongs. Continue cooking until golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes more.

VERY QUICK BUTTER CHICKPEAS (VEGETARIAN BUTTER CHICKEN!)

Steps:

• Chop the onion very finely while the oil heats in a large pan.
• Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is starting to brown.
• Stir in the curry powder and garam masala, ginger and cumin. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, for one to two minutes longer.
• Tip in the soup, cream, drained chickpeas and potatoes, and leave the sauce to simmer for about five minutes.
• Add the chopped coriander and salt to taste.
• Serve over steamed basmati rice.
• Enjoy!

VEGETARIAN "CHICKEN" NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• 1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat.
• 2. Add the carrots, parsnip, onion, and celery and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
• 3. Add the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• 4. Add broth, turn up the heat, bring to a boil.
• 5. Add the veggie chicken chunks, return to a boil, then reduce heat to medium.
• 6. Add noodles and simmer until the noodles are tender, about 8 minutes.
• 7. Remove from heat.
• 8. Add parsley and dill, stir, remove the bay leaves and serve.
• 9. (Add water or more broth to reach desired thickness.).

CHINESE POT STICKERS (CHICKEN, PORK OR VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine water and mushrooms, cover and let soak for 5 minutes.
• Drain, discard stems, and mince caps.
• In a large non-stick skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium-high heat until hot; saute mushrooms in oil with onions and ginger.
• Add cabbage and cook until cabbage is lightly browned (9 minutes), stirring frequently; while cabbage is cooking add water 1 tbsp at a time to keep it from sticking to the pan, if needed.
• Spoon cabbage mixture into a medium sized bowl and let it cool.
• Add chicken and next 5 ingredients to the bowl and mix well.
• Working with one wonton wrapper at a time (keep the rest covered so they don't dry out), spoon a tablespoon full of the mixture into the middle of the wrapper; moisten the edges with water.
• Bring two points (diagonal corners) in to the center, and pinch together.
• Bring the other two corners in and pinch together; and pinch the 4 edges together to seal.
• Sprinkle a baking sheet with cornstarch, and place pot stickers on baking sheet as you finish sealing them (keeping finished ones covered with a towel to keep them from drying out).
• In a large non-stick skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat until hot.
• Place 15 pot stickers in bottom of skillet and cook until bottoms are lightly browned (3 minutes).
• Add broth to skillet and cook, covered, until liquid is absorbed (3 minutes).
• Set finished pot stickers aside, and keep warm.
• Wipe skillet out with a paper towel, and repeat the process with the other pot stickers.
• Serve with soy sauce or other sauce for dipping.

VEGETARIAN GREEN CHILE CHICKEN ENCHILADA CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Heat olive oil in large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add diced onion and cook until translucent. Add sliced mushrooms and cook until tender.
• Add meatless chick'n strips and diced tomatoes. Cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.
• Add vegetable broth, soy milk, oregano, nutritional yeast, garlic cube, bouillon cube, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and let thicken. Stir in diced poblano peppers and remove from heat.
• In an 11 x 9 glass casserole dish, place a couple spoonfuls of enchilada sauce and spread across the bottom to keep bottom tortillas from burning. Place 6 corn tortillas to cover bottom of casserole, overlapping slightly. Spread 1/2 of filling across the tortillas. Spread a couple tablespoons of enchilada sauce across the filling. Repeat layer. Top with last layer of 6 corn tortillas. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the casserole, being sure to spread into each corner and along the sides so it oozes down the sides of the casserole. Top with shredded cheese.
• Place casserole in oven and cook until cheese is melted and browning slightly, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 - 10 minutes. Serve. Top with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sour cream and/or guacamole, and serve with Spanish rice and pinto beans.

VEGETARIAN BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP

Steps:

• Place the diced vegetarian chicken strips, cream cheese, ranch dressing, and buffalo wing sauce into a slow cooker. Cook on Low, stirring occasionally, until the cheese has melted and the dip is hot, 1 to 2 hours. Stir in the shredded cheese and serve.

VEGETARIAN FAUX CHICKEN PATTIES

Steps:

• Process the 'chicken' in a food processor and then transfer it to a medium mixing bowl. Run the celery, onion and green pepper through the processor. Add the vegetables to the mixing bowl and stir in the eggs, stuffing, salt and pepper; mix well. Form into patties.
• In a medium frying pan heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Fry patties on each side until browned.

VEGETARIAN CHICKEN ORZO SOUP

Steps:

• Cook 2 cups of broth over medium heat and add onions. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the rest of the broth and water, followed by onion, turnip, parsnip, carrots, celery, parsley, and dill. Cook over medium heat for 1 hour.
• Stir in the vegetarian chicken pieces and continue to cook until heated through and vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes more. Stir in escarole and orzo; cook for 15 minutes more.
• Remove vegetarian chicken, cut into chunks, and add back to the pot. Season with salt and pepper before serving.

VEGETARIAN WHITE CHILI WITH OPTIONAL CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onion, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes, until soft.
• Stir in the garlic, cumin, oregano, cloves, cayenne pepper, and salt. Cook for another minute.
• Add diced green chiles, beans, and vegetable broth. Continuing over medium heat, let the mixture come to a boil, then reduce the heat to love to keep the soup at a steady simmer. Simmer uncovered for about an hour.
• Add the jalapeno pepper.
• If adding chicken to a portion of the recipe, scoop just under half the chili into a separate, medium saucepan. Add the chicken to that half.
• Simmer both versions for another 30 minutes uncovered.
• Serve with assorted toppings.

VEGETARIAN "CHICKEN", POTATO, AND BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

Steps:

• grease casserole dish, preheat oven to 350f.
• layer all ingredients in dish, sorta mix with a fork as much as possible, cover with foil.
• bake for 45 min-1.5 hours depending on how thin you cut potatoes. mix gently halfway through and see how cooked potatoes are. if desired take foil off for last 10 min to brown on top.
• serve with salad and a crisp white wine.

VEGETARIAN 'CHICKEN' SALAD

Steps:

• Combine vegetarian fried chicken and celery together in a large bowl.
• Mix together lemon juice, mayonnaise, whipping cream, grapes, curry powder, dill, and salt in a separate bowl. Add to chicken mixture and toss well. Chill until serving.

VEGETARIAN BUTTER CHICKEN STUFFED PEPPERS WITH MINT YOGURT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C).
• In a saucepan over medium, saute the onions and chickpeas until onions are translucent.
• At the same time, boil a pot of water big enough to submerge the peppers.
• Boil peppers for 5 minutes and then remove and turn upside down in order to drain.
• Once onion is cooked, add rice and Patak's Butter Chicken for Two.
• Saute for 5 minutes.
• Place peppers into a baking dish, fill with butter chicken mixture.
• Bake for 15 minutes.
• While baking, mix mint with yogurt and put aside.
• Finish peppers with a healthy dollop of yogurt and a sprig of mint, if you're fancy like that!

BAKED TOFICKEN NUGGETS (VEGETARIAN CHICKEN NUGGETS)

Steps:

• Slice the tofu into bite sized pieces or larger if you prefer.
• Combine yogurt and poultry seasoning (or whichever other seasonings you are using).
• Place tofu and yogurt mixture into a ziploc bag and allow to marinate several hours or overnight.
• In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal and starch- You may add additional seasonings to this mixture as well.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Spray a cookie sheet with PAM.
• Dredge the marinate tofu in the cornmeal mixture to coat, and lay on the cookie sheet, leaving room between each piece.
• Bake 20 to 30 minutes, turning once, until browned.
• Serve with your choice of dipping sauce (I like BBQ sauce myself).