Vegan Fish and Chips: Easy Crispy Tofu Recipe

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Vegan Fish and Chips: Easy Crispy Tofu Recipe

Yield: 4

This easy vegan fish and chips recipe swaps cod for crispy, battered tofu with a nori twist. A proper British chippy classic, made completely plant-based.

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Ingredients

For the Tofu

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• 800g extra-firm tofu, drained
• 4 tbsp ground flaxseeds/linseeds
• 2x15x20cm nori sheets
• 475ml sunflower oil for deep frying
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1tsp fine salt
• 175g plain (all-purpose) flour
• 750ml cold fizzy lager or sparkling water

For the chips

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• 600g floury potatoes, cut into 1cm thick wedges
• ½ tsp fine salt
• 40g cornflour (corn starch)
• 6 tbsp neutral vegetable oil

To serve (optional)

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• Steamed, boiled or mushy peas
• Beetroot ketchup
• Tartare sauce
• Lemon wedges

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6. Place several layers of kitchen paper towels or clean dish towels on a plate. Put the tofu on the towels and cover it with more paper/dish towels. Place a heavy object on top to press the water out of the tofu. Leave to drain for at least 30 minutes.
2. For the chips, put the potatoes on a large baking tray. Sprinkle over the salt and cornflour and gently toss so all the wedges are coated. Drizzle over the oil and briefly toss again. Bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown. If the chips are done before frying the tofu, turn the oven off, leaving the chips inside to keep warm.
3. While the chips are cooking, carefully split each pressed tofu block sideways through the middle, then cut each piece diagonally into two so you have eight triangular ‘fillets’.
4. Toast the ground flaxseeds/linseeds in a small frying pan over medium-high heat for 7-8 minutes, tossing regularly, until their colour deepens and they give off a fishy aroma. Set aside.
5. Cut each nori sheet into four pieces and apply one to the back of each tofu ‘fillet’ as the fish’s ‘skin’. Line a large plate with kitchen paper.
6. Heat the vegetable oil to 180°C/350°F over a medium heat in a large, deep pan or deep fat fryer.
7. While the oil is heating up, make the batter. Stir the toasted flaxseeds/linseeds, baking powder and salt into the flour in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in the larger or sparkling water to form a smooth batter.
8. Submerge a tofu fillet in the batter, then lower it into the hot oil using a slotted spoon or tongs. Be careful, as the hot oil may spit. Batter and fry several tofu fillets simultaneously if your pan/fryer is large enough. Fry for 5/7 minutes until a golden brown crisp outer layer has formed.
9. Transfer the fried tofu to the kitchen paper to drain the excess oil. Keep the cooked fillets warm on a baking tray if you must fry two batches. Serve with chips, peas, ketchup, tartare sauce and lemon wedges.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 777Total Fat: 40gSaturated Fat: 4gUnsaturated Fat: 36gSodium: 829mgCarbohydrates: 79gFiber: 10gSugar: 4gProtein: 32g

There is something deeply comforting about a proper chippy tea, and this vegan fish and chips recipe brings all of that nostalgia to the table without a scrap of fish. Battered tofu takes the place of cod, wrapped in nori for that unmistakable taste of the sea, then fried until the coating shatters at the first bite. Serve it with golden chips, mushy peas and a squeeze of lemon, and you have a plant based feast that feels every bit like a Friday night takeaway.

The Origins of Fish and Chips

Fish and chips is often called the national dish of Britain, yet its two halves arrived from very different places. Lightly fried fish is thought to have been brought to England by Sephardic Jewish immigrants from Portugal and Spain several centuries ago, while fried potatoes crossed over from mainland Europe. The two finally came together in the 1860s, when the first dedicated chip shops opened in London and the north of England. According to the history recorded on Wikipedia, there were more than 25,000 chippies across the country by 1910. The dish was even spared from rationing during both world wars, because the government knew how much it meant to public morale. Reinventing such a beloved classic as vegan fish and chips is our way of keeping the tradition going for everyone.

What Makes This Vegan Fish and Chips So Good

The secret to convincing vegan fish and chips lies in two humble ingredients. First, extra firm tofu gives you that flaky, satisfying bite once it has been pressed and battered. Second, nori seaweed and toasted flaxseeds do the clever work of mimicking the briny, faintly fishy flavour everyone expects. Pressing the tofu really matters here, because the drier it is, the crisper your batter turns out. Using fizzy lager or sparkling water is another trick worth knowing, since the bubbles create a light, airy crust rather than a stodgy one. If you enjoy this crisp coating method, you will find it works a treat in our crispy tofu stir fry as well.

Is Vegan Fish and Chips Healthy?

Swapping fish for tofu brings some genuine nutritional perks. Tofu is a complete plant protein, which means it contains all nine essential amino acids your body needs. It is naturally free from cholesterol and rich in minerals such as calcium, iron and manganese. According to Harvard Health, most of the fat in tofu is the heart friendly polyunsaturated kind, and human studies have found no major concerns linked to eating it. The toasted flaxseeds in the batter add a welcome dose of fibre and omega 3 fats too. This is still a fried treat rather than an everyday dinner, but cooking your own version at home lets you control the oil and skip the additives found in many shop bought alternatives. Baking the chips instead of frying them keeps the plate a little lighter, so your vegan fish and chips can happily be part of a balanced week.

Fun Facts to Share Over Dinner

This dish comes with plenty of quirky history. It was one of the few foods never rationed during either world war, precisely because morale mattered so much. The country now celebrates National Fish and Chip Day every June. In Yorkshire and much of the north, you can still ask for scraps, the crunchy bits of leftover batter, which are often handed over for free. And while cod and haddock have long ruled the fryer, today’s chippy happily serves halloumi, battered sausages and, more and more often, vegan fish and chips for the growing number of plant based diners. Your homemade version slots neatly into that proud, ever changing story.

Tips for Serving and Storing

For the full chippy experience, pile everything onto warm plates with a generous mound of mushy peas, a dollop of tartare sauce and plenty of lemon wedges. A shake of malt vinegar and a pinch of salt finish it beautifully. Your vegan fish and chips will taste best straight from the pan while the batter is at its crispiest, but any leftovers reheat well in a hot oven or air fryer for about ten minutes to bring back the crunch. Skip the microwave, which softens the coating. Spare battered tofu also makes a cracking sandwich the next day, tucked into a soft roll with tartare sauce. Hungry for more? My round up of tofu recipes is packed with ideas for using up the rest of the block.

Give It a Go

Once you have made vegan fish and chips from scratch, you may never look at the takeaway queue the same way again. Crisp, golden and full of seaside character, this is comfort food the whole family will happily tuck into. Give it a try this Friday, and do let us know how your vegan fish and chips turned out.