Vegan Chickpea Fried Steak

This recipe for Vegan Chickpea Fried Steak is derived from a few of my most popular recipes to date!  This Vegan Chickpea Parmesan, these Crispy Chickpea Cutlets with Lemon Caper Sauce and these Veggie Nuggets. These three recipes have been pinned (and repinned) sooo many times … which is crazy, since this base chickpea recipe was my own little experiment!

When I think back in my childhood and we had all of those truly awful frozen dinners, I remember something like a country fried steak with mashed potatoes and carrots.  So this is my attempt to recreate that memory but vegan…and not awful 🙂

The base of this “steak” is comprised of two parts.  First, in the bowl of a food processor, puree onions, chickpeas and parsley until it looks like this.  Don’t go too far with it, we want texture!  Remove this to a bowl.

No need to clean the processor.  Simpy add carrots and mushrooms.  Pulse until it looks like this.  Again, leave some texture behind.

The two mixtures get combined with a flax “egg” and it forms this lovely little mixture which I press into large balls.  Don’t worry about the patty shape just yet.

I set up a dredging station which is just almond milk and flour.  I start with flour, then milk and back into the flour.  The reason I do this as a ball first is because it is MUCH easier to form the patties after they are floured and flatten when they hit the hot pan.  You don’t need much oil at all to fry these.

I let them cook one one side (don’t touch!) until they get browned and crispy.  Flip and repeat.  I then let them sit on paper toweling for a few minutes.  They continue to set up even further.

I served with just a basic mashed potato.  Nothing fancy, just added almond milk, vegan margarine and seasoned with salt and pepper.  I am a mashed potato freak.  Love them!

For color, how about a mixture of carrots, peas and corn.  Frozen works just fine.

If you’d like the biscuit recipe, you can find it here.  These are my absolute FAVORITE biscuits!  I dare you to eat just one.

The final touch is a simple white milk gravy made from a bechemel.  Simply put, it’s a flour and almond milk roux that we added to the residual oil in the frying pan.  Whisk in the remaining almond milk and season well with salt and pepper.  I spoon it lightly over top with additional served on the side for guests who may want a bit more.

Did you make this recipe for Vegan Chickpea Fried Steak?  If so, let me know what you thought in the comments section below!

And if you enjoyed this recipe, why not PIN IT FOR LATER! 🙂

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4.25 from 4 votes

Vegan Chickpea Fried Steak

Vegan Chickpea Fried Steak

Course Main Course

Cuisine vegan

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4 "steaks"

Author Living Vegan Staff

Ingredients

FOR THE CHICKPEA MIXTURE:

• 1 can Chickpeas/Garbanzo Beans rinsed, drained and patted dry with paper towels
• 1 Green Onion/Scallion rough chop
• 1 clove Garlic
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp Pepper
• 1 c fresh Italian Parsley

FOR THE CARROT MIXTURE:

• 1 large Carrot rough chop
• 4 oz FRESH Sliced Mushrooms

TO MAKE THE CUTLETS:

• 1 tbsp Ground Flax mixed with 3 tbsp WATER allow to sit for 10 minutes
• 1/4 c Panko Breadcrumbs
• 1/4 c All Purpose Flour plus more for coating
• Oil of your choosing for frying

FOR THE WHITE "MILK" GRAVY:

• a bit of oil (if there is none left in the pan from cooking the "steaks")
• 2 tbsp Flour
• 1-1/2 c Almond Milk
• Salt + Pepper to taste
• Season Salt optional, to taste

FOR SERVING:

• Mashed Potatoes
• My Buttermilk Biscuits (link in post)
• Mixture of Frozen Peas, Carrots and Corn

Instructions

• Combine 1 Tbl of ground flax with 3 Tbl of water. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes to thicken.
• In the bowl of a food processor, add the chickpeas, green onion, parsley, salt, pepper and garlic. Pulse a few times until it's a coarse mixture. Remove to a large bowl.
• No need to clean the processor, just add the carrots and mushrooms. It is imperative that the mushrooms (if using canned) are squeezed completely dry. Process until finely minced. Add to the chickpea mixture.
• Add the flax mixture, flour and panko breadcrumbs. Stir to combine. If it seems to moist, add more flour or panko. It will still be sticky, but should be workable. Damp hands make working with this a bit easier.
• Using a handful of the mixture, form into a rough ball shape. Completely coat the formed cutlets in light coating of flour. I found it simpler to do this when patting between my hands.  Then into almond milk (again, you can pat it on if that's easier for you) and back into the flour.
• Heat a pan over medium high to high heat and add oil suitable for pan-frying. Add the roughly shaped balls to the pan 1 at a time, press into a cutlet shape with the spatula and fry until golden on one side. Flip and repeat. Remove to paper toweling to cool.

TO MAKE THE WHITE "MILK" GRAVY:

• If there is still a bit of oil in the pan from cooking the steaks, simply add the flour to it.  You want it to create a thick paste (or roux).  If the oil is gone, just as a teaspoon or so.  You don't need much. Cook the flour for about a minute to remove that raw flour taste.  Add about 1/4 c of the almond milk and whisk until smooth.  Add the rest of the milk and seasonings, cooking until thickened.