Fried "Chicken" Sandwich

What? Monique, I thought you didn't eat meat! Well, I don't eat meat, which is exactly why I made a sandwich with fake meat, and it was GOOOD. I'm not a fan of most fake meats, but this stuff was to die for! I fixed a made up recipe with broccolini, tofu, curry and rice earlier this week that FAILED, but I wanted something TRULY satisfying this night. I knew that there were a handful of satisfying recipes from the Top 10 Vegan Sandwiches article, so I went for one of them, and I'm happy I did!


Chicken Sandwich with Home made Coleslaw (and Baked Sweet Potato Fries)
Source: Namely Marly (Sandwich); Sarah's Cucina Bella (Fries)
Serves 4

Fair warning guys - this recipe is semi/very involved, but most of the spices and ingredients are probably already in your pantry. I decided to make the sweet potato fries first, then the coleslaw. I saved the chicken for last because I knew I wanted to eat my sandwich nice and hot, with some cool coleslaw on top. I'm sure this meal can easily be adapted for actual fried chicken. Enough blabbing, here are the deets...


SWEET POTATO FRIES
Ingredients
1 – 1 1/2 lb sweet potatoes SS: I used yams

1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Peel the sweet potatoes. Cut into strips that are about 1/2 inch wide on each side. Place the sweet potatoes into a resealable plastic bag. Add oil, salt, paprika and cinnamon. Seal the bag and shake well to thoroughly coat the fries. Spread the potatoes out onto the baking sheet in a single layer.

Cook for 30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes, until slightly browned. Transfer immediately to a paper towel lined plate and serve warm. SS: My fries were wilted and not crispy, but they still tasted good

COLESLAW
Ingredients

1 small red onion, very thinly sliced
1 cup + 3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar, divided
2 jalapenos, seeded, cut in half and sliced crosswise
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 green cabbage, core and outer leaves removed, and very thinly sliced
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Stir onions into one cup red wine vinegar, and let sit at least 20 minutes. Remove onions and discard vinegar. In a large bowl, toss onions with jalapeno, parsley, cabbage and salt.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, 3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar, and salt. Slowly whisk in olive oil until well blended.
3. Toss salad with vinaigrette until evenly coated.

"CHICKEN"
Ingredients
1 package Gardein Chick’n Scallopini (4 pieces)
1 cup whole raw cashews
water for covering cashews by 1”
1 Tbsp. Tabasco or other hot sauce
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning SS: I used Todd's Dirt instead of Old Bay
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. black pepper, freshly ground
vegetable oil for frying


Directions

1. Make the cashew cream (plan ahead): Put the cashews in a bowl and add cold water to cover them by one inch. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight. SS: I didn't plan ahead, so I kept the cashews in the cold water while I made the baked sweet potato fries, and the coleslaw - about 1 hour, I think it still turned out just fine! Drain the cashews and rinse under cold water. Place in a blender with enough fresh cold water to cover them by one inch. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth and strain through a fine mesh sieve. 
2. Mix the cashew cream with Tabasco in a medium-sized bowl. Add the Gardein chick’n pieces and make sure all are well coated.
3. In a shallow bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, garlic powder, Old Bay, cayenne, and black pepper. Shake the excess marinade off the chick’n pieces, and then dredge each one in the flour. Shake off excess flour, then dip the chick’n back into the cashew cream, then coat again in the flour.
4. Add enough oil to a deep large skillet to create a depth of 1”. Heat over medium-high heat to 350º f (use a deep-frying thermometer or an electric frying pan). SS: I was low on the vegetable oil, I probably used about 1/4 cup and everything still turned out nice. Fry the chick’n in batches until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and serve.

To make the sandwich, put the chick'n between a bread roll of your choice and top with coleslaw - I only used half of the actual roll when I ate it, so it was an open-face sandwich. YUM!