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Dig in to vegan seafood recipes for plant-based versions of fried shrimp, crab cakes, fish tacos, tuna salad sandwiches, and more. If you crave something sprinkled with malt vinegar, dipped in cocktail sauce, or squeezed with lemon, enjoy this wealth of options.
Vegans don’t eat fish or other sea life. But that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the flavors and textures of foods that are flaky, briny, and salty.
There are so many ways to make vegan seafood. Options include hearts of palm, jackfruit, chickpeas, artichokes, or store-bought plant-based alternatives.
Here’s a round-up of 8 vegan seafood recipes to satisfy your every craving.
Fried shrimp
Before going vegan, one of my favorite fancy date night dinners was fried shrimp. With a crisp & airy panko breadcrumb coating plus a swish of cocktail sauce, it was a mainstay for birthdays and special events.
Luckily, all of those flavors are still possible thanks to hearts of palm. This briny and toothsome vegetable takes the place of shrimp beautifully.
Bread and fry it, and get ready for dipping with homemade cocktail sauce.
Get the recipe for vegan fried shrimp <– here
Crab cakes
Artichokes and chickpeas take over the starring role in vegan crab cakes. Artichokes have a wonderful flakiness to them, while chickpeas add substance and protein.
The cakes have layered flavors of Old Bay seasoning, lemon zest, lemon juice, hot sauce, and stoneground mustard for zing. They’re finished with a dollop of lemon dill aioli.
Serve as an appetizer or entrée. Plus, they can be baked, fried, or air fried.
Get the recipe for vegan crab cakes <– here
Fish tacos
You’ll feel like you’re living that SoCal lifestyle all over again with these vegan fish tacos. Gardein fishless filets are a quick, weeknight staple that makes this dinner a breeze to prepare.
After warming corn tortillas, fill them with shredded cabbage, avocado, onion, and cilantro. Then drizzle spicy chipotle cashew crema on top of the battered filets. Just before serving, add a squeeze of lime.
Get the recipe for vegan fish tacos <– here
Tuna salad sandwich
As a kid, one of the first things I ever learned to prepare was a tuna salad sandwich. And one of the first things I ever learned to prepare as a vegan was a vegan tuna salad sandwich. Making them is basically the same process, you just use chickpeas in place of tuna.
Chickpeas are quickly broken up in a food processor. Then they’re whipped up in a bowl with diced celery, pickles, eggless mayo, dill, and celery seed.
It’s great on a sandwich, piled on crackers, stuffed into a tomato or lettuce leaf. The pickle adds salt and crunch, while the chickpeas keep it satiating.
It’s a true winner for your plant-based lunchbox or whenever you need a meal in minutes.
Get the recipe for vegan tuna salad <– here
Crab rangoon
Crab rangoon got its start at San Francisco restaurant, Trader Vic’s. Since then it’s been popping up on Chinese restaurant menus across America. I first came across them back in the 90’s. I was taken with them right away.
They’re usually filled with cream cheese, crab or mock crab, and green onions. Then they’re stuffed inside of won ton wrappers and fried.
My vegan crab rangoon takes a number of shortcuts. Instead of won ton wrappers, it uses pre-made phyllo cups as a timesaving measure. Non-dairy cream cheese replaces the dairy version. And store-bought vegan crab cakes are chopped into the filling.
The end result is a pretty little appetizer that’s worthy of any gathering. It never fails to elicit ooh’s and ah’s.
Get the recipe for vegan crab rangoon <– here
Ceviche
You can almost feel the sun on your skin and sand under your toes when you dip into vegan ceviche. Unlike the non-vegan counterpart made with raw fish, this one uses the briny magic of hearts of palm.
It’s rounded out with avocado, cherry tomatoes, chopped onion, jalapeño, and cilantro.
No cooking is required. This easy appetizer is ready to eat in 10 minutes. Get those tortilla chips ready!
Get the recipe for vegan ceviche <– here
Vegan caviar
Woo your sweetheart with vegan caviar on crackers. This appetizer is surprisingly easy to make, but looks elegant.
Israeli couscous is colored with beets. Then it’s flavored with garlic and lemon. Great with crackers and a swish of almond cheese!
Get the recipe for vegan caviar <– here
Crab dip
If a creamy dip is what you desire, look no further than this vegan crab dip. It is made with shredded young jackfruit, Dijon mustard, and Old Bay seasoning. A full-bodied cashew base gives this dip some oomph.
Serve it with crackers, corn chips, or piled on toasted crostini.
Get the recipe for vegan crab dip <– here
Bianca N Phillips says
So many creative options!! I never liked seafood, but all of these vegan versions sound great. It was the fishy taste I didn’t like, so this solves that! Cream cheese wontons were my fave growing up! I don’t know if I ever had an actual crab rangoon, but they look amazing.