Make your own battered fish filets without fish! Thanks to tofu we can make a cruelty-free, plant-based alternative – perfect for vegan Tofish and Chips! Delicious with homemade Tartar Sauce!
I have been vegan for over 5 years now, and for me, fish was one of the hardest things to give up. If you know me, I’m always trying to find a way to make the foods I used to love in my pre-vegan times in a vegan and cruelty-free way. That’s why I really wanted to start experimenting with vegan fish recipes.
I tried many vegan fish products on the market, but they all disappointed. Also, they are really, really expensive. So I like the homemade vegan fish version much more!
What is Tofish…
Tofish is a great-looking, cruelty-free alternative to fish (perfect for fish and chips-lovers!). It’s made out of tofu filets with a sheet of nori, which adds a lovely ocean, algae taste. Then it’s coated and pan-fried in a light batter with seltzer water. You could also use beer or cider in that case.
Why Tofish is the better option…
Fish was actually one of hardest things to give up when I went vegan (besides cheese, obviously because cheese addiction is a thing). But even in my pre-vegan days, the options of either fish from the sea loaded with micro-plastics or farmed fish loaded with antibiotics to survive in the crowded and super filthy enclosures were both terrible. No thanks, I’m sticking to Tofish! You can read more about aquafarms here.
While this Tofish doesn’t have the consistency of fish (it’s still tofu), it certainly looks like “real fish”! That’s enough reason for me to share the recipe with you!
Serve the Tofish with…
Served with potato fries or wedges this vegan ‘fish’ makes quite an appearance. Don’t forget to add freshly squeezed lemon juice on top and sprinkle it with chopped dill. Makes it only better! :)
The perfect dip is of course: Vegan Tartar Sauce.
You know what also would be good with this tofish? Rice and peas or mashed peas! Anything you would serve with regular fish would be delicious with this cruelty-free, vegan alternative!
How to make Tofish…
Many people don’t give tofu the love it deserves. Tofu is so versatile, it’s great. For this recipe, you’ll want to use firm tofu, not silken tofu as it would be too wobbly and would not hold its shape.
Basically, you cut tofu slices into the fishy form, add a nori sheet on top, dip in a light seltzer-batter (feel free to use beer or cider instead) and fry. So easy!
Scroll down to see the full recipe!
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- The Tofish before dipping it in the seltzer batter
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- Tofish being fried in the pan
- 2 slices firm tofu
- 1 nori sheet
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/2 cup seltzer water (or beer or cider)
- canola oil for pan-frying
- 3 large potatoes
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt + more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/8 cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/8 teaspoon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon kala namak (or salt)
- 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 1 teaspoon dill - chopped
- 1 tablespoon relish
- 1 teaspoon capers - drained and finely chopped
- salt to taste
Add in an immersion blender cup unsweetened soy milk, apple cider vinegar, mustard, maple syrup, kala namak, and lime juice. Blend for 1 minute then slowly start drizzling in the canola oil while the immersion blender is running. Blend for about 3 minutes until it is thick and creamy. If it’s too liquidy, add a bit more oil and blend further.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the dill, relish, capers and more salt to taste. Stir to combine. Set aside in the fridge.
- Preheat the oven to 480°F / 250°C.
Peel the potatoes. Cut them in fries or wedges. Put them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Toss in oil and spices. Mix until they are coated well. Spread them around the baking tray so they don't overlap each other. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until golden and crispy.
Cut the two large slices of tofu in half, so you have 4 pieces. Cut the nori into the forms of the tofu and put the nori sheet on the tofu slices. Press the nori a bit onto the tofu so that it sticks. Sprinkle the backside of the tofu with a pinch of salt.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt, curry powder, and pepper. Then add the seltzer water and whisk until it’s a smooth batter. You can adjust the consistency, by adding a bit more flour if it’s too runny, or by adding more seltzer water if it’s too thick.
Prepare a pan and fill enough canola oil so that the fish filets can swim in the oil. Make sure to leave enough space in the pan to prevent the oil to boil over.
Dip the tofu with the nori sheet into the batter, flip until coated on all sides and put it in the hot oil. Pan-fry for about 3-4 minutes on each side until golden. Transfer the vegan fish on a paper towel to remove excess oil.
Once everything is ready, serve the Tofish (add a squeeze of lemon juice and sprinkle with chopped dill) with the chips and tartar sauce.
*Stick to the soy milk, I haven’t had any luck making the mayo base for the Tartar Sauce with rice milk or almond milk.
Did you make the vegan Tofish and Chips? Tag @elephantasticvegan on Instagram and use the hashtag #elephantasticvegan. Don’t forget to subscribe to the Elephantastic Vegan Newsletter to see Reader Remake Features!
This post was first published on August 27, 2017. Updated on May 25, 2018
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The name!! Haha I love it so much–meant. to. be. You come up with the most clever meat alternatives of anyone I’ve ever known, this sheet of nori fried right alongside the tofu is brilliant. Even though I know tartar sauce or something is traditional, this yumminess is just begging for ketchup if you ask me😍
I’m glad you like the name, Natalie :D People are always complaining why vegans have to call the plant-based alternatives like the “real deal” cheese, sausage, hot dog, burger etc and on my Vegan ‘Fish’ Burger someone complained too :D so I’m now looking for new words for vegan alternatives.
The nori sheet is genius!
It adds most of the ‘fishy’ flavor :)
Wow! I’m gonna make those tomorrow. Thank you!
yeay, I hope you like them! :)
What does the nori sheet add to the tofish? Is it necessary? I guess what I’m asking is if it adds a specific “fishy” flavor. I I live in an isolated Canadian community and nori sheets aren’t exactly accessible for me. But I want me some tofish! lol
Hi Katie, yes, the nori sheet adds the fishy/algae/ocean flavor. If you leave the nori sheet out, it will be breaded tofu, which is nice, but not exactly reminding of ‘fish’ :) Do you have any seaweed products available where you live? If they are dried, you can crumble them up and add them to the breading. Lemon juice and vegan tartar sauce will help make it taste even more like ‘fish’ :)
To get a texture closer to fish, slice the tofu, then wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it for two days or so. Defrost it and then pour hot water over it. After about 10 minutes you can dry it with paper towels then continue with this great recipe.
To the earlier commentor, if Thai fish sauce is available, a few drops in the batter will give it a more fishy taste.
Thank you so much for the tip, David! I’ve been meaning to try freezing tofu but never actually did it. Now you’ve got me motivated! :)
But ….. were the lemons…..friends? Plucked too early from mamma tree? Herded into a box…dyed and stamped FLORIDA GRADE A…? The poor dickens….the trees WEEPING FOR THEIR YOUNG…. jesus get over yourself !!!!! Vegan for 5 years and made a change. Why is it all vegans look like the sickest peoe we’ve EVER SEEN?? Because …they are. U talk cruelty free how about EVERY PLACE YOU GO YOU SUBJECT PEOPLE TO YOUR STORIES AND PLIGHTS OF IGNORANCE….. cruelty ???? Look in the mirror. All you will see is a cruel hypocrite. End of story enjoy your whatever it is and your translucent skin and say well yeah god meant us to have our vitamines from pills thats why we habe vast forests of pill trees and supliment bushes.
Hi! I was wondering if I should buy sweet relish or dill relish?
Both are fine. For this tartar sauce, I cut pickles in small cubes so I didn’t use a store-bought relish. But if you still have the option, I probably would pick the dill relish and maybe add less dill.
Thank you for getting back to me! This was delicious! Even my picky mother loved this and she is at times vegan and started to say there is no excuse for people to eat animals when there are options like these! Thank you thank you!
I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it! :) This means a lot to me, so thank you very much <3!!
Hi! Could I freeze these and cook them on another day or the same night?
Thank you!
You can prepare the batter in advance! The tofu is coated rather quickly and then fried. I don’t recommend battering the tofu filets and then freezing, as the batter will probably drip off the tofu. And I’m not sure how they will turn out if you freeze them after frying, the coating will probably be very soggy. The tartar sauce can be prepared in advance as well.
Great thank you! :)