Introducing vegan roast "pork"! I'm so excited to share this recipe!
It is super meaty, with layers of fat that melt-in-your-mouth, and a thin crispy crust, you guys definitely have to try this one!
Once again, this is a dish that I discovered in Vietnam, I am blown away by how creative Vietnamese cuisine can be when it comes to making vegetarian dishes. Called "Heo quay chay" there, "heo quay" meaning pork belly and "chay" vegetarian, it consists of two layers of vegan meat and coconut "fat" topped with a crust that is made of bread! Let's take a look at how to make it!
It starts with the "meat" part that consists of my Vegan Chick'n that is marinated in soy sauce, five-spice powder, pepper, maple syrup, and some fermented tofu (also called chao or fermented bean curd). If you don't have or don't want to make vegan chick'n, feel free to use store-bought one, or large textured soy protein (usually sold dried, these need to be rehydrated for about one hour).
While I haven't tried, I think this should work with tempeh slices too. I would not recommend tofu though as I doubt the coconut fat would stick to it.
Next, we prepare the "crust". Slice a piece of bread in half lengthwise and remove as much bread crumbs as possible, leaving a thin crust. While it is usually made with Bánh mì bread, it works great with regular bread too!
Then we have the coconut "fat" layer that not only holds everything together but also brings a meaty, fatty texture. It consists of coconut milk thickened with rice flour and tapioca starch.
You start by spreading a thick layer of coconut fat on one halve of bread, then top with a layer of vegan chick'n, and repeat once to get two layers. Quick tip: you want to remove excess marinade from the vegan meat before placing on the coconut layer otherwise it will not stick to it.
The next step is to wrap very tightly in aluminum and steam for about 30 minutes. Feel free to use a regular pressure cooker or an Instant Pot, both work.
One extra optional step is to brush the bread side with a mix of annatto oil and soy sauce to give it a more orange color. This is just for the look and won't affect the flavor or texture.
Finally, you want to fry it on the bread side until golden brown and crispy. Cut into thick squares and it's ready to eat! Serve with noodles or rice, green veggies, and your favorite dipping sauce!
Depending on which fake meat you use, the texture will be slightly different. As an example, I used soy protein slices in the photo below, resulting in a different look and a chewier texture.
This vegan meat alternative is so good! You will be surprised by how meaty it tastes, the crust adds a nice crunch (or should I say crisp!), and the fat layer brings richness.
Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!
Vegan "Roast Pork"
Ingredients
- 7 ounces 200g vegan chick'n*(or 8 pieces of "vegan pork", soaked for at least 1 hour)
- 2 cubes of fermented tofu
- 1 tablespoon 15ml soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon 5ml maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon five spice
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 8- inch long about 20cm piece of bread*
- optional: 1 teaspoon annatto oil mixed with 1 tablespoon soy sauce
Coconut "Fat"
- 9 tablespoon white rice flour
- 4 tablespoon tapioca starch
- ½ cup + ⅓ cup 200ml coconut milk
- ½ cup 118ml water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon mushroom seasoning optional
Instructions
- Start by slicing the vegan chick'n into about ⅓-inch thick slices. The width should have the same width as your piece of bread. If using "vegan pork tvp", let it soak in water for 1 hour, drain and squeeze it to remove excess moisture. Place the slices on a large plate.
- In a small bowl, mash the fermented tofu using a fork. Add the soy sauce, maple syrup, five spice, and black pepper, and mix until well combined.
- Brush the vegan chick'n slices with the marinade on each side. Let it marinate for at least 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, slice the piece of bread in half, lengthwise. Remove as much bread crumbs as you can, leaving two thin crusts. Discard the breadcrumbs and set the bread crusts aside.
- To a medium saucepan, add the white rice flour, tapioca starch, coconut milk, water, salt, and mushroom seasoning if using. Whisk until the flours are dissolved.
- Heat over medium heat and stir constantly using a wooden spoon until it thickens. At first, it will look messy and grainy, but after some time it will form a smooth sticky paste. Remove from heat once thick and smooth.
- Spread half of the coconut paste on each piece of bread crust into an even layer.
- Using a kitchen paper towel, remove the excess marinade from the chick'n slices (if your slices are too wet the coconut fat won't stick to it). Place one slice, or two if needed, of chick'n on top of the coconut fat layers. See photo for more detail. Slightly press it down.
- Spread the remaining coconut cream evenly on top of the chick'n. Finally, place another layer of chick'n on top of the second coconut fat layer.
- Tightly wrap the two loaves separately in two layers of aluminum foil. Steam for 30 minutes in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot.
- After 30 minutes, release the pressure and remove the loaves from the pressure cooker. Let it cool completely.
- Optional: to add an orange color to the crust, brush the bread side with the mix of annatto oil and soy sauce.
- Heat two tablespoons of oil in a large non-stick skillet. Once hot, fry each loaf on the bread side for about 1 minute, or until crispy. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper towel to remove excess oil.
- You can now cut it into thick squares and serve with your favorite dipping sauce, and rice or noodles on the side! This vegan "pork" can also be sautéed, fried, or baked!
- If the loaf is too soft to be cut, refrigerate overnight. The coconut layer will slightly harden and it will be easier to cut.
- Vegan "pork" will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
Whaaaat?!?! This looks crazy good! Really have to try this.
Thanks a lot for sharing!
Best from Germany!
Arne
You're welcome! Let me know if you try it!
That is amazing - you are so unbelievably clever
We are in Vietnam at present loving the vegan options. Have seen this in some of the chay restaurants and cant believe the resemblance to pork. Going to give it a try now i know whats in it, even though mock meats are not my particular favourite. Curiosity will get the better of me on this occasion.
Awesome! Hope you will like it 🙂
I 'm really a fan of your cooking, your creativity, how you present your recipes so first of all thank you! - but what I don't understand is how you can still use aluminium? Studies already years ago proved that it's really poisoning. specially when you heat it. Only touching food the aluminum enters right into the food - aluminum is a heavy metal that goes directly to your brain because the body cam't expulse it, so it get 'stored' in the brain - causing all the diseases of Alzheimer etc. there are a lot of studies and scientific proves. it is so easy to reemplace it. as a vegan in general but as a vegan cook I think we all should think also about health and ambiental protection.aluminum is one of the of the unhealthiest industries in the world and not only poisoned us also make a big damage to our planet... I hope that I don't bother you saying this, maybe it could also be an inspiration. Hope so!
Thanks for the info Adrienne, will definitely learn more about this! 🙂
It turned into a three day project but it was well worth it. Thank you!!!!
Glad you liked this recipe Kelley!
Do you need a pressure cooker? How long would it take to steam it in a conventional steamer?
You do not need a pressure cooker, I also tried in a normal steamer and it worked well. I would recommend increasing cooking time by about 10 minutes.
Wow looks amazing, looking forward to try it!! Do you think you could prepare it in advance and freeze it? If so, how would you do to thaw it and serve it after freezing?
I have never tried freezing so I cannot say for sure but I guess it should freeze well. I would thaw in the fridge the night before and then pan-fry again.
That looks disgusting. Just eat a pig if you want pork.
Glad you enjoy this recipe!...
Looks great - but I'm a bit confused as to what you really do with it afterwards? I would think you can't cook it really (like in a stir-fry) as the "fat" would melt?
Do you just eat it at room temp?
The fat doesn't melt, it stays chewy, so you can fry it and then coat with a sauce, or brush with marinade and bake in the oven.
I cooked this today and it is not only delicious but it is amazingly tasty. Thank you for another winning recipe.
Thanks Alexandra! 🙂
Like everyone else said, this is super creative! I'm Vietnamese-Canadian and I enjoy seeing your vegan spin on dishes I grew up loving. My mom use to cook Thit Kho (Braised Caramelized Pork and Eggs) all the time and it was a favourite of ours. It's usually never on restaurant menus, definitely a home comfort food and the best thing on a bed of fluffy white rice. I'm really curious how these chunks would stew in a recipe like that. Thanks for sharing this recipe! 🙂
Thanks Phuong!
I have a recipe for braised "roast pork" here, I found out you need to add the "pork" at the last time if you want them to keep their shape and hold together. So if you stew this it might fall apart a bit.
Hi, Thomas thank you for this recipe, I cant wait to try it. It looks amazing! I was wondering would it be possible to substitute stinky tofu with just plain tofu? and would I be able to deep dry this or would it melt the "fat" part?
Hi Max,
I'm afraid it won't work as fermented tofu is a lot softer and creamier than plain tofu. Simply omit if you want.
Yes, you can deep fry this, it becomes crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The fat doesn't melt.
What if u can’t get hold of fermented tofu is there a different alternative to use?
You can simply omit.
Looks amazing. How would you eat this or what kind of dish would you incorporate into?
I have a recipe for Braised vegan pork here. You can also cut them in smaller pieces and use in spring rolls, or sandwiches.
Looking forward to making this today! I can't seem to find my rice flour though. Do you think I could substitute regular flour and get somewhat the same results?
I'm afraid regular flour will give you a different result, maybe more doughy.
This is SUCH a fun recipe. Stumbled across it while trying to see what the vegan food community has as a substitute for pork fat hahahhah. I love how creative this is and they look just like little nuggets of pork belly!
Thanks Kaitlin 🙂 It's super fun to make and delicious fried and cooked in a sauce!
Trying to make this recipe but what do you mean by two "cubes" of tofu?
Cubes of fermented tofu, also called bean curd. It is sold in jars in Asian stores. If you can't find it, simply omit it.