Vegan tuna, the perfect vegan substitute for regular tuna. It’s fishy, healthy, and low in fat, and to make it you only need 5 ingredients and 10 minutes!
Sometimes I find it hard to find homemade plant-based fish recipes. If I try to look for one at the supermarket, it usually contains lots of additives and preservatives, and that’s not really healthy. That’s why I decided to try this vegan tuna recipe, and it’s delicious!
Although this recipe doesn’t really have a tuna texture, it’s actually very tasty and it really resembles the tuna flavor. The key to this dish is the nori flakes, which help give it its characteristic fishy touch.
Besides, you can eat this vegan tuna as a dip or use it to make sandwiches, salads, or any recipe that calls for real tuna. It also contains good quality vegan protein because it’s made with chickpeas.
Vegan tuna, healthy, low in fat, and wonderfully good. It’s a super simple recipe that requires 5 simple ingredients and just 10 minutes. I hope you like it!
How to make vegan tuna – Step by step
- Blend the nori sheet in a powerful blender until you get nori flakes (photo 1). Set aside.
- Add the chickpeas to a bowl and mash them with a fork (photo 2).
- Incorporate the remaining ingredients (photo 3), stir, and mash again until well combined (photo 4).
- Serve immediately.
Pro tips
- The nori sheet isn’t optional, as we need it to get a fishy flavor. You could maybe use another kind of seaweed, but I haven’t tried it myself.
- You can replace the tahini with 1-2 tablespoons of oil (I’d use extra virgin olive oil).
- Feel free to use lime juice instead of lemon juice.
- If you don’t like chickpeas, this recipe will also work with other legumes like beans.
What is vegan tuna?
Vegan tuna is a vegan meat substitute for tuna. Of course, it doesn’t contain any real tuna at all, and although the texture of this recipe is not super close to regular tuna, it does have a similar flavor and it’s actually delicious.
Besides, it is low in fat and very healthy and nutritious, as well as high in protein because it’s prepared with chickpeas.
How long will this vegan tuna keep?
If you have any leftovers, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge and they will keep for 4-5 days, and sometimes even for a week. If it smells and tastes good, you can eat it.
How to serve vegan tuna
There are a lot of dishes you can prepare with this vegan tuna. I love to add it to salads like tomato avocado salad or vegan potato salad, although I also enjoy it in a vegan tuna sandwich.
Another option is to mix it with some vegan mayo and use it as a topping for your baked or jacket potatoes.
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Did you make this vegan tuna recipe?
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Vegan Tuna
- Prep: 10 mins
- Total: 10 mins
- 4 1x
- How to
- American
- Vegan
Servings 4 1x
Vegan tuna, the perfect vegan substitute for regular tuna. It’s fishy, healthy, and low in fat, and to make it you only need 5 ingredients and 10 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 nori sheet
- 2 and 1/2 cups canned or cooked chickpeas (400 g), drained and rinsed
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Blend the nori sheet in a powerful blender until you get nori flakes. You can also finely chop the nori sheet with a knife. Set aside.
- Add the chickpeas to a bowl and mash them with a fork.
- Incorporate the remaining ingredients, stir, and mash again until well combined. If you want to save some time, use a food processor instead, but don’t over-blend.
- Serve it with dishes like tomato avocado salad, vegan potato salad, vegan tuna sandwich, or mix it with some vegan mayo and use it as a topping for your baked or jacket potatoes.
- Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. If it smells and tastes good, it could also last for up to a week.
Notes
- The nori sheet isn’t optional, as we need it to get a fishy flavor. You could maybe use another kind of seaweed, but I haven’t tried it myself.
- You can replace the tahini with 1-2 tablespoons of oil (I’d use extra virgin olive oil).
- Feel free to use lime juice instead of lemon juice.
- If you don’t like chickpeas, this recipe will also work with other legumes like beans.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 of the recipe
- Calories: 168
- Sugar: 0.6 g
- Sodium: 341 mg
- Fat: 6.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 18.2 g
- Fiber: 5.1 g
- Protein: 8.8 g
Update Notes: This post was originally published in May of 2018, but was republished with new photos, step by step instructions, and tips in October of 2020.
This vegan tuna is so easy to make and really delicious! I add grated carrots!
Hi Lee! So glad you liked it 🙂
Looks like a good recipe; I’ll try it. I’ve been making this recipe with kelp powder, which also imparts a fishy taste.
Hope you enjoy the recipe, Dave 🙂 Have a nice day!