This healthy vegan beer battered fish tacos recipe features hearts of palm and seaweed for authentic marine flavor. Lightly fried and healthier than normal fish tacos and served with Sweet chili glaze as a taco sauce! The best fish tacos ever!
This post is sponsored by Annie Chun. All opinions are my own.
I’m never one to shy away from tacos, and beer battered fish tacos rank pretty high among my favorite type. I’ve made Baja style fish tacos before but used a frozen vegan fish stick as the main component. But here I’ve discovered a way to make Beer Battered Vegan “Fish” Tacos from scratch that taste amazing and are made with plant-based healthy ingredients! Are you intrigued??
These vegan beer battered fish tacos are made with a base of hearts of palm! Its flaky texture when broken down mimics the texture of seafood beautifully. The mixture is coated in a classic beer batter and lightly fried, then assembled with shredded purple cabbage, fresh cilantro and avocado (obviously) inside of charred corn tortillas.
Instead of a fatty mayo-based fish tacos sauce I drizzled some Annie Chun’s Sweet Chili Sauce over these vegan tacos. Although this sauce is usually used for dipping in Asian style dishes such as egg rolls, I thought it added the perfect combination of sweet and spicy flavor to finish off these vegan fish tacos!
Why these vegan beer battered fish tacos are so good
Regular fish tacos are often made with cod. My secret to capturing this authentic fish flavor for these vegan fish tacos lies in finding an ingredient that recreates a briny seafood character.
A few sheets of roasted seaweed sheets added to the vegan fish mixture gives the vegan “fish” sticks the a straight-from-the-ocean cod-like quality that we’re after!
How to make beer battered vegan “fish”
To make the vegan “fish” sticks for these healthy beer-battered fish tacos, simply pulse the hearts of palm and roasted seaweed with panko bread crumbs, salt and pepper just until a flaky texture is achieved. Be careful not to break down the mixture too much- what we want is a texture that resembles flaky cod!
Next, form the mixture into eight to ten nuggets using your hands and squeeze out any excess moisture. Chill them for 30 minutes, which helps them to help them keep their shape as they are dipped in the beer batter.
To make the vegan beer batter:
- Make a vegan flax egg: combine the flax seed with water in a small bowl and let sit until thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Whisk together flour, garlic powder, paprika, and salt. Stir in the thickened flax egg and then slowly mix in the beer.
- Heat the oil in a small cast iron skillet so that it heats up as you gently coat the chilled “fish sticks” in the batter. Working in two to three batches, gently place 3-4 pieces in the hot oil and fry for about 2 minutes, flipping once.
- Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. I like to sprinkle it with a small pinch of sea salt at this point, too.
Top tips for making Vegan Fish Tacos
- To help the vegan “fish” pieces stay together while coating them in the beer batter, make sure to chill them for at least 30 minutes before coating.
- It also helps to squeeze out any excess mixture while forming them.
- If the beer batter is too thick it might be challenging to coat them without breaking. Should this be the case, simply mix in a bit more beer to thin it out.
More healthy vegan recipes
- Vegan Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
- Thai Curry Tacos
- Vegan Spaghetti Squash Alfredo
- Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars
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Beer Battered Vegan Fish Tacos with Sweet Chili Glaze
These tasty vegan fish tacos are made with hearts of palm and seaweed for authentic marine flavor, then beer battered, lightly fried and served with sweet chili glaze.
Ingredients
For the vegan "fish" sticks:
- 1 can hearts of palm drained
- ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon roasted nori or seaweed snacks crumbled
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of black pepper
For the vegan beer batter:
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seed
- 3 tablespoons water
- ½ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup light beer
- Vegetable oil for frying
For the tacos:
- 8 tortillas
- Purple cabbage thinly sliced
- Avocado pitted and thinly sliced
- Cilantro leaves
- Annie Chun’s Thai-Style Sweet Chili Sauce
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- Add hearts of palm, panko, seaweed, salt, and pepper to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times until ingredients are combined. The mixture should be a chunky texture. Shape the mixture into 8 “fish sticks” and squeeze out any excess liquid. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let chill for 30 minutes.
- To make the batter, combine the flax seed with water in a small bowl and let sit until thickened, about 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, garlic powder, paprika, and salt. Stir in the thickened flax egg and slowly mix in the beer.
- Heat enough oil to cover 1 inch of a small cast iron skillet. Once the oil is hot, coat the “fish sticks” in the batter. Working in batches, gently place 3-4 pieces in hot oil and fry for about 2 minutes, flipping once.
- Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.
- Warm tortillas. Assemble tacos with vegan fish sticks, avocado, cabbage, and cilantro. Drizzle with sweet chili sauce and serve with lime wedges.
Recipe Notes
- To help the “fish” pieces stay together while coating them in the beer batter, make sure to chill them for at least 30 minutes before coating.
- It also helps to squeeze out any excess mixture while forming them.
- If the beer batter is too thick it might be challenging to coat them without breaking. If this is the case, simply mix in a bit more beer to thin it out.
These look so delicious and I love the addition of nori to create that fish flavor!
Can you air fry then or bake them?