This vegan tuna is simply amazing. It’s so easy to make and tastes remarkably close to actual tuna, no really it does. It’s wonderful on sandwiches for a vegan tuna salad sandwich!
So what is this craziness? Vegan tuna? What’s next? Hahaa, I don’t know, I’m just getting started with the vegan meat substitutes.
And let’s just say this vegan tuna is not only completely delicious it also tastes like real tuna. The taste is spot on. But the texture? Well, the texture isn’t very tuna-like at all. But the taste is so good, you won’t mind.
The base of this recipe is mashed chickpeas and I think you can already guess that mashed chickpeas will not equal the texture of real tuna in any universe.
However, when you add all kinds of deliciousness to your mashed chickpeas, like vegan mayo (of course), finely chopped nori, lemon juice, chopped capers, garlic powder, nutritional yeast, dijon mustard, tamari and white vinegar, well it tastes a LOT like tuna salad.
And spread thickly on an open sandwich this makes a really tasty and filling meal.
How To Make Vegan Tuna
- It’s super easy and fast! Drain a can of chickpeas and add them to a container or mixing bowl.
- Mash the chickpeas with a fork and then add in vegan mayonnaise, finely chopped nori, finely chopped red onion, lemon juice, finely chopped capers, garlic powder, nutritional yeast, tamari, dijon mustard, white vinegar and salt and pepper.
- Mix in and you’re ready to serve!
Vegan Tuna Ingredients:
- Canned Chickpeas: These form the base of our recipe and create the texture so we can then add all our flavorings.
- Nori Sheets: A chopped up sheet of nori adds some ‘fishy’ flavor (in a good way).
- Vegan Mayonnaise: What is a vegan tuna salad without mayonnaise? Use any vegan mayo that you like. Some good brands are Hellmans and Just Mayo. Or you can even make your own vegan mayo!
- Red Onion: Chopped red onion provides crunchy texture and plenty of flavor. A regular white or brown onion will also work fine, but I love the flavor of a red onion for this recipe.
- Lemon Juice: Provides the tang!
- Capers: Chopped capers also provide some wonderful ‘fishy’ flavor (again, in a good way!).
- Garlic Powder: Adds depth of flavor.
- Nutritional Yeast Flakes: This has so many uses, it can create cheesy flavor or it can create eggy flavor or, in this case, it can add to the fishy flavor. No really, it’s amazing stuff! Nutritional yeast flakes might as well be called magic flakes when it comes to vegan recipes.
- Tamari: We used tamari for this recipe but you could also use soy sauce if that is what you have on hand.
- Dijon Mustard: Like nutritional yeast, this can be quite a magic ingredient creating amazing flavor in vegan recipes.
- White Vinegar: This must be white vinegar, it can’t be subbed for apple cider vinegar (okay, it can, in a pinch). White vinegar adds the perfect tang to this and strikes just the right note.
- Salt and Pepper: Because, of course. Enough said.
How To Serve Vegan Tuna
This is really delicious served on slices of bread with lettuce and sliced tomato and a generous amount of vegan tuna on top! It’s also divine served on crackers.
Vegan Tuna Salad
If you want to add more ingredients to make it more of a ‘salad’ then chopped up celery and cucumber is the way forward!
Storing and Freezing
Leftovers keep very well in a covered container in the fridge for 2-3 days. Just give it a good stir again before serving in case any slight separation has occurred (it’s okay if this happens).
You can also freeze some if you like. Just freeze in a freezer safe container and when you want to use it again, thaw it in the fridge.
More Delicious Chickpea Recipes!
- Vegan Chickpea Burgers
- Vegan Chickpea Salad
- Vegan Chickpea Curry
- Vegan Omelette (made with Chickpea Flour)
- Vegan Meatloaf
- Vegan Meatballs
Vegan Tuna
Ingredients
- 15 ounce Can Chickpeas Drained, or 1 and ½ cups cooked chickpeas
- ¼ cup Vegan Mayonnaise (60g)
- 1 Nori Sheet Finely Chopped
- ¼ cup Red Onion Finely Chopped (about half a small red onion)
- 1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
- 10 Capers Finely Chopped
- ½ tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 1 Tbsp Tamari or Soy Sauce
- ½ Tbsp Dijon Mustard
- ½ tsp White Vinegar
- Sprinkle Sea Salt
- Sprinkle Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- Add the chickpeas to a mixing bowl and mash them with a fork.
- Add in vegan mayonnaise, finely chopped nori, finely chopped red onion, lemon juice, finely chopped capers, garlic powder, nutritional yeast, tamari, dijon mustard, white vinegar and salt and pepper.
- Taste test and add more salt and pepper if needed.
- Mix in and you're ready to serve!
Video
Notes
- We used one 15-ounce (425g) can of chickpeas, drained. If you would prefer to use cooked chickpeas (not canned) then the amount to use is 1 and ½ cups.
- Leftovers keep very well in the fridge for 2-3 days.
- This is divine served on open faced sandwiches with lettuce and sliced tomato and makes enough to top 4 slices of bread.
Just made this last night, served on a whole grain bread, and it turned out really good. I tried making the vegan mayo, which was not such a success (it didn’t really emulsify). Due to time constraints and not wanting to waste anything, I used it in the recipe all the same. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly and will do so again in the future — no tweaks needed! Though I do hope for better luck with my next batch of vegan mayo 😉
Hi Beth, so glad you liked the tuna! And also hope you’ll have better results from the mayo next time, we have lots of troubleshooting tips in that post. 🙂
I made it yesterday. I didn’t have any capers and didn’t want to wait to go shopping. I had a lot of seaweed to put in. An extra half sheet. Soooo delish! Hummus used to be my go-to but now I’ve found a new one! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Great! So happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
I just made this recipe and it was so delicious. this will now be a staple in my house. Awesome flavour
Thanks Krista!
Delicious! I was in the mood for a late night sandwich and this nailed it. Very quick to make. I pulsed it all in the food processor. All in all this took MAYBE ten minutes to make. I didn’t have any vegan mayo on hand so I just tossed in some soft tofu with a dash of black salt for that eggy flavor. Quick perfection.
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it Adrienne!
This is so simple and delicious. Thank you!!!
You’re so welcome!
How about it…WoW. A vegan tuna sandwich recipe:) Tuna sandwich was a staple. Eating in our house is different now, It’s been a long time having a really great tuna sammy. A positive review is in order…
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you
Awesome, thanks Jamie!
This recipe is the best one I have found. It nails it and maybe even surpasses real tuna mayo.
Thank you so much Tom!
This is one of the best things I’ve made on my journey as a new vegan. It’s definitely better than tuna salad and I’m sure I’ll be making it all the time. Thank you!
Delicious. I really enjoyed it. The seaweed gives it that fish flavor. And so easy to prepare. Definitely going to make this again.