Vegan Seitan McChicken Sandwich (Copycat Recipe!)
by Greg Bellefontaine
on Mar 22, 2023 (updated Dec 10, 2025)
This seitan McChicken sandwich recipe gives you all the crispy, savoury goodness of classic, with minimal effort. The perfectly seasoned seitan patty is golden and crunchy thanks to the simple flour dredge and a quick shallow fry. It’s a fast, comforting meal that hits the spot when you’re craving something indulgent. Just add vegan mayonnaise and lettuce, or enjoy as is!
When I first set out to recreate one of my favourites, I wanted something that had a perfect balance of flavour, texture, and hit the notes of nostalgia all the same. It’s an irresistible fast-food favourite, and here’s how I made it happen:
- After testing the seitan repeatedly on recipes like this or this vegan KFC famous bowl, I found the best way to get that signature “chicken” texture was using vital wheat gluten as the base, with chickpea flour. This combination keeps the patties tender with just the right amount of chew.
- Season your seitan properly! My testing helped me perfect the blend of paprika, garlic powder and onion powder to add the depth and fast-food feel. Just enough to enhance the seitan without overpowering.
- A light batter is all I needed. Flour, cornstarch and a bit of seasoning is all you need if you ask me! A quick fry in hot oil seals in the crispy crust, for a satisfying bite.
An extra crispy bite
For an even crispier restaurant quality, try double dipping into the batter before frying. After your first coat, let it sit a minute and then repeat. This technique will give you an extra thick golden crunch.
Fast foodies can meal prep too
If you’re like me and want to make Vegan McDonald’s McChicken Sandwiches as a quick and easy meal option throughout the week, meal prepping is a great solution. Do it like I did:
- double batch the seitan patties! I’ve love making as many of these as I can, just remember to flatten them before cooking more than you think. I find they just about double in size.
- I toast a few soft buns, lather a bit of butter on them and let them cool down.
- I love wrapping each sandwich in parchment paper or aluminum foil and store in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.
- When ready to eat, I simply heat up the sandwich in the microwave or oven for a few minutes until it’s warm and crispy.
Make it your own
This fast food sandwich is already a crowd pleaser. It literally pleases thousands all over the world every day. But the real benefit of creating your own at home is all the possible tweaks you can make! I normally leave it at the vegan mayo and lettuce, but there are plenty of ways to customize it based on your mood or what you have one hand.
Looking for more balance? I love adding a bit of avocado from time to time. It pairs so well with a deep fried patty. Crispy onion rings do the trick as well. A quick trick I swear by and stumbled upon in my testing is to sprinkle In a bit of garlic powder to your butter before gently buttering the buns. Garlic does wonders in just about any dish if you ask me!
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Vegan Seitan McChicken Sandwich Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 burgers
- Category: Vegan Copycat Recipes
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This seitan McChicken sandwich recipe gives you all the crispy, savoury goodness of classic, with minimal effort. The perfectly seasoned seitan patty is golden and crunchy thanks to the simple flour dredge and a quick shallow fry. It’s a fast, comforting meal that hits the spot when you’re craving something indulgent. Just add vegan mayonnaise and lettuce, or enjoy as is!
Ingredients
For the sandwich:
- 6 fresh hamburger buns (or make your own!)
- 1 cup finely chopped lettuce
- 6 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
- OPTIONAL – 6 slices vegan American cheddar slices (I used Violife)
SEITAN PATTIES:
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/2 cup plain shredded jackfruit
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 4 cups vegan chicken broth or vegetable broth, divided
BREADING:
- 1/2 cup all-purpose or whole wheat flour
- 1 cup breadcrumbs or crushed cornflakes
- 1 tbsp paprika, garlic powder, oregano, salt & pepper to taste
- oil for frying
Instructions
Make the Fried Chicken:
- Whisk together seitan dry ingredients and jackfruit until combined. Add 1 cup of broth and stir until it forms a dough ball. Knead a few times with your hands until dough has no dry spots.
- Add rest of broth to instant pot. Rip into 6 equal chunks of seitan and flatten into a “chicken breast” shape (it’s okay if they look small as they expand when cooked quite a bit!).
- Add to Instant Pot or large deep pot with the remaining 3 cups of broth. Cook on “manual” for 15 minutes. Once it is done, quick release steam. *** if you don’t have an Instant Pot, simmer the seitan patties for 35-45 minutes until firm.
- Meanwhile, whisk together breading ingredients.
- Remove seitan from pot and dip in breading mixture until thoroughly coated.
- Heat a large frying pan with a good amount of oil. When hot, add seitan and fry a few minutes per side until crispy and golden brown. Remove from pan and plate into a paper towel-lined bowl to remove excess grease. Repeat with remaining pieces. *** for lower calorie option, air fry with spray oil until crispy on the edges.
- Assemble the sandwich with 1 tbsp of vegan mayonnaise, fresh buns, and lettuce. Enjoy!
I’m pretty extreme with seasonings, so I added extra spices and herbs, but the recipe is killer. I added Cajun 1 Tab.., Celery Seed 1 tsp., Once cooked, I sprinkled the patties with garlic, onion, more cajun, and a little cornmeal. I did spray with oil and air-fried them. The kicker is. . . my husband loves chicken, and he loved these.
so glad you loved it!! I’m obsessed with cajun lately, and big fan of spices so happy to hear it turned out well! proud of your husband for trying too!
Can’t wait to try this! Will leave a review when I have tried it but if it’s anything like Livs quick seitan bites I’m sure it will be super tasty!! 😋