New Orleans Style Vegan Po’ Boy Sandwich
Ever have a craving for something that you know you shouldn’t be eat? I had that for the past few days reflecting on all the fun-filled nights I spent carousing around the French Quarter, in night clubs all over the city, and at parties on the Xavier, Dillard, UNO, and Tulane campuses back when I was in college. I know it was eons ago, but so?? I’m still young in my mind, okay?
Anyway, I was sitting around daydreaming about food. Most people daydream about events or people, but I daydream about food and when I ate it, where I ate it, and how I felt eating it. For real, I do that a lot. But on this particular day I couldn’t get out of my head the fact that I really missed the Gulf Coast beaches, it’s seafood, and the many local establishments I used to frequent in Corpus, Houston, Galveston, Port Arthur and Brownsville to get it.
Sigh.
In particular, I was fantasizing about delicious foot long po’ boy sandwiches I used to get at the Atchalafaya Cafe. Man that place had some great food. Their po’ boys were piled high with cornmeal crusted fried oysters or shrimp, perfectly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
But that was awhile ago… several decades ago to be precise. The idea of eating sea roaches now is not at all attractive, however, that doesn’t mean I don’t miss the concept of eating them… know what I mean? (Understandably this post is probably confusing a lot of people!)
Moving on.
Determined to make my daydreams come true for lunch, I decided to try my hand at making a vegan version of a good Cajun po’ boy sandwich; the end result was a wild success.
I used some seafoody tasting mushrooms (oyster mushrooms), cornmeal, a flax egg/soy milk wash, and seasonings to create a delicious oyster mushroom po’ boy sandwich, complete with a spicy remoulade sauce.
OMG! Talking about good! I scarfed that puppy down so fast it was ridiculous.
This is not a super quick recipe to make (it was kind of involved process really because of all the steps), plus you MUST make the remoulade to achieve the authentic look and taste. But in the end it was totally worth every second of hard labor.
All the remoulade ingredients in my stick blender cup, preparing for them to be blended to deliciousness. Look at all that cayenne pepper baby!
The remoulade after blending. A perfect blend of spiciness, sweetness, and tartness with a deep rich flavor.
After removing the crisped oyster mushrooms from the oven
Yum! Give it a try and let me know what you think.
- 1 cup vegan mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons barbecue sauce
- 2 Tablespoons whole grain or Creole mustard
- 2 Tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon extra hot prepared horseradish
- 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 teaspoons vegan Worchestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning salt (Tony Chachere's, Slap Ya Mama or Moe's Magic Dust preferred)
- 8 oz. oyster mushrooms - stems removed and washed well
- ½ cup soy milk
- 2 Tablespoon ground flax seeds
- 6 Tablespoons water
- ⅔ cup cornmeal
- 2 Tablespoons chili powder
- ½ teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 2 Tablespoons cooking oil or spray oil
- 2 french rolls, sliced ¾ of the way through
- 1 tomato, sliced
- 3 cups shredded lettuce
- 1 large dill pickle, cut into four thin slices (optional)
- Earlier in the day or the night before, prepare your remoulade by blending ingredients together about 60 seconds until smooth. A stick blender works well for this step. Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours.
- Prepare flax eggs by mixing ground flax seeds with water in cup or small bowl. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to thicken before using.
- Set oven temperature to 425 degrees. Using a non-stick baking sheet, give it a light spray with cooking oil. For regular baking sheet spread 1-2 teaspoons of cooking oil over it to coat thoroughly.
- Mix the cornmeal, chili powder, and Cajun seasoning together in an edged plate or shallow bowl.
- Combine soy milk and the flax seed mixture and stir well.
- Separate mushrooms, cutting large leaves into two or more pieces; leave small ones whole. Dip each mushroom into the soy milk/flax egg mixture, then press it into the cornmeal mixture. Flip and press other side. Remove from cornmeal and lay on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake mushrooms for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown and a bit crispy. During last minute of two of cooking, put mushrooms on low rack and add your rolls to the top rack. Set oven to BROIL and toast the rolls lightly.
- Remove mushrooms and set aside. Remove rolls and cover top and bottom with remoulade sauce.
- Stuff each roll with half the mushrooms, shredded lettuce, tomato, and two slices of dill pickle if desired. Press down gently to compress sandwich, then serve.
For more great recipes, check out WHY VEGAN IS THE NEW BLACK: More than 100 Meat and Dairy Free Meal Ideas Your Whole Family Will Love.
Category: Light Meals
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My dear, you are brilliant! I am a long time vegetarian and fairly recent convert to veganism. I never, ever miss meat but as a Southerner, sometimes I just crave something crunchy, battered, fried and swimming in hot sauce! I’ve just discovered your site and I could almost weep with happiness!
I finally decided to try this recipe and all I can say is “What have I’ve been waiting for”. The New Orleans Style Vegan Po’ Boy Sandwich was absolutely delicious, my whole family enjoyed it. Any time they want seconds and comment on one of my vegan meals I know it’s a winner. Although I didn’t use the bread it didn’t make a difference, this is a recipe that will be made plenty of times in my kitchen. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe and keep sharing so the I can keep cooking…
This is delicious! The oyster mushrooms make a great crunchy meaty-seafoody sandwich filling. The remoulade is my favorite part though. I make it all the time! I start by using a recipe for mayo using aquafaba, which yields just about 1C, and then I can throw in all of the other ingredients (personally I leave out the horseradish and add some smoked paprika) into the blender once that’s ready. I put it on burgers and sandwiches and use it as a dipping sauce (fries, anything battered and baked/fried)! Thank you for this recipe!