This Vegan Chicken Katsu Sushi Sandwich, or onigirazu as it’s properly called, is the best lunchbox meal for both kids and adults. You can use this recipe as a base and put whatever you like in the “sandwich” but we went “chkn” katsu style and it was so good! This tonkatsu sauce is a healthier vegan take and does not disappoint.

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Vegan Chicken Katsu Sushi Sandwich

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Servings 6 "sandwiches"

Ingredients

Sushi Rice

2 cups of uncooked sushi rice
3 cups of water
¼ cup of rice vinegar
2 Tbsp of white sugar
1 tsp of sea salt

Tonkatsu Sauce

2 Tbsp of tomato paste
2 Tbsp of soy sauce
2 Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp of water
1/4 cup/60ml of maple syrup
1 tsp of ground ginger
1 tsp of garlic powder

Tofu Schnitzels

400 g of firm tofu (drained and pressed, ideally frozen and defrosted as it has a better texture)
1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of plant milk
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
Olive oil: to spray

To Wrap

6 nori sheets
1 avocado (sliced)
1 small cucumber (thinly sliced)

Instructions

To make the sushi rice, rince the rice under water until the water runs clean, then add to a pot with the water and bring to the boil. Once it reaches the boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and leave to cook for 12 minutes (do not keep lifting the lid!). After the 12 minutes, remove from the heat, and keep the lid on (you want the steam to stay in) for a further 10 minutes. Then remove the lid, stir through the rice vinegar, sugar and salt using a spatula, then scopp out into a large dish and cool quickly (we use a small desk fan and gently turn the rice for a couple of minutes).
While the rice is cooking make the tonkatsu sauce by adding all the ingredients to a large dish and stirring together to remove any lumps. Reserve half the sauce for dipping and then use the rest in the dish for marinating the tofu.
Cut the tofu in half, then turn on its side and cut each half in to 3 square slices. Place in the sauce and allow to marinate as long as possible (we went 10 mins but the longer the better, overnight would make this super flavourful).
Then crumb the tofu: placing in flour, then milk, then breadcrumbs. Repeat for all 6 slices.
Cook the tofu schnitzels in a pan on medium-high heat, spraying each side with olive oil. Cook for 3-4 mins each side.
To make the onigirazu, place a nori sheet onto your silicone baking sheet in a diamond shape, then press a heaped spoon of sushi rice in the middle to form a square. Layer with the schnitzel, avo, and cucumber and another layer of rice (be careful not to overfill as they won’t shut). Then fold together by bringing each corner in to the middle and using wet fingers to seal. Tightly wrap the silicone sheet over and fold to close. Leave for a couple minutes to seal, then when you’re ready to eat or load up your lunchbox, slice and enjoy!