It's Cinco de Mayo! Really, I take any excuse to take a new take on Un-Chicken and Waffles. Previous themes: Maryland (for Maryland Day), Cajun (for Mardis Gras), Indian, Middle Eastern, Jerk, Korean, Sriracha, and Traditional.
Sources: Me | It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken | Foodaciously
Serves: 2 | Time: 30 min
Ingredients
Mole Sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 ½ tbsp GF all-purpose flour
1 tbsp peanut butter
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
Waffles
1 cup GF all purpose flour
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 small ripe #avocado, peeled and pitted
1 tsp lemon juice
2/3 cup full-fat coconut milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Un-Chicken
1 cup coconut milk (I usually use the drinkable kind, but I already opened a can for the waffles)
1 tbsp lemon juice
5 pieces king oyster #mushrooms
Oil, for frying
1 cup GF all purpose flour
2 tbsp cornstarch or tapioca flour
1 tbsp Taco seasoning
Vegetable oil, for frying
Instructions
Here's the overall strategy:
Make mole sauce first, and just keep it warm on the stove.
Pre-heat the waffle iron.
Mix the wet ingredients for the un-chicken.
Make the waffles.
Make the un-chicken.
Plate waffles, top with fried un-chicken, and drizzle mole on top.
So, the mole sauce: Heat the oil in a skillet or large saucepan. When hot, sauté the onion and garlic until the onions turn translucent and begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the broth, and use your spoon to scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Now add all the cocoa, flour, peanut butter, all the spices and whisk well to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until it thickens and is very fragrant. Use an immersion blender directly in the pot, or add the sauce to a blender, and blend until completely smooth.
Now, preheat your waffle iron, and prep your wet ingredients for the un-chicken (the lemon juice needs time to make the coconut milk taste more like butter milk.
The Waffles: In a large bowl, mix sugar, baking soda, and salt. In a food processor, blend the avocado with lemon juice, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and cinnamon. Then, incorporate the avocado mix into the flour a bit at time using a hand mixer until you have a smooth, creamy and scoopable waffle batter. Ladle in enough avocado waffle batter to just cover the griddle surface and level it with a spatula. Close the machine lid and cook the avocado waffles for 12-15 minutes or according to the manufacturer's instructions.
The Un-Chicken: Clean your mushrooms. Place them in the vegan buttermilk and set it aside. Mix together flour, bread crumbs, starcj and spices. Heat your oil to about 350°F.
When your oil is hot, take a mushroom piece covered in vegan buttermilk and drop it into the dredging bowl. Make sure to pack the dredging mix into the mushroom. Then gently shake off any excess before dropping it carefully into the hot oil. Add more pieces without crowding your pan. Cook each piece until both sides are deep golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Remove from oil and gently shake off any excess oil.