Name: BBQ-Flavored Vegan Chick’n Melt Baguettes
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Plant-based
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil; 1 large or 2 medium onions, quartered and thinly sliced; 8 to 10 ounces plant-based chicken, cut into narrow strips; ½ cup barbecue sauce, bottled or homemade (see link in Notes), or more to taste; 1 whole-grain baguette or Italian bread loaf, preferably not too narrow; ½ to 1 cup vegan mozzarella-style cheese shreds; 1 jalapeño pepper, sliced; ¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro or parsley leaves; 1 scallion, green part only, thinly sliced

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Here’s an easy big sandwich made with plant protein, barbecue sauce, fresh bread, and melted vegan cheese. BBQ-flavored vegan chick’n melt baguettes could just become a weeknight favorite!

This recipe works well with any of the various forms of plant-based chicken—breaded nuggets, scallopine, or strip-style. Or, if you want to go more traditional vegan, the recipe gives you the option of using baked tofu or tempeh.

There are lots of brands of plant-based chicken alternative, with more coming onto the marketplace all the time. Look for this type of product in the natural food freezer section of supermarkets, natural foods stores, and online sources. For a rundown of some popular brands, see 12 Plant-Based Chicken Alternatives to Look for on Your Next Shopping Trip.

This recipe is from Plant-Powered Protein

What to serve with vegan chick’n melt baguettes

Make this a soup-and-sandwich meal with Super-Quick Butternut Soup with Spinach & Peas; or a soup-and-salad meal with Kale & Cucumber Salad with Avocado-Tahini Dressing.

This sandwich goes with lots of simple vegetable side dishes and salads; serve with your favorite, and vary each time.

Excerpted from Plant-Powered Protein: 125 Recipes for Using Today’s Amazing Meat Alternatives by Nava Atlas. Copyright © 2020 by Nava Atlas. Reprinted with permission of Grand Central Publishing. All rights reserved.

Yield: 4

BBQ-Flavored Vegan Chick’n Melt Baguettes

Here’s an easy big sandwich to make with plant protein, a flavorful barbecue sauce, fresh bread, and melted vegan cheese.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 large or 2 medium onions, quartered and thinly sliced
8 to 10 ounces plant-based chicken, cut into narrow strips
½ cup barbecue sauce, bottled or homemade (see link in Notes), or more to taste
1 whole-grain baguette or Italian bread loaf, preferably not too narrow
½ to 1 cup vegan mozzarella-style cheese shreds

For topping (choose any or all)

1 jalapeño pepper, sliced
¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro or parsley leaves
1 scallion, green part only, thinly sliced

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Heat the oil in a medium skillet. Add the onions and sauté over medium heat until soft and starting to turn golden, about 8 minutes.
Add the plant protein and continue to sauté until the onions are touched with brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the barbecue sauce and continue to cook for 5 minutes longer, or until the sauce envelops the protein and onions nicely. Stir in a little more sauce if desired.
Cut the baguette in half horizontally, then cut each section in half lengthwise. Scoop some of the bread from each of the quarters to create hollows (reserve the extra bread for another use, such as making bread crumbs).
Distribute the protein mixture among the four hollowed-out baguette sections. How much you’ll use depends on the size of the bread and how much you’ve hollowed out. If you wind up with a little excess protein, it’s tasty to eat on its own or in a salad.
Top the protein mixture with the cheese shreds, generously or lightly as you prefer. If you choose jalapeño as a topping, scatter it here and there over the cheese. If you choose scallions and/or cilantro leaves, wait until the baguettes are out of the oven to scatter them over the cheese.
Bake on the prepared baking sheet for 5 to 8 minutes, or until the cheese is nicely melted. Each section of the baguette constitutes one serving, but if they’re part of a larger meal, you can cut each section in half again to create more servings.