How to Make a Realistic Vegan Lobster Roll

Have a craving for seafood!? MAKE THIS! This vegan lobster roll tastes and feels incredibly realistic! I marinate chunks of hearts of palm in my special seafood marinade, then I saute them in vegan butter and stuff them inside a toasted hoagie roll with butter lettuce. This sandwich is easy and quick to make and FULL of flavor. I am confident even a non-vegan would enjoy this vegan lobster roll!

What is the vegan lobster made of?

I make my vegan lobster with hearts of palm! What are hearts of palm, you ask? Hearts of palm are the white inner core pieces from palm trees, and they are canned with water or brine. They are creamy yet slightly crunchy, making them a super versatile ingredient. Their flavor is very similar to artichokes. Vegans often use hearts of palm to replace seafood like lobster or calamari because it has a pretty relatable texture, yet it’s relatively neutral in flavor.

Hearts of palm + my special seafood marinade = vegan lobster!

Seriously! I have been using my seafood marinade recipe for years to replicate the flavor of seafood. First, I grind sheets of nori into a fine powder. I mix the powder with rice vinegar, lemon juice, water, white miso paste, and old bay seasoning. I SWEAR by this combination of ingredients. It’s fishy, tangy, and salty, with a touch of umami.

This vegan lobster roll is super easy to make!

After I make the seafood marinade, I toss it with chunks of hearts of palm. I let this marinate for at least two hours. Then, I cook the mixture in vegan butter until the hearts of palm are slightly softer and lightly browned. I then mix the sauteed hearts of palm with vegan mayonnaise, chopped celery, minced fresh chives, lemon juice, and a couple of tasty seasonings. I fill a buttered and toasted hoagie roll with butter lettuce and the lobster roll filling and garnish it with vegan butter, old bay seasoning, and chives. When I tell you this sandwich is incredible, I MEAN IT!

PSST! If you need a fun side dish to go along with this vegan lobster roll, check out my Extremely Quick and Easy Cheesy Vegan Pasta Salad! It’s based on that feta pasta that went extremely viral this year. I like to eat the pasta salad cold and think it would make for a perfect side dish for this sandwich!

If you make my hearts of palm lobster roll, don’t forget to post a picture to Instagram, tag me @chefsummerstorm, and #gardengrub so I can see your recreation!

How to Make a Realistic Vegan Lobster Roll

Author Chef Summer Storm – garden grub

This vegan lobster roll is as realistic as one can get! It is seafood marinated hearts of palm stuffed in a hoagie roll with butter lettuce. It's easy and quick to make and incredibly delicious!

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 minutes mins

Rest Time 2 hours hrs

Total Time 2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

 

• Two 14 ounce(NET WT.) cans whole hearts of palm, drained and rinsed off well and cut into 1/2 inch round pieces
• 2 tbsp vegan butter

Seafood Marinade

• Two 0.81 ounce sheets nori
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp mellow white miso paste
• 1 tsp old bay seasoning

Lobster Salad Mix

• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup celery, small diced
• 1/4 cup fresh chives, minced
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp old bay seasoning
• 1/4 tsp celery salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

For One Sandwich You Will Need

• 1 hoagie roll
• 2 tbsp vegan butter, plus more for drizzling on top of the final sandwich, if desired
• 3 pieces butter lettuce
• 1/2 batch vegan lobster roll filling
• 1 chive, cut in half for garnish
• old bay seasoning, for garnish

Instructions

 

Seafood Marinade

• If you have a coffee grinder, tear apart the nori sheets and stuff them inside the coffee grinder. Grind them until they are in fine powder form. Then dump the nori powder into a medium-sized mixing bowl and stir it with the rest of the seafood marinade ingredients.
• If you do not own a coffee grinder, you can add all of the seafood ingredients into a small blender and blend until completely smooth. OR, you can finely chop the nori sheets by hand and then stir it with the rest of the seafood marinade ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
• Now, add the cut hearts of palm into the seafood marinade and toss the two together to coat the hearts of palm evenly. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on top and let the mixture marinate in the refrigerator for two hours, if possible.

Lobster Salad Mix

• When the hearts of palm have finished marinating, combine all of the lobster salad mix ingredients in another medium-sized mixing bowl. Set aside.

How to Cook the Vegan Lobster

• Place a large saute pan over medium heat. Once hot, add in two tablespoons of vegan butter.
• After the vegan butter has melted, add the marinated hearts of palm into the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Allow the hearts of palm mixture to cool down for about two minutes, and then scrape it into the bowl of the lobster salad mix. Stir well to combine evenly.

How to Assemble One Lobster Roll

• Cut a slit through the top of your hoagie roll.
• Place a large saute pan over medium heat. Once hot, melt two tablespoons of vegan butter. Then, place the hoagie roll inside face down, and rub it around to coat it in the melted butter evenly. Toast the roll until the inside is slightly golden brown and crispy.
• To assemble the lobster roll, place the butter lettuce inside the toasted roll, followed by roughly half of the lobster filling, a drizzle of melted vegan butter, a sprinkling of old bay seasoning, and a chive cut in half. Enjoy!

Keyword hearts of palm, hearts of palm lobster roll, vegan lobster, vegan lobster roll

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