Homemade vegan chicken-less broth and seasoning is healthier than store-bought products and much more affordable! Use it to add umami and depth of flavor to soups, gravy, casseroles, grains, and sauces. This quick and easy seasoning tastes so good you might find yourself sipping hot bowls of broth just for the flavor and nutrients! Contains no oil and is free from the top 8 allergens. Ready in 5 minutes!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
I've purchased my fair share of vegan chicken bouillon over the years, especially last year while working on this Vegan Turkey Roast.
Some of those broths and bouillons taste better than others, but all of them are rather pricey and not exactly made with the healthiest ingredients.
For example, Better Than Bouillon's No-Chicken Base contains ingredients like hydrolyzed corn protein, maltodextrin, canola oil, and corn syrup solids. And theirs isn't even the worst.
So after sharing this Vegan Rice-A-Roni recipe I decided it was time for a DIY vegan chicken seasoning on the blog.
Also, since the Trader Joe's vegan chicken-less seasoning was discontinued, we need a quick and tasty homemade option more than ever!
Speaking of Trader Joe's copycat recipes, check out this easy Ginger-Turmeric Dressing and this super crunchy Ginger-Turmeric Granola.
With just 9 pantry staples and 5 minutes you can make irresistibly delicious (no kidding, I actually crave it now) vegan chicken broth. It's oil-free, gluten-free, soy-free, AND nut-free. And thanks to nutritional yeast it contains important vitamins and minerals.
If you're not sure how you'll use this powder besides just making soup, keep reading for ideas!
Ingredients
While there isn't much room for substitutions in this recipe, a few of the ingredients are flexible.
For the best chicken bouillon flavor, I highly recommend trying the recipe exactly as written before making adjustments.
- Nutritional yeast - this is the most important ingredient in this recipe and can't be replaced.
NOTE: If you think you don't like nutritional yeast but have only tried fortified brands (e.g., Bragg's), I highly recommend this non-fortified one by Sari Foods. Their nutritional yeast contains naturally occurring B1, B2, B5, and B6, as well as 18 amino acids and 15 minerals. It does not contain B12 or Folate, which are usually added to other brands of nutritional yeast. You can learn more about fortified vs. non-fortified nutritional yeast on the Sari website. - Fine sea salt - salt is important for the overall flavor but can be reduced if needed. That's the great thing about homemade!
- Sugar - I use organic cane sugar. This can be omitted if you strictly avoid added sugars.
- Poultry seasoning - this is a blend of dried herbs and aromatics, usually sage, thyme, onion, pepper, marjoram, and celery seed. I like this one by Frontier since SpiceWalla discontinued theirs. Or use the ingredients you already have and make your own homemade poultry seasoning.
If you have sage, thyme, and ground celery seed on hand but not poultry seasoning, feel free to use a tiny pinch of each. The problem is that it's difficult to measure such small amounts. - Turmeric - this gives the vegan chicken broth a golden hue and very subtle earthiness but can be omitted if necessary.
- Onion and garlic powder - these are important for the overall savory flavor.
- Ground ginger - this one's optional, but I do like to include a tiny pinch for subtle flavor.
- Black pepper - depending on how you plan to use the seasoning, you may or may not want to include pepper. For example, if you're making broth for someone who's feeling under the weather or highly sensitive to spicy foods, feel free to omit it.
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How to Make It
It's oh so easy! Are you ready for this? Simply combine the ingredients in a bowl or lidded jar, then whisk or shake it to combine. Voila! You now have homemade chicken-less seasoning.
Tip: If the nutritional yeast you're using contains large flakes you may want to pulse the mixture in a blender for a more powdered texture, but that's totally up to you.
Prep Tip
If you include oil in your diet, try adding just a few drops of a mild-tasting olive oil to the prepared broth. Oil contributes a richness that would normally be found in chicken stock and broth (which obviously includes fat from the chickens). 🙁
How to Use Vegan Chicken Bouillon
Now the fun part! Use this vegan chicken seasoning and bouillon mix to make vegan chicken noodle soup. Try it with soy curls, cubed tofu, or shredded seitan to make it extra filling.
Speaking of soy curls, use this broth to re-hydrate soy curls and use them in all kinds of recipes. Why re-hydrate with plain water when you can add so much flavor?
Use this chicken-less seasoning in the breading for tofu nuggets and seitan nuggets.
Replace the no-chicken bouillon called for in my seitan turkey roast with this DIY version, and add it to seitan sausage for extra flavor.
I also like to include 1 or 2 tablespoons of this seasoning when cooking rice, quinoa, and other grains.
You can boost flavor with this powdered seasoning when cooking lentils, curries, stews, and chili. Reduce the salt you would normally add to account for the saltiness in the powder.
Also, stir it into creamy pasta sauces, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes and gravy.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, broth and stock made from chicken meat and bones is not vegan. However, there are vegan-friendly products on the market that imitate the flavors of chicken broth. If you prefer homemade, it's very easy to make a versatile, pantry-friendly, chicken-style broth at home with this recipe.
Plant-based chicken products often use yeast extract and certain vegetables and herbs to create savory chicken flavor. Instead of yeast extract, our homemade seasoning calls for nutritional yeast, which is an inactive form of yeast rich in B vitamins and other nutrients.
Since the recipe is made entirely with dried ingredients, it lasts for many, many months. I prefer to store it in the refrigerator, but it's also fine at room temperature or in the freezer, if preferred.
The next time you see a recipe that calls for vegan chicken broth or bouillon, you're all set! No need to search the store aisles or order specialty products online.
I hope you love the recipe as much as we do! If you try it I would love to hear from you in the comments below.
More Homemade Vegan Staples
RELATED: check out this Vegan "Beef" Broth Powder & Umami Seasoning!
Recipe
Vegan "Chicken" Broth, Bouillon & Seasoning
Ingredients
- ½ cup nutritional yeast - Any type is okay, but I highly recommend this non-fortified one by Sari.
- 1 tablespoon fine sea salt - Feel free to decrease to suit your dietary needs or if you prefer less salty broth.
- 2 teaspoons organic cane sugar, optional
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning - see Notes
- ⅛ teaspoon ground turmeric
- tiny pinch of ground ginger, optional
- ½ to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper - Amount depends on how much you enjoy black pepper.
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl or lidded jar, and whisk to combine. If the nutritional yeast you're using contains large flakes you may want to pulse the mixture in a blender for a more powdered texture.
- Always whisk or shake before using so that the flavors are well combined. To make broth, use approximately 2 teaspoons powder per 1 cup of hot water (this creates a fairly salty broth). Refer to the post above for more ideas and ways to use this powder.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used.
Deba says
This is the taste I was missing for my scottish lentil soup, so many veg broths are spicy tomatoey but that wasn't what I wanted.
Thank you very much.
TerryF says
Really good - one of the best I have tried! I love the flavour of the poultry seasoning! I made it as written (including the ginger) but with only a pinch of sugar. I also dded a drop of olive oil to my prepared cup of broth. Perfect level of saltiness for me. Thank you!
Lynn says
I have to say, this is going to become a staple in my kitchen. This definitely beats anything commercial I've purchased, including Better than Bouillon and Epicure Ramen. I do make it just a bit stronger when using it by using 2-1/2 tsp per cup rather than 2 tsp, and I add a splash of soy sauce to the finished soup, but the recipe is perfect and I don't have to have mixed feelings about the ingredients I'm consuming. Well done!
Jayne says
Tried it and included a pinch of ginger and a tsp monk fruit and it is delicious!!!
Monika Mroczkowski says
I really liked the idea of avoiding all the questionable ingredients in the store-bought vegan bouillons, so I made this recently as part of your lentil cabbage soup recipe. I did not expect to be amazed, but boy, was I ever! So so good and satisfying. I made myself a cup of this broth and I thoroughly enjoyed sipping on it, just plain. Thank you, Lori!
-Monika
Pam in Sacramento says
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Oh, Lori, this is perfect! I prefer less salt, so I only used 2 tsp, and I did include the sugar, but omitted the ginger.
Most of the DIY broth powders I have tried in the past have too much herbs in them and don't have a delicate "chicken" flavor. Yours is just right. I used Litehouse brand Poultry Seasoning, which is made from freeze dried herbs, and does not include celery seeds (which I detest because they are bitter). Since the freeze dried herbs are used in the same quantities as fresh, I used 1 tsp. For any other weirdos like me 😋 who don't like celery seeds, I find Litehouse herbs in the produce section at my regular grocery store and also at Sprouts.
Anyway, perfect! I will never need to buy commercial No-Chicken broth or paste again. Thank you, Lori!
Emily says
I make this regularly and it just occurred to me to share a review and say thank you! It’s too good. I add it to broth, soup, chili, casserole you name it. So much better than the overpriced stuff at the store.
Koko says
I made this, and it was easy as ABC. It came out great.
I made two batches because the first one was used for my pot of tomato soup 🍲