As Bennie and Clovis Martin handed out free sandwiches to people in need in 1929, the owners of the Martin Brothers Coffee Stand and Restaurant in New Orleans would often quip: “Here comes another poor boy.”
The brothers, who were former streetcar conductors, were providing much-needed food for their former colleagues who were struggling without pay while they were striking for higher wages.
The streetcar strike lasted for four months, but, eventually, it was a success. The “poor boys” went back to work, but the Martin brother’s sandwiches—which were made with crusty French bread and ingredients like roast beef, fried fish, and shrimp—stuck around. Over time the “poor boy sandwich” evolved into the popular “po’boy sandwich,” which, to this day, is still served across New Orleans (and many other places in the US).
Like the Martin brothers’ original, a traditional po’boy is usually packed with meat or seafood, but it can also be made with meaty plant-based ingredients, too. Find out more about how to make tasty meatless po’boys below.
What makes a po’boy different from a regular sandwich?
According to Soul of Nola, a New Orleans tour company, a real, authentic po’boy has to be made with the right bread. While your standard sandwich can be made with an array of bread spanning from white to sourdough and beyond, a po’boy must be made with a crusty, French-style baguette. According to the company, it’s French-style because it wasn’t originally made by French bakers, but by German bakers.
“There were two waves of Germans that came to the New Orleans area,” the tour company explains. “The earliest were Germans that settled in 1721, the second and larger wave of German immigration began in the 1840s and 1850s. That latter wave included a host of prominent bakers in the city.”
The bread they made was very similar to a traditional French baguette—it was crusty, flaky, and dense on the outside, but light and fluffy on the inside. Once you’ve got the bread right, you can fill your sandwich with anything you please, but some of the most traditional filling options include roasted beef, wild-caught Louisiana shrimp, oysters, and catfish. A creamy French remoulade sauce—which is often made with mayonnaise, herbs, capers, and pickles—is a popular dressing choice.
But if you want to make a traditional po’boy with plant-based ingredients, we have good news: it’s actually really easy.
Oyster mushrooms and hearts of palm can take the place of crispy seafood and tofu can take the place of meat, while other fillings like cauliflower and eggplant taste just as delicious as animal products when combined with that traditional baguette bread.
How to make a vegan po’boy: 7 recipes to try
Here, we’ve gathered just a few of our favorite recipes that prove that making a po’boy from plants is easy and delicious.
Lauren Toyota
1 Crispy Vegan Oyster Mushroom Po’Boy
Forget seafood. These vegan po’boys from the Hot For Food Comfort Classics cookbook are just as crispy, meaty, and delicious, but they’re made with oyster mushrooms instead. Sweet green relish, ketchup, and sambal oelek also help to form the basis of a super tasty, homemade Thousand Island dressing you’ll want to drizzle on everything.
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No Sweat Vegan
2 Vegan Po’Boy with Tofu
If you prefer a meatier sandwich filling, you can’t go wrong with seasoned tofu nuggets. Thanks to the crispy outside and the tender inside, they have the perfect texture for a classic po’boy sandwich, especially when they’re combined with the classic French baguette, slices of tomato, shredded lettuce, and a vegan remoulade sauce.
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Thee Burger Dude
3 Vegan Shrimp Po’Boy
Shrimp is one of the go-to po’boy fillings for most locals and visitors to New Orleans alike. Recreate the classic taste and texture with plant-based ingredients by following this mouthwatering recipe from Thee Burger Dude. “I’ve been to Louisiana once, and I was actually pescatarian back then, and I’m pretty sure I ate a Shrimp Po’ Boy every day,” says recipe developer Brian Watson. “I can confidently say that these are just as good!”
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Love and Lemons
4 Crispy Cauliflower Po’Boy Sandwich
Cauliflower is incredibly versatile. It can be used to create wings, creamy sauces, rice, and even a delicious crispy po’boy sandwich filling. “The crisp-tender cauliflower reminds me of the texture of fried shrimp,” says recipe developer Jeanine Donofrio. “I toss it in a lemony, Creole-spiced panko coating for a boost of flavor.”
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About to Sprout
5 Hearts of Palm Vegan Po’Boy
Hearts of palm is one of the best plant-based seafood alternatives, thanks to its naturally tender, juicy texture. That’s why it makes for an excellent vegan po’boy filling, particularly when it’s seasoned with ingredients like smoked paprika and cayenne and combined with spicy remoulade. “The hearts of palm becomes insanely crispy and are perfectly spiced,” says recipe developer Rylee Foer. “This vegan po’boy has exactly what you’re looking for.”
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Foodaliciously
6 Jackfruit Po’Boy
This recipe from Foodaliciously combines meaty, seasoned jackfruit nuggets with a spicy remoulade made with coconut yogurt in a crispy French bread roll. Our mouths are watering already. “We found that jackfruit is absolutely perfect for our po’ boy as it takes on all the Cajun seasoning flavors,” notes the blog.
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Fat Free Vegan
7 Oven-Fried Eggplant Po’Boy Sandwiches
Eggplant might seem like an unusual po’boy filling choice at first, but according to the blog Fat Free Vegan, it comes out beautifully “crispy on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside.” When combined with ingredients like onion powder, cayenne, garlic, and salt, it has the perfect taste and texture for a delicious po’boy sandwich.
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Charlotte is a VegNews editor and writer based in sunny Southsea on England’s southern coast.
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