Tempeh Bacon
From But I Could Never Go Vegan by Kristy Turner
I have a crack like addiction to bacon. For me, it just makes every meal better. I believe that you could put bacon in anything and it’ll be ten times more delicious. I have yet to be disappointed by this logic.
The problem though is… well, bacon is unhealthy. It’s something I know on a certain subconscious level, but routinely push away because the idea of not having bacon is low key devastating.
But people, I tried today. I really gave it a solid effort by making the tempeh bacon recipe in Kristy Turner’s book and God bless her, she even warns that it will never be a straight replacement for bacon.
It’s totally possible that I supremely effed up the recipe. I feel like I cut my strips waaay too thick and they ended up tasting like super savory hash browns rather than crispy almost-bacon. The flavor was delicious though, and if I had been vegan/vegetarian for any length of time, I really do believe that this would have satisfied any cravings I might have had. There’s a certain tang and smokiness there that does make you feel like you are getting a meat based protein when eating it which I can appreciate.
That being said, I’m still not ready to give up bacon. I’ve already decided my death will be by a heart attack caused by bacon grease clogs in the arteries… But I’ve only decided that on a subconscious level.
In my experience, you can not duplicate bacon. Some recipes get sort of close taste wise, but they do miss the mark. When I first became vegan I was obsessed with these types of recipes (and I cannot make myself eat tempeh) even doing the rice paper and carrot versions. Just know if you ate this, you did get protein…..
LOL
Ha! My mother has been vegetarian for 20+ years and she said once that bacon is the only thing she misses sometimes. Often imitated, never duplicated, bacon is bacon and its the ONLY bacon!
I could tell I got some protein, will I make it again? Nope. I’d rather have the unhealthy version!
There is no replacement for bacon from the lady that keeps 2#’s cooked and crumbled in her freezer to add to recipes whenever I want! 😂🤣😂