Making Vegetarian Bacon
It’s a great meat substitute for some of us who are making a vegetarian transition, or who want to eat less meat. It make up beautifully to BLT sandwich, breakfast sandwich, wraps, pizzas, Reuben sandwiches (toasted with rye bread, vegetarian soy cheese, sauerkraut and dressing.) Toppings for soups, and salads there is no ends for this Vegetarian Bacon recipe. It’s fun, cheap and easy to make and yummy. Make a lot up to a specified point and freeze it. The better you get at the method, freeze it by not frying it all the way and do double batches later.
MAKING VEGETARIAN BACON METHOD
1 lb extra firm Tofu
2 Tb. low sodium Tamari shoyu and/or a light soy sauce
½ tsp. Liquid smoke (optional, and more or less)
2 Tb. mono oil to fry in (raw cold press lighter style of oil)
Ground Pepper (optional)
Other options: Maple Syrup, black strap molasses, sugar, Nutritional Yeast, wheat germ, Kitchen Bouquet (a seasoning sauce), hot sauce or garlic oil, with smoked jalapeno, i.e.
Fry long tofu strips on medium heat until they are crispy on the outside. Lay them in a cast iron pan soaking by letting them set in the hot oil for about 10 minutes and summer turning over and for another 10 minutes.
Aside: First mix the tamari/shoyu soy sauce, or just soy sauce, with the liquid smoke. Take the pan off the heat, pour the liquid smoke - tamari into the pan, stir the tofu on all sides, and coated, then sprinkle the yeast over the bacon strips. Turn over tofu, keeping pan moving over heat until the liquid is gone and the tofu is covered with sticky yeast.
Try it! It taste LIKE bacon. The over salty taste has to be adjusted to your tastes!
Don’t buy the foil lined container (tofu.) The extra firm sometimes comes in tubs. Press and drain the tofu 30-45 minutes before frying. Cut the tofu into
¼ inch (or less) strips. Making sure the cast iron pan is hot on medium high heat before adding the tofu and then fry. At the end add diluted liquid smoke or/and soy sauce turn the heat down to low so it will not burn.
Lay strips in a cast iron skillet in and fry until golden brown about 25-20 minutes on each side. Gets the water out. (About 45 minutes total) Be sure to watch closely, it will turn dark fast when it approaches the golden brown color for that nice crispy “bacon like” crunch. If you shake the pan occasionally so it will not stick. When turning it over cooking on other side the last 20 minutes it will cook faster. You need not to cook it till chrispy for bacon and tomato sandwiches?
Marinate: (Some freeze the tofu to get more water out then drain and dry?
Drain and
dry the tofu first then Marinate the tofu strips in the mixture of tamari/liquid smoke before cooking instead of adding it to the pan afterwards it’s less salty. Or it might consist of, Soy sauce, liquid smoke and a small amount of maple syrup soaked with the tofu overnight) (You’ll make your own style to suit your palette so experiment many ways. Some say it may miss a little in a bacon flavor without the Nutritional Yeast. (It makes it more salty)
Bacon is salty and fat.
Optional_TIPS: It stores well in the fridge. You may have to adjust by adding water to the liquid smoke or, not at all depends on your palate. Start the bacon (tofu) on the stove top browning and crisping it up, then finish in a 350 degrees oven for cooking, adding in the marinade.
Use unsalted soup stock to dilute Tamara or in its place, use Liquid Aminos (Braggs). Some will not like the yeast flavor ("Kal" in a yellow green can) others swear it tastes more like bacon. Add a little water to cut the salt taste in using regular soy, Tamari, and or such. Nutritional Yeast is not the same as Brewers Yeast (residue from beer.) Some may need to stay away from the "yeast" idea.
You'll learn the more you do this. Some may want it very crispy or need a bend in it. A cast iron skillet is nice to work with. Remember your basically frying the liquid out of the soy and can really even add the seasonings in the last minutes of the desired texture you desire. The baking style of cooking this ups is below for those who want to bake the flavors in.
I like soy (watch this it can burn fast) or Bragg’s Liquid Amino's with all its natural B’s. Just try a bit before adding any yeast. Experiment till you find your flavor style and method.
If you cut top to bottom on the short side of the tofu, it will end up with about 15 three-inch strips. Try using the gluten method (in this book) "seitan." to make up this bacon.
Try baking it for those who are into the “no oil fads” remember pigs are fat, and so is bacon that’s why so good. It needs oil.
Cautions do not use non-stick Teflon pans. The EPA has just recently declared the pans as a hazard because they cause tumors in rats.
Freeze tofu for extra texture. Add garlic, onion powder, i.e., pineapple juice and dehydrate for vegetarian jerky. Try doing the slices thicker, longer cooking time at lower temperatures for using in different vegetarian recipes. This recipe is more a "method" than recipe, and a lot of this recipe is ideas that I've experiment with, you don't have to do it all.
Hey...Sometimes we want bacon and not pork and time on our hands. Just be patient. This may seems to be superior to vegetable bacon, certainly less chemical. *For a meat look try painting on very little beet juice color, if you’re creative.
Vegan "Bacon" Oven method (From reader) She doesn't like so much fat?
Block of firm smoked tofu
sunflower oil for brushing shoyu/soy sauce or similar maple syrup nutritional yeast flakes This isn't an exact science and boils down more to personal taste, but this makes a crispy substitute that is better than any shop bought fake
bacon I have tried:
Use a peeler to make wafer thin slices of tofu (sliding it from side to side as it is drawn down the tofu block helps) Lightly brush each side of the tofu wafer slices with sunflower oil and place on a non-stick baking sheet Cook in oven heated to 220 Celsius for 10 minutes until crisp Brush with a glaze mixed to taste of the shoyu or equivalent and maple syrup and sprinkle with a pinch of nutritional yeast flakes Return to oven for a further minute to allow glaze to solidify
Let us know of your successes!
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