If you've recently turned vegan, and are still dreaming about that crispy bacon you'd enjoy so much, you'll love this carrot bacon recipe- it's a promise.
This plant-based bacon alternative that will blow your mind away! It's gluten-free, vegan, and just a brilliant healthier alternative to your regular bacon.
All it takes is just a few minutes of kitchen time and a handful of ingredients to make this crunchy and delicious carrot bacon recipe.
I've seen all those delicious bacon recipes, and was wondering if it was possible to try a vegan recipe that replicates the flavor, taste and texture of bacon.
And I have to admit- the idea of soaking carrot strips in a smoky marinade and then baking them until they crisp up is a genius move, to say the least.
Tabitha Brown supposedly raved about this recipe, and I, of course, tried this recipe with a bit of my twist!
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What's So Great About the Recipe?
My favorite part about this carrot bacon recipe is versatile it is! This is one of those few TikTok inspired recipes that I absolutely love.
The vegan bacon can be used just like you would use regular bacon- from your breakfast eggs and toast to your sandwiches and pastas!
Plus, you can make it using a regular oven or an Air Fryer- whatever you prefer! This is undoubtedly is one of my favorite carrot recipes, with carrot cake coming a close second.
Ingredients For the Vegan Bacon Recipe
Carrots: We start off with crunchy, thick carrots. The best way to get the perfect strips of carrot is to choose ones that are firm and ripe.
Liquid smoke: Liquid smoke just lends those carrots that delicious smoky aroma and make them taste like bacon.
Cumin: A dash of cumin powder can bring some earthy aroma and freshness to the carrot bacon.
Garlic powder: Garlic powder lends the carrot bacon that delicious flavor you're looking for.
Onion powder: I also like to add onion powder to add some sweetness and flavor.
Liquid aminos: To make this vegan bacon gluten free, I used liquid aminos. You could totally use soy sauce to lend that beautiful umami flavor if that's what you have at hand.
Smoked paprika: I love lending a bit of a spicy kick to the carrots, so I added this one too!
Maple syrup: Maple syrup is a star ingredient in this recipe. It just adds that bit of sweetness and delicious flavor to the vegan carrot bacon.
Olive oil: A drizzle of some olive oil can make the carrots nice and crispy.
Seasonings: I've used some crushed black pepper and salt to season the crispy carrot bacon.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make the Vegan Carrot Bacon Recipe
To make this recipe, start by chopping off the ends of your carrots until you get a part that has a uniform thickness.
Thinly slice the carrots into ribbons. To get the perfect, thin ribbons, you can use a mandoline slicer or a vegetable peeler.
In a small bowl, prepare the marinade using the rest of the ingredients.
Add your carrot ribbons to the marinade and let sit for at least 15 minutes to get that perfect bacon flavor.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place the carrot strips on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
The tasty carrot bacon need to be in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Remember to flip the carrot slices midway to get the perfect crispy texture on both sides .
Substitutions & Variations
- Looking to try more vegetarian bacon recipes? You can also try replicating the recipe with eggplant slices, and make some eggplant bacon too.
- Don't have liquid aminos? You could use coconut aminos or tamari instead.
- If you're not allergic to gluten, I would highly recommend sticking to using soy sauce to make carrot bacon. The delicious umami flavor it lends is unmatched.
💭Top Tip
The cook time for the carrot ribbons depends on how thick your carrots are. The thinner you slice them, the shorter they will take to get crunchy and crispy.
Equipment
How to Store the Leftover Carrot Bacon
This is one of those recipes that don't do too well when prepared in advance and stored for later, which is why, I would highly recommend you make them fresh.
It takes juts a few minutes to make, especially when you preheat the oven in advance.
Tips & Tricks to Nail the Recipe
- To get the carrot bacon nice and crunchy, make sure you dab off all the excess moisture from the carrots.
- To get a deeper flavor into the carrots, you can also choose to marinate the carrot strips overnight.
- Remember to line your baking sheet with some parchment paper before you lay your carrot slices on it. This will help keep the crisped up carrots from sticking to the sheet.
- Marinate the carrots for anywhere between 15 minutes to a few hours, depending on how intense you want the flavor to be.
- If you're planning to marinate the slices for longer, remember to refrigerate them.
How to Serve the Carrot Bacon
You can serve the carrot bacon with pretty much all of your plant-based recipes that need a vegan bacon alternative.
Here are a few ideas to get you inspired.
In your Sandwiches
The crunchy, smoky carrot bacon can be the perfect teammate to your homemade sandwiches. They can lend a ton of flavor and a nice bit of crispy texture too!
As a Topping
I love adding bits of this crunchy vegan bacon to my Air Fryer walking tacos, when I'm skipping the meat and trying to keep it vegan, or to my favorite Marry Me pasta.
The crispy bacon can also be a wonderful addition to your bowl of piping hot soup- like this vegetarian broccoli cheddar soup.
In a Salad
You can also add some of these crispy carrot chips to your simple salad dish. I love adding it to my Fatoosh salad for that bit of extra crunch when I don't have the pita chips. Plus, you can also drizzle of that remaining marinade over your salad and turn it into a nice salad dressing.
With your Breakfast Favorites
These vegan bacon bits can be used as a topping over your breakfast scrambled eggs or your favorite avocado toast. You can also add it into your vegan BLT sandwich!
FAQs
You can also cook the carrots in the Air Fryer. Just remember not to overcrowd your Air Fryer basket with too many carrot ribbons and flip them midway through the cooking process to get them crispy on both sides.
You sure can! Just make sure you grease the pan well and stick to medium heat to keep the carrots and the spices on the carrots from burning.
Related Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Carrot Bacon | Vegan Bacon
Ingredients
- 2 medium carrots
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- black pepper
- salt
Instructions
- To make this recipe, start by chopping off the ends of your carrots until you get a part that has a uniform thickness.
- Thinly slice the carrots into ribbons. To get the perfect, thin ribbons, you can use a mandoline slicer or a vegetable peeler.
- In a small bowl, prepare the marinade using the rest of the ingredients.
- Add your carrot ribbons to the marinade and let sit for at least 15 minutes to get that perfect bacon flavor.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place the carrot strips on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- The tasty carrot bacon need to be in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Remember to flip the carrot slices midway to get the perfect crispy texture on both sides .
