Crispy Crunchy Veggie Bacon

I’ll be the first to admit that I did not come up with this recipe on my own. I actually follow a nutrition and fitness based vegan youtuber who made this on his channel. As a texture person, hearing the crunch he got on his version convinced me that I had to try it for myself. So I ended up looking up a few different recipes for it, finding the best parts of all of them, and that is what I am sharing with you guys today.

This is the best homemade veggie bacon I have tried. I have attempted carrot bacon a few times but have been disappointed so far. This one was just on another level! It was fairly easy, very flavorful, crispy (like I remember liking my bacon), yet chewy at the same time, to please the chewy bacon fans! When it bakes up, it bubbles up a bit too which provides a lot of texture. I seriously am so impressed with this! I think the sauce that is painted on the rice paper is the best version I have tried yet. It’s savory, smoky, and loads of umami flavor, which is why I think bacon is as addictive as it is!

You get rice paper from the Asian/International section of your grocery store. They come as circular sheets and begin adhering when wet with water. To give the proper thickness that is most known with bacon, I layered two sheets together. Essentially, you just combine all the sauce ingredients together, paint the sauce onto the double layer rice paper circular sheets, cut them into strips, and bake them! It’s truly that simple!

Try this for breakfast, or in a sandwich or wrap like my Fried Green Tomato Sandwiches with my No-Mayo Pimento Cheese. And as always, tag me @nommingwithnicola or #nommingwithnicola if you make this! 🙂

Print Recipe

Crispy, Crunchy, Veggie Bacon

A healthier, vegan alternative to traditional bacon! This rice paper bacon is both crispy and chewy, flavored with salty smoky goodness which stacks up against the original.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Bacon, Breakfast

Ingredients

• 8 sheets rice paper
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1.5 tsp liquid smoke
• 2 tsp molasses
• 1.5 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375 F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
• In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients but the rice paper. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
• Fill a plate or pie plate with water. Dip each piece of rice paper in water to soak, and place on the baking sheet. We will be layering two rice paper sheets together to give it the right thickness. The rice paper has a textured side and a smooth side. We will adhere two sheets together, touching on the smooth sides. So the textured side will be down, and the second piece of rice paper will have the smooth side down, to connect with the smooth side of the first sheet of rice paper. Do not allow too much air or water in between the two sheets, just smooth it with your hands to push out excess air/water. I can fit two whole rice paper sheets side by side on a half-sheet baking pan, which is why you need two for this recipe.
• Brush the marinade on both sides. Don't put too much, as it will cause soggy and very chewy bacon. I ended up using about half the marinade in total.
• Using clean kitchen scissors, cut the rice paper into thick strips and keep a little extra space in between each strip for even baking.
• Place baking pans in oven. Mine took about 10 minutes to crisp up to my desired liking – I would start checking at about the 7-minute mark.
• Remove pans from the oven and place the strips on paper towels to absorb any excess oils and to crisp up even more.
• Enjoy! This is good to enjoy right away and also stays good in the fridge for 3-4 days. I just brushed the extra marinade on top of any leftover bacon I had to give it even more flavor.