Fakin' Bacon - DIY Pantry

If you had told me a couple of years ago that I would love eating a faux meat made with buckwheat and adzuki beans I would have laughed you out of the country! Seasoned pork is what made me fall off the vegetarian wagon five years ago in addition to frustration with all of the unpronounceable ingredients in packaged fake meats. Making my own was a disaster, so I succumbed to eating the real thing. 

But the vegan revolution of the past couple of years has altered my life forever.

This is day one of VeganMoFo! Let's all do a happy dance!

Nearly two years ago when The Ordinary Vegetarian posted this vegan bacon recipe I tucked it away in my to do file, but wasn't sure I was going to actually try it while I was still an omnivore. But as a returning vegetarian well on my way to veganism, I wanted to see if it really was easy and delicious as Sarah claimed. Happy to report it is!

Soak beans and grains, grind them in the food processor along with lots of seasonings and bake. Done! And it truly does pop from the freezer to the pan and cook up in seconds with no adverse taste or texture. Stunning!

Finding liquid smoke is the only "exotic" ingredient but essential to the flavor. Wright's is all natural, only containing water and smoke so it's what I used. And in case you were wondering, yes, I did consider making my own but after reading other people's attempts, decided that buying the bottle was  worth it! 

Fakin Bacon (from The Ordinary Vegetarian)
(makes 24-30 slices)

1/2 cup dried adzuki beans
1/3 cup buckwheat (raw, not toasted)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/3 teaspoon garlic powder
1/3 teaspoon rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Rinse the beans and buckwheat, place 1 quart mason jar or in bowl, cover with water and allow to soak at least 8 hours.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Drain and rinse the soaked beans and buckwheat.  Place in a food processor and pulse into finely chopped, fine like coarse cornmeal. Add the remaining ingredients and pulse several more time to combine, scrapping down the sides as needed.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with oil. Place bacon batter in pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Place another piece of parchment on top and use it to ensure the batter is consistently thin and smoothed out. Remove and discard the top piece of parchment paper, then use a spatula to spread over and fill in any bare spots.

Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Slice into 24-30 strips, whatever size you prefer. At this point freeze any strips your don't plan on eating immediately. Frozen strips can go straight into the skillet at a later date, no need to thaw first. To fry, heat a skillet with a small amount of oil and fry both sides to desired level of crispiness.

Hugs!

Recipes currently inspiring me:

Zucchini Cream Cheese Bundt Cake at Eats Well With Others
Green Bean Salad with Basil and Balsamic and Parmesan at Simply Recipes
Samosas at Flavors of the Sun