Tofu Bacon Bits Recipe | Smoky + Salty Vegan Bacon Crumbles (2024)

FAQs

What is tofu bacon made of? ›

How to Make Vegan Tofu Bacon Bits: Mix the nutritional yeast, soy sauce, smoked paprika, maple syrup, garlic powder, and liquid smoke in the bottom of a large bowl. Crumble the block of tofu with your fingers into the bowl over the seasoning.

Many vegan bacon products are lower in salt than pork back bacon, and some have less than 10% of the fat. Two slices of one particular brand average 310 kilojoules (75 kilocalories) of food energy.

They tend to be high in sodium, but are generally healthier than animal-derived meat when eaten in moderation, as part of a balanced diet. In other words, don't base all of your meals around vegan bacon, but do enjoy it on a breakfast sandwich.

So what are these bits actually made from? They're basically just flavored soy protein chunks. The texturized soy flour gives that same meaty texture you get from tofu or textured vegetable protein. This is an easy (and most likely affordable) way to make a shelf-stable version of our favorite cured meat.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, half a cup of firm tofu offers 21.8 grams of protein with 181 calories and 11 grams of fat. Most of that fat is of the healthy polyunsaturated kind. The high level of protein makes tofu a good alternative to animal-derived meat.

Vegan bacon could therefore be seen as a better alternative to pig bacon, but that's not to say it's a healthy food product. Plant-based meats are ultra processed foods, and they also tend to be high in salt. They are, however, lower in saturated fat, and don't contain the same preservatives as pig bacon.

Vegan Bacon Is Low In Fat And Salt

Another benefit of Vegan Bacon is that it's low in fat and salt. On their own, fat and salt aren't inherently bad for you, but in large amounts, they can cause health issues. Too much salt can cause high blood pressure.

And where can you find it? Here's everything you need to know about this surprisingly realistic-tasting vegan bacon. Hooray Foods' plant-based bacon has less sodium and fat than real bacon but tastes a whole lot like the real stuff.

In case you're wondering which is healthier, eggs or tofu, the match-up is surprisingly close. If you compare them per serving (1 egg to a 3.5-ounce serving of tofu), the tofu has a similar amount of calories and slightly more protein. Here's how they stack up: Calories: egg = 78 | tofu = 70.

How unhealthy is fried tofu? ›

Frying tofu can give it a crispy texture, but comes at a cost – it can be high in calories, up to three times more than baked or air-fried tofu. This is because frying requires added oil as a heat conductor, which cooks the tofu evenly but also makes it absorb more oil, resulting in more fat and calories.

Tempeh contains the most fiber and more protein than tofu because it contains the whole bean. The soy protein in tempeh is more digestable because of the fermentation process. Tempeh is often prepared in thin slices and fried, producing a crispy crust with a soft interior.

While neither brands are especially sinister, both types of bacon bits are highly processed—which definitely isn't good to shovel into your body. So if you're craving bacon bits, it's probably best to crumble nitrate-free strips of the real deal, or try making coconut bacon bits if you don't eat meat.

With an inviting taste and irresistible texture, MorningStar Farms® Veggie Bacon Strips cook up crisp and crunchy. Enjoy with breakfast scrambles, waffles, pancakes, biscuits, and more!

A lot of the vegan “meat” is soy or pea-based protein, and you don't want to eat that raw. You probably would not die, but could have several hours of gastric discomfort. Also, if you buy pre-prepped versions you should thoroughly heat them for food safety.

Tofu, which originated in China, is made of condensed soy milk that's pressed into solid white blocks in a process similar to cheese making. Nigari, a mineral-rich coagulant that's left over after salt is extracted from seawater, is used to help tofu solidify and keep its form.

Tastes so much like bacon!

Here, a blend of pantry-staple ingredients is used to give you a tangy, sweet, spicy, salty, and smoky marinade. The result? Tempeh bacon with the same rich, smoky flavors as traditional bacon. Another factor in creating a vegan bacon alternative is the texture.

Tofu is kind of like a plant-based cheese, when you consider how it's made. The basic ingredients in a block of tofu are soy milk and some sort of coagulant to help it solidify. The soy milk is cooked, then allowed to curdle, and the leftover liquid is pressed out of it.

While seitan provides similar protein and iron content as meat, animal meat is a complete protein, and seitan is not. In addition, iron found in animal-based products is generally more easily absorbed than iron from plant-based foods. Meat typically also has more fat than seitan.