Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan Bacon + Improved Recipe
I’m going to share Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan bacon recipe that was pretty viral online (especially tiktok) and also share my thoughts on various tests I did to make it better. After all, I have the most popular vegan bacon recipe on Google, so I know a thing or two about making good vegan bacon at home.
Over the years, I’ve tried and tested some of Gordon Ramsay’s recipes; vegan recipes and turning his non-vegan recipes into vegan recipes. I’ve had some true ups and downs, from his Mille Feuille to his “Eggplant Steak”. Either way, I was excited to try his vegan bacon recipe. I’ve been making rice paper bacon for years so I wanted to offer readers my expertise with Gordon Ramsay’s original idea and how to make his vegan bacon better, tastier and quicker (his took a long time to make).
Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan Bacon
Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan BaconSo I made Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan Bacon and here’s what I didn’t like about it:
- His vegan bacon was not crispy at all 🙁
I think the reason it wasn’t crispy was a combination of too much tofu and the marinade – either way, bacon should be crispy and I discovered the perfect way in my recipe below
- Many people, including me, said his marinade was VERY spicy
I like spicy, but it was too spicy and also… bacon isn’t supposed to be spicy right?
- the marinade was also too thick
This offered a challenge for the rice paper and slowed the process down a lot – I discovered a way to make it easy to dip the rice paper in
- Took a long time (compared to my quick & easy 15 mins vegan bacon). Like common Gordon, I don’t have all day to spend in the kitchen 😛
You can check out his recipe below and also check out my improved version of his recipe (check recipe card below) which is less spicy, less time-consuming, and more crispy!
INGREDIENTS FOR GORDON RAMSAY’S VEGAN BACON:
INGREDIENTS FOR GORDON RAMSAY’S VEGAN BACON:- Rice Paper (square preferred)
- Nutritional Yeast
- Garlic Powder
- Smoked Paprika
- Liquid Smoke (optional)
- Maple Syrup
- Olive Oil or Vegan Butter
- Tamari or Soy Sauce
- Extra-Firm Tofu
- Sriracha
- Cayenne
INSTRUCTIONS FOR GORDON RAMSAY’S VEGAN BACON:
- Preheat oven to 375˚F (190˚C) and prepare a baking sheet with a rack and parchment paper. Spray the baking rack with cooking spray and set aside.
- Prepare marinade – whisking together sriracha, 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, garlic powder, cayenne, smoked paprika, liquid smoke, maple syrup, tamari, melted butter, and water. Season mixture with pepper.
- Place pressed tofu in a bowl and using hands crumble tofu into pea-size pieces. Season with remaining nutritional yeast and 3 tablespoons of marinade. Set aside.
- Prepare bacon strips, using sharp kitchen shears, cut rice paper into 1½ inch-wide (4 cm) strips. Pour remaining marinade into a shallow baking dish and working with a few “bacon” strips at a time, dip rice paper into the marinade. Flip to coat and once pliable remove and place on prepared baking sheet. Scatter with tofu to resemble the “fat” of the bacon strips. Top with another bacon strip, pressing with your fingers to fuse together into a strip. Re-dip in the marinade as needed. Repeat with remaining strips.
- Bake bacon strips in oven for 10-12 minutes, flipping halfway through. Gently scrunch strips with your fingers to create curly bacon, continue to bake for another 10-12 minutes or until bacon is crispy and amber brown. Brush strips with more marinade as needed if they start to dry out too much.
You can find the full recipe on his website.
Gordon Ramsay’s Vegan Bacon… But Better
I’m going to show you how to make a better vegan bacon recipe in 15 mins using similar ingredients like rice paper, crumbled tofu and a more simple (and tasty) marinade!
All you need to do to make this recipe is mix together the marinade and add some to crumbled tofu. Then pour marinade into a shallow bowl or dish, then dip the rice paper sheet on one side and lay it on a surface with the marinade up and sprinkle tofu over, then add a second sheet on top and using wet hands, press together. Then slice with a pizza cutter and bake until crispy.
INGREDIENTS FOR GORDON RAMSAY’S BACON BUT BETTER (VEGAN):
- Rice Paper (square preferred)
- Nutritional Yeast
- Garlic Powder
- Smoked Paprika
- Liquid Smoke
- Maple Syrup
- Olive Oil or Vegan Butter
- Soy Sauce or Tamari
- Extra-Firm Tofu
- MSG (optional) or Mushroom Seasoning
KITCHEN EQUIPMENT I USED:
- Measuring Utensils
- Baking Sheet
- Oven
- Shallow Baking Dish or Large Plate
- Pizza Cutter
What I did differently: I tested and created a totally different marinade that’s similar to my popular rice paper bacon marinade recipe with some changes. I also used less tofu, because it was making it harder to crisp up. I did not bake it on a grill rack like he suggested, instead, I baked it on a baking sheet with a silicone mat. I also prepared the bacon totally differently, so instead of cutting the rice paper and then soaking, topping with tofu and then meeting another strip and adding it on top, I opted for a much quicker version: wet an entire rice paper sheet, added the tofu on top and then topped with another soaked sheet and used a pizza cutter to cut strips. So much easier and quicker!
Full Recipe Down Below
- 8 sheets rice paper
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast, divided
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp liquid smoke
- 3 Tbsp maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp olive oil or vegan butter
- 3 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1½ tsp MSG or mushroom seasoning
- ¼ cup water
- ⅓ cup extra-firm tofu, pressed and crumbled
- Preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking sheet. Grease the paper or mat with cooking spray or oil.
- In a shallow baking dish whisk together 2 tbsp nutritional yeast, garlic, paprika, liquid smoke, maple syrup, olive oil, tamari, MSG, and water to make the marinade.
- In a small bowl add crumbled tofu, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, and 3 tbsp of marinade. Set aside.
- Take one full sheet of rice paper, and dip it into the bowl of marinade, flip and place it on a cutting board. Sprinkle rice paper with tofu. Dip another sheet of rice paper into the marinade and then place it on top of the tofu. Wet your hands with a little bit of water and press down on top of the stack if you find the edges curling up and not sticking well enough.
- When the rice paper settles, and kind of hugs the tofu, take a pizza cutter and cut the rice paper into strips, and place it on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the rice paper strips for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through until the edges are crispy. Transfer bacon to a wire cooling rack.
- If you are not enjoying the bacon right away, store them in a sealed container in the fridge. When ready to serve heat 1 tbsp of oil or vegan butterl in a skillet over medium heat. In batches, add bacon strips and fry until crispy. Keep in mind that they will crisp up a bit when taken off the heat.
- Use vegan bacon in a sandwich, burger, crumble over salad, enjoy on its own, or use any way you would use bacon!
Hey I’m Candice aka The Edgy Veg – I veganize popular food recipes for vegans, plant-based diets, eco-conscious eaters & people who are trying to eat more plants over… y’know animals or their by-products. I hope you enjoy this tasty vegan recipe!
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Mary Woods says:
Adding that tofu between the sheets is a waste of time and tofu. It does NOT crisp up. You’ll burn the sheets before it gets crisp. Ditch the tofu!