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This well-tested carrot bacon recipe is gorgeously visually similar to real bacon without recruiting any hard-to-digest garbage. It’s smoky, sweet-savory, and can be part of your brunch prep in under 30 mins. with nothing but carrots, a few pantry pals, and your trusty skillet.
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Using just a few pantry staples and humble carrots, you’ll get bacon-level payoff in under 30 minutes. No dehydration, no overnight marinating—just a quick soak, a hot skillet, and a li'l patience.
Slide strips of this carrot bacon into a fluffy vegan omelette with spinach and roasted potatoes, or serve them next to a massive, syrup-drizzled stack of vegan pancakes with soft scrambled tofu.
Eat it stacked in sandwiches or straight from the pan while pretending you're just “taste-testing.” Basically, this is your new favorite excuse to keep carrots on standby.
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🥰 Why you’ll adore this carrot bacon recipe
✊ Vegan AF and GF: Like all my vegan breakfast recipes, this bad boyo doesn’t rely on animal products of any kind to bring the bacon flavor. And if you're living that GF life too, rest easy—this one’s already locked and loaded for your gluten-free vegan recipes arsenal.
⏱ Quick as a Flash: No dehydrator, no roasting, or overnight anything—just a speedy marinade and a fast fry.
💸 Cheap Thrills: Probably one of the cheapest, fastest vegan meat recipes on my site. Two carrots, a splash of marinade, and you’re rolling in crispy strips for just a few bucks.
✅ Tested and Approved Worldwide: Like all my vegan recipes, this one was fried, flipped, and devoured by hundreds of recipe testers from all over the world.
👉 Steal my fave vegan breakfasts
This 5-day guide to the best plant-based breakfast bangers is 100% FREE, & you'll love it so much 🥰
🥕Carrot bacon Ingredients
Carrots
Choose large, wide carrots with minimal taper; these give you long, naturally bacon-y looking ribbons that hold up in the skillet with minimal waste.
Thin carrots or baby carrots won’t cut it; they’re too tiny and will just shrivel up on you, making you super pissed-off and frothing at the mouth, waving your fists in the air like you are at your first Nickelback concert. If those little guys are all you have on hand, use ‘em for making harissa carrots, or roasted carrots and Brussels sprouts instead.
Tamari
Tamari has deep, mellow umami and a less intense saltiness than regular soy sauce. It’s naturally gluten-free, which makes it ideal for recipes like this one. If tamari isn’t in your pantry, coconut aminos, nama shoyu, or that massive 55-gallon drum of Kirkland soy sauce you stockpiled during the pandemic will do the trick.
Toasted Sesame Oil
Toasted sesame oil gives this bacon recipe a really heavy aroma. Use sparingly so as not to make the flavor hyper-un-bacony. You don’t want it to turn out tasting like goma dressing or a Thai basil eggplant stir-fry.
Liquid Smoke
Liquid smoke is made by condensing actual wood smoke—nothing artificial or weird here. Just a few drops of hickory or mesquite give carrot bacon that deep, smoked flavor without ever lighting a fire. I also use it in smoky bangers like vegan hot dogs, vegan pepperoni, and, of course, vegan ham.
Smoked Paprika
Spanish smoked paprika adds the earthy flavor and red-orange color that makes this recipe and my vegan chili, vegan shawarma, and vegan yakitori pop. Stick with sweet smoked paprika for a smoother warmth, or swap in chipotle powder if you want smoke plus extra heat.
*See the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact quantities, nutritional info, and detailed cooking directions.
🤯 Vegan Bacon Variations
Tofu Bacon
Tofu bacon soaks up marinades like a sponge and fries into thick, chewy strips with crisp edges. It takes longer to cook than carrot bacon and lacks the same crunch, but it seriously rocks in a breakfast burrito or added to a vegan burrito bowl.
Seitan Bacon
Chewy and pretty dang realistic-looking, seitan bacon is all about meaty texture and can be cut thick if you want more of a vegan Canadian bacon vibe.
Tempeh Bacon
Tempeh bacon has a subtle fermented funk that shines in strips. It crisps up like carrot bacon, but it's a little thicker and more substantial, making it something you might even want to slide into a vegan reuben.
Rice Paper Bacon
Rice paper bacon fries up lightning-fast into brittle, ultra-crispy shards. It’s more fragile than carrot bacon, but it’s killer for crunching over bowls, salads, or layered in a sandwich for texture.
📖 How to make carrot bacon
Scroll down to the recipe card if you're in a rush, but here's the play-by-play if you don’t want to skip the good part.
Step One
I Got a Peeling (That Tonight’s Gonna Be a Good Good Night):
Peel the carrots and trim the narrow tips to avoid un-bacon-like pointed ends.
Step Two
No More Mr. Slice Guy:
Use a mandoline to slice long, even ribbons lengthwise.
✅ You can use a peeler instead of a mandoline, but your bacon will be sorta insanely thin, and might need a little less cooking time.
Step Three
Whisky Tango Foxtrot:
In a bowl, whisk tamari, toasted sesame oil, liquid smoke, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, molasses, and maple syrup until smooth.
Step Four
The Hanky Coat:
Add the ribbons to the marinade and toss gently to coat.
Step Five
Wait a Minute, Get It How You Live It:
Let the carrots sit in the marinade for at least 10–15 minutes (or overnight in the refrigerator), flipping halfway through.
Step Six
Fry Me a River:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry the carrot strips in batches, 1–2 minutes per side, flat and non-overlapping.
Step Seven
Marinade and Abet:
Once they’re all cooked, return all strips to the pan, drizzle in leftover marinade, and cook until absorbed or evaporated.
Step Eight
Cool Runnings:
Transfer to a rack or towel to cool slightly. They’ll crisp as they set.
💡Serving Ideas
Serve your carrot bacon with a massive stack of gluten-free vegan pancakes, ube pancakes, Hong Kong french toast, or vegan blueberry pancakes and channel your inner diner short-order cook.
Toss crumbled carrot bacon over vegan shakshuka, dish it up with a whole mess of homemade Just Egg, or work it right into a savory vegan frittata or vegan quiche filling.
You can also tuck strips into tofu eggs Benedict drizzled with straigh-up-drinkable vegan hollandaise sauce, or wedge them deep inside a sabich sandwich with roasted eggplant and a healthy swipe of garlicky toum.
👉Top tips
- Mandoline Mastery: Use a mandoline for consistent ribbons, while a vegetable peeler works too, the bacon will be sorta insanely thin, less like the thickness of bacon, and easier to burn, or overcook.
- Give ‘Em Space: Don’t crowd the pan; overlapping carrot ribbons will steam instead of crisping.
- Heat Patrol: Keep a close eye on the heat and don’t walk away—these can go from golden to burnt in seconds.
- Cool for Crunch: Let the strips cool slightly before serving; the crispiness intensifies as they rest.
🤷♀️ Recipe FAQs
Yup! Bake at 375°F (190°C) on a parchment-lined tray for 10–13 minutes, flipping halfway.
Yes! Air fry at 375°F (190°C) for 5–7 minutes, flipping halfway through. Make sure you watch it closely.
❄️Refrigerating:
Store cooled carrot bacon in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
🧊Freezing:
I don’t really recommend freezing this. The texture goes limp and loses crispness.
🔥 Stovetop Reheating:
Quick fry in a dry nonstick skillet over medium until edges are crisp.
✌️You'll love these vegan breakfast recipes too:
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Carrot Bacon
Equipment
- Mandoline optional
Ingredients
- 2 large wide carrots
Bacon Marinade:
- 3 tablespoons tamari or other soy sauce of your preference
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons molasses
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
To fry the bacon:
- 4 teaspoons canola oil vegetable oil, or sunflower oil
Instructions
- Peel the carrots. If you want to avoid un-bacony looking tips, you may want to cut off the narrow tip side of the carrot.
- Using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, slice the carrots lengthwise into thin, wide ribbons. Aim for uniform thickness, so that the slices cook evenly.
- In a wide, shallow dish, using the tines of a fork, whisk together the tamari, toasted sesame oil, liquid smoke, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, molasses, and maple syrup until smooth.
- Place the carrot ribbons in the marinade, ensuring each piece is fully coated. Let sit for 10 to 15 minutes, gently turning the ribbons occasionally to distribute the marinade evenly.
- Heat the oil in a large nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. After 90 seconds when the oil is hot, working in batches, lay several marinated carrot ribbons flat in the skillet without overlapping. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes per side, turning once, until the ribbons are darkened in color and crisp at the edges. Add additional oil as needed between batches.
- Once all carrots have been cooked, add them back to the pan and drizzle on any remaining marinade. Allow the carrots to cook in the marinade until it has all absorbed or evaporated.
- Transfer to a rack or clean kitchen towel to cool slightly. The carrot bacon will continue to firm as it cools. Repeat with the remaining ribbons, adding more oil as needed between batches.
Notes
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Jackie Humes says
Hello! I made carrot bacon yesterday (well, tried!) . I marinated it for too long after it was part-way cooked. It never got solid-ish again, but tasted yummy! I ended up chopping it and adding it to a sort-a bolognais-ish lentil dish and the 'bacon' marinade gave the dish great flavor. I did add more sweetness to the marinade, also, admittedly.