Coconut Bacon

I recently had some very delicious vegan cajun food at a newer restaurant - Krimseys Cajun Kitchen in North Hollywood (http://krimseys.com/). They topped their soup with maple coconut strips, which gave me the idea for trying it at home.

This is very similar to the Bacon-ish Bits recipe posted here previously. I didn’t have maple syrup, so I used coconut sugar instead. The online recipes I’ve seen for vegan bacon include liquid smoke. That’s a bit too carcinogenic for my liking.


Equipment needed: Mason Jar with lid (holds at least 3 cups), 1 cup Measuring Cup, 1 tbl Measuring Spoon, Glass Baking Pan (could be metal or silicone or...), Oven

1 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
2 cups reduced sodium Tamari (contains soy)
2 tbls Coconut Sugar
Coconut Flakes

Or 3 cups of your marinade of choice. The resulting flavor depends on what’s in your marinade.

Fill the mason jar to near the top with coconut flakes. Add the rest of the ingredients. Put the lid on and shake over the sink in case it leaks. Refrigerate overnight or at least 6 hours. The timing on this is flexible. I like to do overnight to be sure the coconut absorbs a decent amount of the marinade. I also like to sit the jar on a paper towel to absorb any drips.

Pre-heat oven to 250 deg (F)

Drain the coconut. If you like the marinade and want to make more “bacon”, save it. I drained mine into a container of sunflower seeds. Those will get baked soon.

Spread the coconut into the baking pan. It can be layered - I recommend less than 1” deep. Bake for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. You may need to scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen any that are stuck. Turn off the oven and allow the coconut to crisp up as the oven cools.