6 OF THE BEST

Vegan bacon

By Pip Sloan

Ask a recently converted vegan what they miss most about their meat-eating days and the answer is often a bacon sandwich. Indeed, little can replicate the fatty delight that is a rasher sizzling in a frying pan – but as more of us take stock of the amount of animal products we eat, so the demand to create a passable veggie version of this and other meat products grows.

This year, Waitrose announced that sales of its vegan ready meals have overtaken its vegetarian counterparts. One sixth of all food products released by supermarkets last year were vegan, including, inevitably, an impressive array of vegan bacon, or “facon”, as it is being nicknamed.

So popular are these meat-free alternatives that the supermarkets are beginning to release ownbrand versions, the latest being Waitrose’s vegan “smoky streaky slices”.

But will any of these successfully imitate our beloved bacon? We put six of the big names to the test.

I SEA BACON ORGANIC SEAWEED ‘BACON’ £5.99 FOR 30G, THEFOODMARKET.COM

Instinct tells us that it’s hard for a plant in its pure form to imitate meat, and in this case, instinct is correct. This is unmistakably a piece of fried seaweed and in no way resembles a rasher of bacon. However, it’s actually very pleasant – intensely salty, crispy, with an oceanic tang. Try with scallops, but it’s no morning fry-up. 6/10

VEGIDELI’S CHEATIN’ VEGAN STREAKY BACON £2.49 FOR 115G, OCADO

Approximately the shape of a shoe horn, coloured an unappetising shade of rust, and with an attempt at a white vein of fat, this looks altogether alien. Made of gluten, soya protein and vegetable fat, it transforms very little in the pan and a tentative bite reveals absolutely no flavour and a texture of warm leather. Very odd. 3/10