Jazz up your next salad with these incredible vegan Salad Bits!

Via Alex Dickie | June 24, 2015

My first job was as a salad and dessert chef at a local Cafe in my home town of Cambridge Ont.  One dish that I remember fondly was the house spinach salad.  In fact I think this was the first salad I liked as a kid.  I was 15 when I started the job and wasn’t really into eating green things but the combination of the fresh spinach, creamy ranch dressing and bacon bits (I wasn’t into the shredded egg) was something I really enjoyed.  Since I became a vegetarian I have been always interested to recreate some of those foods I enjoyed ‘PV’ or ‘pre veg’ and these beauties come about as close to the real thing as your gonna get.  These ‘faken bits’ are a great addition to salads and dressings and you can even sprinkle them on your next pizza.  Who knows, maybe you have a teenager or younger child at home who could use a little more salad in their life.  Oh and don’t forget these are vegan with no added oil and are totally gluten free. Stay tuned, I’ll give you recipe for a delicious ranch dressing next time.  Bon Appetit!

Vegan Salad Bits

Ingredients
  • 1 cup TVP (textured vegetable protein)
  • 3 Tbl Braggs
  • 2 Tbl Maple Syrup
  • 2 Tbl Liquid Smoke

Equipment

  • Med Fying Pan
  • Wooden Spoon

Directions

You will want to start by heating up your frying pan (cast iron pans work really well for this).  Once your pan is hot you will pour your dried TVP into the pan.  Next add your Braggs, Maple Syrup and Liquid Smoke.  The TVP will become moist from all the liquid and that’s important in order to get the flavor into your bits.  You are going to keep frying (without the oil of course) until you reach the desired texture.  You can fry for less time and get a softer more chewy type bit, or keep on the flame for longer and get them nice and crunchy.
All these ingredients are readily available at your local grocery or health food store.  Bobs Red Mill has a great TVP product and the liquid smoke can be easily found in the condiment isle.
Now some might ask ‘what the heck is TVP?’ and  I admit it kind of sounds like something you might add to your diesel truck to get a little more torque, but that’s not the case.  TVP is basically dehydrated tofu.  You can also substitute the TVP with shredded tempeh, but you will have to cook a little longer to get rid of some of the moisture.

About The Author

Alex Dickie has been the head chef at Prama Wellness and Prama Institute since 2012.    The type of cooking found at both centers can be very difficult since so many dietary restrictions are used to help people detoxify their bodies and also revitalize themselves.  Alex has developed a delicious and simple style of cooking that uses no oil, sugar and is completely vegan and gluten free.  

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