Tempeh bacon takes me right back to my teenage years, when my older brother went vegan and got our whole family on board with this plant-based protein. Back then, we bought pre-marinated tempeh bacon, but I’ve discovered that it’s easy to make it at home.

Tempeh bacon is a smoky, salty, and slightly sweet plant-based alternative to bacon. It’s easy to make at home and doesn’t require much hands-on time.

Marinate the tempeh one day ahead, then bake or fry it just before serving. I make a batch on Sunday mornings, then I get to enjoy a few slices for breakfast over the next few days. A little goes a long way since it is highly flavorful and well-seasoned.

Tempeh is made with fermented soybeans (sometimes with other beans or grains) and a culture of Rhizopus oligosporus, making it easy to digest. It is bound into a solid, firm cake that’s sliceable and ready to cook.

It has a nutty and mushroom-like flavor and can sometimes be a little bitter. For the mildest flavor, use it when it’s nice and fresh, before it has a chance to over-ferment in the fridge.

More fermented tempeh does exist and they have their applications, but for the purpose of this recipe, you’ll want a mild flavor that doesn’t compete with the marinade.

Tempeh is not a perfect replacement for bacon. If you try to slice it as thin as bacon, it tends to fall apart—I find that 1/4-inch slices are the easiest to work with. It’s also not as fatty or crispy as bacon, but it’s delicious in its own right.

Sometimes tempeh is steamed or boiled to remove any bitter flavors. That is not necessary for this recipe since the marinade is strongly flavored. Tempeh bacon gets its smokiness from an old-fashioned ingredient, liquid smoke, which is typically used for homemade barbecue sauce, baked beans, split pea soup, or any dish that could use a dash of smoky, savory flavor.

This marinade is easily adaptable, whether you want to make it gluten-free, use a different sweetener or oil, or even add a little hot sauce for some heat:

• For the salty notes in the marinade, soy sauce is my go-to, but you can use tamari or coconut aminos instead. Substitute with low sodium soy sauce if you want it to be less salty.
• Agave nectar, honey, brown rice syrup, or brown sugar can be used instead of maple syrup.
• A dash of hot sauce and a good amount of black pepper add just enough kick, but leave them out and add a little apple cider vinegar for a milder flavor.
• I use olive oil because it’s what I have on hand, but any cooking oil, like vegetable, canola, or grapeseed oil that is not strongly flavored works.
• If you prefer not to use liquid smoke, use an equal amount of smoked paprika.

For the easiest, most hands-off method, I like to bake tempeh bacon. In the last five minutes of cooking, and again after it’s out of the oven, I brush a little bit of the marinade on the tempeh so that it gets a nice shiny glaze.

If you want extra crispy tempeh bacon, use an air fryer. Simply spray the tempeh with a little oil and cook at 400ºF until nicely browned, about 8 minutes. Another option: sear it in a skillet with a little olive oil, about 3 minutes per side.

Serve tempeh bacon just like bacon: alongside scrambled eggs or tofu for breakfast, top an avocado toast, or make a vegetarian BLT. It’s also great tucked into breakfast burritos or chopped and sprinkled on a salad. I wouldn’t recommend using it in soups or stews, because tempeh is too lean, it can crumble, and becomes mushy.

Once the tempeh bacon is cooked, serve it right away or store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It will soften a bit in the refrigerator—revive its texture by frying it in a dry skillet for about 2 minutes, just until warmed through.