Review: Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon

The day scientists finally replicate bacon in a meat free version, a facismile that’s truly indistinguishable from the real deal – that’s the day the planet becomes vegan overnight In the interim, companies like Sweet Earth continue to gently push the envelope forward.

Let’s be clear up front, no one will ever mistake the product in taste, texture or look for actual bacon. I imagine we’re decades from the above science fiction. That said, this product definitely has merit.

Texturally, this is a wheat gluten based product adulterated with a few other items (see below). That means it cooks up to a shatteringly crisp finish if you follow the packaging instructions. Indeed, I think my first go around with this bacon was too crunchy, I’d cook a little less next time.

Taste wise, this bacon doesn’t taste like wheat gluten (yay!); there’s an enjoyable umami quality, and a not too intense smoke level. The packaging lists natural smoke flavor and I have to admit the smokiness didn’t overwhelm me like some products can that use artificial liquid smoke. I have to believe this spent some time around a real smoking process. Thumbs up here.

So yay or nay? A guarded yay I think; certainly if used as part of a larger dish. Maybe adding some smoky crunch to a burger (see below) or perhaps crumbled into a salad to add texture.

Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon – what’s in the packet

Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon

Here’s the bacon used as part of my meat-free Western BBQ burger with vegetarian chili, BBQ sauce, onion rings and a Beyond Burger.

Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon cooking instructions, ingredients, nutrition

2 minutes per side in a hot pan is the recommended way to cook this bacon. I found this to be the absolute upper end, resulting in an exceptionally crisp finish. The bacon is also very delicate, don’t throw this on the grill, indeed you’ll need to be careful in the pan, it tends to break up under high heat.

How much does Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon cost?

I paid $3.99 at Whole Foods for this bacon in April 2009. That’s probably the upper end of what I’d pay.

Other Sweet Earth products

• Sweet Earth Jumbo Vegan Hot Dogs
• Sweet Earth Chorizo-Style Sausage review
• Review: Sweet Earth Hickory And Sage Benevolent Bacon
• Review: Sweet Earth Moroccan Empanada
• Review: Sweet Earth Sante Fe Veggie Burger

Stuart Melling

Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you!  I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC – Utah’s biggest and oldest online food magazine; I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune.  I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV shows.

I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have covered the Utah dining scene for the better part of fifteen years.   I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand.   I started Shop Smart to catalogue my adventures in the grocery store and kitchen.  Follow along on Instagram too!