Vegetarian — Recipes — A Small Stove

If you ever find yourself in Kitchener, Ontario, do yourself a favour and visit The Yeti Cafe near the Kitchener Market. It is, hands down, my all-time favourite breakfast place ever and their vegan bacon (aka jazcon) is out of control delicious. I genuinely think I could eat the equivalent of my bodyweight in this stuff and I would have no regrets.

This here is my take on their vegan bacon scattered onto my take on a breakfast-y banh mi. It’s my favourite at-home breakfast sandwich to whip up on a lazy Saturday morning!

Also, hot tip, even if you don’t make this full recipe, just give hoisin a try on your next eggy breakfast sandwich. It’s a trick I learned from the geniuses over at The Yeti and it has changed my breakfast sandwich game for the better.

Veg-Friendly Breakfast Banh Mi

Makes 4 sandwiches

For the Do Chua (Vietnamese Quick Pickle)
½ small daikon radish, peeled and julienned
2–3 medium carrots, peeled and julienned
1 cup water
½ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt

For the coconut bacon
1 ½ cups large unsweetened coconut flakes*
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 ½ tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
1 tablespoon liquid smoke**
2 teaspoons maple syrup
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

For the sandwiches
8 eggs
4 banh mi buns, like fresh small baguettes or Portuguese rolls, split
½ cup mayonnaise, divided
¼ cup hoisin sauce, divided
Coconut bacon (regular bacon would be great too)
½ cucumber, thinly sliced lengthwise with a vegetable peeler
Do Chua, drained
Cilantro
Sliced green onions
Sriracha, optional

For the Do Chua (quick pickle), mix the daikon and carrots together and place them into a large glass bowl or jar. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the water, rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Stir the mixture until the sugar and salt have dissolved then pour it over the daikon and carrots. Place the veg in the fridge to pickle for at least 20 minutes or up to one week.

For the coconut bacon, preheat your oven to 350ºF and line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. In a large bowl, toss together the coconut flakes, oil, tamari or soy sauce, liquid smoke, maple syrup, smoked paprika, and five-spice until very well combined. Spread the coconut out onto your prepared baking sheet and bake in your preheated oven for 10 to 13 minutes, giving the coconut a stir about halfway through. Keep your eye on it because coconut tends to go from golden and delicious to burnt and inedible pretty quickly. Remove the coconut bacon from the oven and allow it to cool to room temperature.

To assemble the breakfast banh mi, fry the eggs to however you like them and spread each of the buns with a good helping of mayonnaise and hoisin sauce. Layer a hefty ¼ cup of coconut bacon overtop followed by cucumber slices, two eggs, Do Chua pickles, and a scattering of cilantro and green onions. Drizzle the top with sriracha if you like things a little spicy and dig in!

*Be sure to use large coconut flakes, not shredded coconut.

**Liquid smoke is available at most larger grocery stores as well as through Amazon