Vegan Ground Pork Substitutes: 5 Best Ground Pork Substitutes For Vegetarians

Have you been looking for a vegan ground pork substitute? Well, look no further than this article.

The following vegan ground pork alternatives will not only be easy to find on the market or to cook but they can also satisfy both meat-lovers and vegetarians.

What is ground pork?

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Ground pork is a type of pork that has been ground before being sold on the market.

Ground pork is often made from pork shoulder thanks to the perfect meat to fat ratio.

If you start with a leaner cut, you can add more fat trims to the mixture to make your ground pork juicier and more flavorful.

Ground pork is often ground by a meat grinder, especially the store-bought version.

If you don’t have this equipment in your kitchen, you can finely chop your pork shoulder cut into very small pieces of meat until the texture meets your expectation, normally between coarse and smooth.

Store-bought ground pork sometimes includes fillers and preservatives.

Ground pork can be cooked in different ways, such as stir-frying or forming into a pork patty and grilling.

It is served in numerous ways too, such as the filling for sandwiches, hamburgers, and tacos; served with spaghetti, pasta; or to make sausage.

Can you substitute ground pork with vegan alternatives in cooking recipes?

We all know that meat is more expensive than most other plant-based ingredients.

Moreover, pork is red meat, which is considered less healthy than white meat because of its higher saturated fats.

Therefore, many people are looking for a healthier option to substitute for ground pork.

Normally, ground chicken breast is ideal to replace ground pork because chicken is leaner than pork.

However, if you are a vegetarian and need to cut down completely the animal protein intake, don’t worry, there are still plenty of vegan-friendly substitutes that will work in most recipes that call for ground pork.

What vegan substitutes can you use in place of ground pork?

With the following vegan substitutes for ground pork, you will never have to worry about running out of this ingredient in your favorite recipe.

Let’s check it out!

1. Seitan

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Seitan is always one of the first choices to substitute for meat.

You can opt for seitan slices or ground seitan to use in place of ground pork.

This gluten-based product can be found in most grocery stores or supermarkets at a reasonable price.

Seitan also easily absorbs other flavors from spices and ingredients that it is cooked with.

Therefore, you can flavor it with whatever you like to turn this bland ingredient into something tasty and more savory.

2. Ground mushrooms

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Mushrooms are prized for their meaty texture, so using ground mushrooms to substitute for ground pork will be a wise option.

You can add other veggies to the mixture of ground mushrooms to ease the umami flavor of this plant-based ingredient.

Ground mushrooms can be used in any recipe that calls for ground pork, including stir-frying, pan-searing, or grilling.

3. Mashed lentils

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Lentils are also often used to replace meat because they provide a rich source of protein.

To resemble ground pork, lentils (normally different kinds of beans or peas) are simmered or boiled until they are tender and easily mashed into a paste.

After that, you can season and pan-sear, grill, or bake this vegan-friendly patty to serve with tacos, sandwiches, or hamburgers.

4. Tofu

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Tofu is an inexpensive way to replace meat, especially ground meat.

It is a soy-based product, so if you are allergic to soy, just refer to our other vegan ground pork substitutes.

While extra firm tofu is preferred to resemble a whole cut of meat, soft tofu is more suitable to substitute for ground pork.

The reason is when cooking soft tofu, it easily breaks down and replicates ground meat.

Tofu also greatly soaks up flavors from spices, sauces, and other ingredients it is cooked with.

5. Scrambled eggs

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Eggs are included in a vegetarian diet, along with other dairy products like milk, cheese, butter, or cream.

Scrambled eggs are great to substitute for ground pork in any dish like sandwiches, tacos, burgers, or casseroles.

However, keep in mind that a vegetarian diet is different from its vegan counterpart, and the vegan diet will not contain eggs.

The bottom line

We hope that after reading this article and checking out our top picks for vegan ground pork substitutes, you can find the one that is perfect for your needs.

It doesn’t have to be meatless if you are not a vegetarian.

You can combine vegan ground pork with other meat ingredients if you like.

All of these vegan ground pork alternatives are worth trying so you can experiment with different flavors.