Vegan BBQ Bacon Pizza with Caramelized Onions
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
This Vegan BBQ Bacon Pizza is better than any take-out I’ve had and a great dinner to make on a Friday at home. Layered with caramelized onions, tempeh bacon and a creamy sauce.
Pizza Friday is one of my favorite days of the week and this new recipe is easily at the top of my list. A crispy crust is layered with BBQ sauce, caramelized onions, my vegan cheese hack, tempeh bacon and lots of cilantro. This is a super fun (and tasty) pizza recipe that you will want to make on the regular!
How to make tempeh bacon
Tempeh bacon is super easy to make. Toss together some soy sauce, liquid smoke, sriracha, agave, tomato paste and garlic powder. Chop up some tempeh and toss it in the marinade. Transfer the mixture to a parchment lined baking sheet and cook it for 7 minutes.
You don’t want to cook it longer than this – the tempeh will continue to cook in the oven once it is on the pizza.
Let’s talk caramelized onions
Besides the tempeh bacon, the other star of the show is the caramelized onions. And the trick to good caramelized onions is taking it low and slow. They will take about 25-30 minutes to cook, but I promise, it will be worth it!
Add some oil to a pan with the onion and a pinch of salt. Cook them on low and keep them moving in the pan so that they don’t burn. Once they start to get some caramel color, add a drizzle of agave (or maple syrup) and let them cook for a couple more minutes. They will get a nice golden color and taste amazing!
How to bring together Vegan BBQ Bacon Pizza
Spread out some pizza dough on a greased baking sheet and add some BBQ sauce. Top it off with the onions, vegan cheese (well, my vegan cheese hack – see the recipe for the details) and the tempeh bacon. Pop it in a very hot oven and cook for about 10-12 minutes.
Remove from the oven, slice it up and top it off with plenty of fresh cilantro. You could also add a side of vegan ranch if that’s your kind of thing!
Need more recipe inspo? Check these out:
Vegan BBQ Bacon Pizza
Ingredients
FOR THE CARAMELIZED ONIONS
FOR THE TEMPEH BACON
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon liquid smoke
- 1 tablespoon agave or maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 4 oz tempeh cut in bite-sized pieces
FOR THE PIZZA
- 1 16-ounce package pre-made pizza dough
- corn meal for rolling out dough
- 1/4 cup BBQ sauce
- 3 tablespoons vegan cream cheese I used chive flavored
- 4 tablespoons vegan creamer* unsweetened
- cilantro for serving
Instructions
- Place the dough on a surface lightly covered in corn meal. Allow the dough to come to room temperature for 30 minutes.
- While the dough is resting, heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt. Immediately lower the heat. Cook the onions for 25 minutes, being sure to move them around every couple minutes. Once they have a little bit of color add the agave and cook for another couple minutes. Remove from the pan, draining as much oil as possible.
- While the onions are cooking, combine all of the tempeh bacon ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer the tempeh to the baking sheet and cook for 7 minutes.** Remove from the oven and increase the oven heat to 500 degrees.
- Combine the cream cheese and creamer in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Set aside.
- To assemble, spread out the dough on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Spread the BBQ sauce out on the dough. Top with the caramelized onions, cream cheese mixture and the tempeh bacon. Place in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and top with cilantro. Slice and serve!
Notes
This post may contain affiliate links. If you click on one and make a purchase I will receive a small percentage of the sale. Please know I would never link a product unless I have personally used it and loved it!
If you make this recipe be sure to snap a photo + post it + and tag #thissavoryvegan and @thissavoryvegan!
This pizza is so amazing and so easy to put together! I love everything about this pizza. One of my favorite parts about it is the vegan “cheese”. So smart and so delicious, I think I will make that vegan cheese for more pizza recipes. I am rating this a 10/10!!! Yum!
Hi Isabella! So glad you liked it! And yes, I put that vegan cheese on pasta, pizza…it’s a must!
Hi Rene, tried the BBQ Bacon Pizza tonight – loved it! The sweetness of the carmelized onions really paired well with the tempeh “bacon”. I was pleasantly surprised by your “cheese hack” too! Will definitely be making this one again.
Thanks!
Wooooo – so glad to hear Kelly! And yes, that cheese hack is my go-to for pizzas. It seems weird, but it just works. lol
This sounds yummy – I can’t wait to try it!
What kind of BBQ sauce do you recommend?
Thank you!
Hi Angie – there is a spicy one from Trader Joe’s that I really like!