I finally jumped on the bandwagon, and tried the carrot dogs from the Forks Over Knives Website. Now if you don’t know what a carrot dog is, you basically boil carrots, marinate them, then bake in the oven or grill them.
If your a bit unsure about how a simple root vegetable can replace and taste close enough to super processed and unhealthy meat product, let me be the first to tell you I was skeptical as well. That is why it took me two years to try it at last after hearing people rave about them on some of the Forks Over Knives Groups I am a part of.
The verdict? . . . They were great!
The carrot dogs obviously didn’t have the same texture as hot dogs. Thankfully they didn’t have the greasiness of typical hot dogs either. The flavor however, was really eerily close.
I thinks these carrot dogs work best if you typically eat them with a lot of fun toppings, or at least ketchup or mustard. The condiments and toppings really make it a complete experience that brings back memories of having hot dogs at ball games or grilling with family in the backyard. The toppings also have the benefit of distracting from the fact that the texture is a bit off and there is, of course, a slight taste of carrot.
Perfect for Families
My kids also give the seal of approval which is really important in deciding whether to add a new recipe to our meal rotation. I was especially glad that my seven year old boy approved because he likes those processed vegan hot dogs that you can buy at the supermarket. I’d much rather have him eating an actual vegetable that those anyway.
Save Your Budget
Another bonus of carrot dogs is the cost. Carrots only cost 40p for a Kilogram here in England. These definitely fit in my Vegan £1 per day Food Challenge. The most expensive ingredient was the liquid smoke since I have to buy it imported from the USA through Amazon. However since the recipe only uses a quarter teaspoon liquid smoke, one bottle of it will last for years.
The Full recipe can be viewed here: