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Substitutes for Pork in Cooking

This is probably one of the most commonly asked questions related to halal cooking- how do you substitute pork in so many recipes where it’s a classic ingredient in other cuisines?  Well, throughout the site I hope you’ll see just how that’s done, but  for purposes of quick reference, you can take a look at this chart below. There’s a PDF version available at the end of this post, too. It is also available in the My Halal Kitchen cookbook

Halal Substitutes for Pork- JPEG

Download the PDF here

If you liked this post, you might also want to read my post on substitutes for alcohol in cooking

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  1. Salam,

    I also use turkey bacon as a substitute for regular bacon quite successfully. For chorizo, I usually buy soy chorizo, which has become quite common nowadays and is really almost identical to pork chorizo. I had not thought about the duck prosciutto, I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks!

    1. Hi! Thank you! I am revising my views on religion and theology in general and I’m trying to cut pork from our diets, for various reasons. I shall look for these products, although I have no idea where I have to go to find them?!

      1. There are a variety of products in many different places- some local Mediterranean and/or Middle Eastern or South Asian markets, sometimes Wal-Mart sells halal chicken (Crescent Foods), some Whole Foods Markets and The Fresh Market sell halal broths and frozen entrees (Saffron Road). It all depends, but if you visit a local ethnic market you will most likely find some good direction. You can also look up ‘halal turkey’ for example and call the brand to see where they are locally in your area. I hope this helps.

      2. Dear Claire, I don’t know where you’re from but the company “Godshall’s quality meats” in Lebanon Pennsylvania produces a variety of Halal meats and distributed throughout the country and various grocery stores. My husband works for this company so if you’re really having trouble finding it perhaps I can have it mailed to you directly. Good luck !

  2. Salaam I really like ur Halal website it will make my cooking much easier !!
    I have a question I want to make Halal Tarimsu
    ( Italian dessert ) what can I substitute for
    KALUHA ( coffee liquor ) ? And also can u post ALL the substitute ingredients in one so I can
    put on my fridge.. Thank you

  3. Just figured out your a Muslim and are trying to infiltrate my world. No thanks. Stay in the Mid East or assimilate. You think that killing people because they don’t accept your screwy thinking is ok but eating pork or using alcohol is bad. Quite sending me your stupid post. I’m not interested.

    1. I agree with u I’m Muslim I do not eat no pork and alcoholic I don’t understand halal don’t eat pork???….but she is Muslim is she? If she eat pork why she wear scarf?…I like her cook not included with any pork recipes….ur Muslim sister

    2. @Lous Bender
      Whoa! Talk about nonsense! O.o
      I say, chill out! Read and educate yourself on Islam before you judge. Just gorging on the garbage the media is spoon-feeding you isn`t really going to help.

      Yvonne, I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy and love your website! I have been studying Islam for a while now and I am feeling closer to it than ever. In sha Allah I will be a Muslim soon.
      So, naturally I find great inspiration in your beautiful website. Learning, for example, about substitutions is an invaluable skill which will prove to be extremely useful along the way.

      Keep up the good work and do not let spiteful comments bring you down! 🙂

    3. @Lous Bender your knowledge of Islam is very limited and your tolerance for other religion is very short. Good luck getting anywhere in life with that attitude. Go away and learn more before you say things like that!

    4. Salaam! Louis is a troll. Who would go out of their way to post anti muslim comments on a muslim forum. Sooooo weird. Blessings everyone, love you all!

  4. @Lous Bender also may I just add Nobody is trying to Infiltrate your world, the Media and your country does that enough. please find some Logic behind what you say cause your not doing yourself any favours.

  5. Assalam Aleikum, Shame on her does she read her bible at all?Does it permite her or the followers of “Christ” to eat pork? The bible forbides even the touching of pigs leave alone eating she must be suffering from pig flu coz she seems not to even listen to what God has taught Jesus to teach them. She can look up deutronomy 14:8 then she can come and bring her crap.

  6. I have not eaten pork sense I was about 20 and now I am forty-two, because I have had certain pork products I also have to have substitutes. My question is when I get a taste for example the sausage you have on the list called Sejouk does it taste similar to Italian sausage because I have had a taste for that a long time. I come close and looked closer to chicken or turkey sausage and find they have pork casings. Then other sausages taste almost like a hot dog. I would appreciate any help you can give me I don’t stand with any religion so I don’t know who to ask but I do believe in ONE ALMIGHTY ONE and HE told me no pork.

    1. Sejouk tastes much like pepperoni. It has the same texture also. It is very delicious and not just a substitute for pork. I have never found a suitable substitute for bacon. In meals calling for pork loin or pork roast I find the sweet taste and the texture to be much like veal. It is great with barley and sage. Other meals I substitute chicken, but the chicken will change texture if cooked for a long time. In that case is would be better to use veal. Turkey ham or pastrami is indistinguishable from the pork version. There is a store in my area that sells beef pepperoni. Some Italian markets will carry the beef variety, but it isn’t easy to find.

      Substitutions for alcohol’s properties in cooking (like tenderizing) can be achieved with vinegar, fruit juice, lemon or lime juice, or yogurt. I don’t see any reason to have “halal” alcohol. I don’t want to use a halal version of a haram product just so can imitate people who don’t know any better. Substitutes to improve flavor or texture in cooking are not hard to find.

      I am sorry to hear such venom against a website which seems to promote understanding between many different cultures. I think your page is great. If someone doesn’t like it just hit the “ignore” button and move on. My husband is Egyptian and I do almost all the cooking so I like finding new recipes to bring a little variety to the table. For people who have a one dimensional hatred of a group of people, I suggest making a friend and seeing how multi-dimensional people really are. I would hate to live in fear of the world. People are people. We have more in common than differences.

      May God bless you.

  7. I came across your website this morning and am anxious to try many of your recipes. They look delicious.
    To substitute for pork sausage I like to grind beef, chicken, or turkey medium fine and add my own spices.
    It’s so easy and because companies tend to add all sorts of scary preservatives by adding my own I know
    my sausage is healthy.
    Again, thank you for posting your lovely site. From an Christian Anglo American!

  8. @Myhalal kitchen.. just a suggestion…

    Pork lard can be substituted with beef tallow… If it is made from halal butchery.. or any beef tallow that is halal certified..

    Other than beef tallow you can use any form of animal rendered fat..

  9. I’m not that much of a online reader to be honest but your sites really
    nice, keep it up! I’ll go ahead and bookmark your website to come back later.
    Many thanks

  10. Come on people, this is just a food site, not for religious debates. Its just the matter of food so take it that way. If someone is using a food item its their choice or taste, if other doesn’t (for any reason) its theirs, leave it to that person, why argue or comment for that!

    1. For lard, I usually substitute it with chicken fat. Boil a whole chicken then let it cool and then refrigerate. Once refrigerated and cold, you can scrape out and save the chicken fat that rises to the top.

  11. Salaams,

    Thank you so much for this list.
    I do have a question. Is it possible to make the “crispy bacon” texture with beef or lamb meat? Will it have to be thinly sliced or beaten and then fried?
    I’ve previously eaten “veal bacon” in Dubai and it was so good, but we don’t get any such meat in delis or in shops where I live, so I thought the best way would be to actually make it from scratch.

    Thanks 🙂

  12. Hi everyone!! I saw a couple of posts about people asking for a substitute for bacon. I am Turkish and we buy what is called pastirma. It looks like bacon and prosciutto. It is delicious!! We also love sujuk too!! The brand of sujuk that I buy is Merve!!

  13. Hi! I’m a Christian and in my Christian beliefs, I’m not supposed to eat pork/pig in general so I’m starting to find things to replace pepperoni with.

  14. We eat pork in America. You should move to thr middle east. We will stop the islamificaton of our White Christian civilization and get you moslem infiltrators out.

  15. Do you have any suggestions for substitutes of pork meat, like in itislian meatballs. Just using ground beef always makes them hard! I’ve tried soaked bread and milk as well but wasn’t satisfied.

  16. HI Yvonne,

    I came across your website, let me tell you it is awesome, i LOVE IT 🙂

    I do have a question though for you or for anyone who might know , I want to know if there is a halal Balsamic vinegar OR any substitue for Balsamic Vinegar, i read there is a Halal Balsamic Vinegar produced by an Italian Company but where i am residing ( Australia) this product isn’t available at all.

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