Sprinkle veggies with this meaty tasting seasoning, and watch bacon lovers reach for seconds

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it’s high time to brainstorm ways to ensure the meat-lovers around the table won’t leave your 10/10 veggie tray untouched. So before you pop your broc, squash, and other assorted fall staples into the oven, make sure to add one more flavorful, meat-emulating spice to the indelible salt-and-pepper duo: Spanish smoked paprika.

Before you pop your broc, squash, and other assorted fall staples into the oven, make sure to add one more flavorful, meat-emulating spice to the indelible salt-and-pepper duo: Spanish smoked paprika.

According to Hugh Garvey and Matthew Yeomans, authors of the The Gastrokid Cookbook, the seasoning offers even the most cruciferous of greens a pork-like flavor that’s palatable to pickiest of eaters (including the kiddos, whom the book seeks to entice), reports Slate. “It makes everything taste like bacon,” the authors write. Writer Dan Kois adds that Spanish smoked paprika gives any dish a “smoky, salty sweetness” and recommends trying a dulce (sweet) variety of it rather than a picante (spicy) one for a final dish that will be resonant of “bacony umami.”

So, go ahead: Sprinkle your veggies ,which you can make oil-free for extra-healthy goodness, with the newly-appointed MVP of your spice rack. Just remember that this loud, zesty mix carries a powerful kick in just a teaspoon. So start with the tiniest amount and work your way up, depending on your preferences those of the people with whom you share veggie dishes. By Thanksgiving, you’ll have discovered the perfect crowd-pleasing #win that will make your 100 percent vegan side dish—or main dish—outshine the bird at the center of the table.

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