PatuleiaReal meat vs Beyond meat
daellatI really enjoy BM’s burger personally. Taste is good but the real kicker is the texture and how it really has some body to it. What’s the consensus on them?
I personally think the flavour is off but the texture is good, I personally prefer impossible burger
Impossible taste is nearly a replica of beef. And when you surround it in burger toppings, it could trick me
It’s not a replica. Have you people ever tried proper burgers at all?
Flying SquidI’ve only had the Impossible Whopper, but I thought it was way too salty. Is it like that when you buy it in the store too?
No they add extra salt to the whopper I too did not really enjoy the whopper
Good to know. Thanks.
SludgehammerImpossible burger is usually more salty than beef even before cooking. Not enough to be salty tasting, but if you’re trying to eat a low sodium diet they have a fair bit more than real beef.
The impossible whoppers are too thin and dry. Store ones are more like a normal 1/4 patty
I don’t think I’ve seen them around yet in my country, I’ll have a look around to see if I can get them to try
I’ve had them before. The flavor is a bit different and the texture is a little softer, but it’s pretty close. All in all, they taste very good and they’re filling like a normal burger; albeit a little expensive compared to meat.
There was a period in 2020 and into 2021 beyond meat was cheaper than ground beef.
I am a vegetarian and do my best to avoid meat replacements, but I do miss meat balls and meatloaf. Beyond meat works well for both of those.
More preservatives than a McDonald’s Happy Meal. No thanks.
They are better now that they are not salty. For like a year they loaded them with a ton of salt.
Better than most fake burger patties but still a big ways back from Impossible
Dr. BobWhere’s the beef? I see vegetables.
If there’s one dish where I feel it’s a waste to eat animal meat, it’s hamburgers. Vegetarian alternatives have come a long way and in a burger they’re often the superior option.
There’s a small difference for sure, but the BM patties are far from inferior. And much of the difference is masked by condiments anyway.
BigFigNothing pisses me off more than seeing “wagyu beef burger” on a menu. What’s the fucking point if you’re gonna grind it up and shape it into a patty
Because there’s other cuts on the cow and it would be shameful for that to go to waste. They aren’t using ribeye to male it.
Still silly to pay more for it. If you’re mincing meat you can just add whatever fat ratio you want to it without having to overpay about 10x for the privilege.
It’s not just the fat content. Wagyu fat renders differently and has a different flavour.
You could keep trimmings from wagyu cuts to mix in with the minced meat, but yeah, it would be lost in a burger. Better off rendering the trimmings down to make tallow.
They still use the burger parts for burger. They’re not taking a ribeye and grinding it up and selling it at a loss.
Is it a dumb thing for dumb people? Maybe. You would think the extra fat would just cook off and it wouldn’t go very far vs uncooked weight.
I wouldn’t buy one but I wouldn’t want that meat to go to waste either.
TheAndrewBrownThe ones I’ve had are usually similar price to the other burgers or a very slight increase and the patty quality was definitely better. If the price difference was like between wagyu steak and normal, I’d never even consider it.
At Costco the ground wagyu is cheaper than the regular ground beef. I use it in cooking rice dishes and the fat does rice it a nicer flavor. Also appreciate that wagyu is sold in 1lb packs vs. 1.33 lbs for the Kirkland brand.
I personally think like the complete opposite - if there’s anything that’s a waste, it’s a beyond meat burger, because veggie burgers are like, really fucking good. Why on earth would you settle for an inferior pretend product when you can instead have a really good thing that’s not pretending to be something else?
Miss me with that fake meat stuff and bring back actual veggie burgers! I got a real nice sweet potato and black bean one I’ve been working on for a while now
It's def subjective but I've never been a fan of the blackened bean burger as a hamburger replacement. I wasn't that impressed with the bm burgers but the impossible burgers are a fine replacement imho.
This isn’t a hamburger replacement this is a homemade burger where the beans taste like beans and are mainly there because I like refried beans and thought they’d be good as a burger
I tell meat eaters and vegetarians the same thing about this.
“Do not compare this to the best meat hamburger you ever had. Instead pretend its a completely new food that you’ve never tried.”
Treat it like a protein option and stop trying to force it to be just like something else. It is very similar to meat in many ways, but it isn’t meat. I don’t consume much advertising so I don’t know if the companies are selling it and saying that it’s indistinguishable.
It’s not “fake”, it just isn’t “meat”.
100% agree. The imitation methods used in all of the vegan “meat” products just are not near good enough. My ex made me try a bunch, they varied from a little off to just plain gross. Even though I approached each one with an open mind, not a single one was enjoyable. It was actually really hard to keep an open mind after a while, having been either disappointed or disgusted 100% of the time in the past.
However, chickpea patties? Delicious. Black bean burgers? They’re usually pretty decent too. There was one veggie burger we tried that had portobello mushrooms as the main ingredient, and it was the most delicious veggie burger I’ve ever had, hands down. It was so savory and juicy, and the texture was excellent.
I just wish these companies would just focus on plant based products with great taste as their main goal rather than trying to imitate meat, because they’re just so astonishingly terrible at it.
I’ve just realised that most people kinda just add the beans in direct which isn’t what I meant. Whoops - yeah nah I turn them into refried beans and add them in. Directly throwing in black beans never seems to work in my opinion. Also a big fan of just like, making a really big aloo Tika (an Indian potato cake) and using it as a burger. They’re really good and the burger king where I live used to actually sell them as their main veggie option before BM muscled all the decent veggie options out. Falafel burgers are also really good, but alas they’re kinda a lot of work because of all the soaking and deep frying.
My holy grail of veggie burgers is this one spinach burger I had all the time as a kid because they always had leftovers of them at school sausage sizzles and I’d get the extras for free. It was probably some deep freeze bulk thing but goddamnit one day I’ll make a spinach burger that doesn’t taste like some sort of goddawful diet thing.
Just eat a falafel sandwich. Why do you need or want to call it a burger?
tjhart85Meh, I don't like mushrooms and really don't like the black bean burgers and haven't liked any other veggie burger I've tried, but the Impossible ones I can hardly tell the difference from cow, so ... why wouldn't I choose the impossible when given the opportunity?
So, for me, I guess the answer is that if I want a burger, I want a burger, why would I go for something that doesn't taste anything like a burger?
Because there’s like a difference between a beef burger and the platonic idea of a burger. Like if I say I want a burger, you’re not going to fault me for buying a chicken burger are you? Even though it doesn’t taste anything like a regular beef burger? Same deal with veggie burgers. Meanwhile if I order a burger that looks like beef with the expectation that it will taste like beef, I’m going to be upset when it doesn’t taste like a nice beef burger but instead a rather shitty one
Also there’s tons of veggie burgers out there, maybe you just gotta try some that aren’t like, the weird “healthy” options that dominate the search results. Stuff like a big ol’ falafel in a bun or deep fried aloo tika.
…also I don’t actually like beef burgers that much
Ninayou’re not going to fault me for buying a chicken burger are you?
There are TONS of people who will do that exact thing. what is or is not a sandwich or burger (is a burger a type of sandwich?) for some reason is a stupidly contentious topic that people feel passionate about.
People take labels and their individual expectations of that label pretty emotionally.
Real veggie burgers never left. Quinoa burgers are amazing. Still love Beyond Burgers but veggie burgers do add a nice variety.
AnamanaWhy not both? :D Cause sometimes I feel like eating this and sometimes I feel like eating that
Garden burgers are the worst. Portabella is good. Even boca burgers are okay. Impossible is far better than Boca though.
Semi-Hemi-DemigodMakes me wonder why they didn’t start with beyond meat sausage. The seasoning would cover any difference in flavor and the texture would be a lot easier to disguise
I’m genuinely baffled at the idea that beyond meat can be seen as remotely as good as a beef burger. It is VERY different. Albeit an okay replacement in a lot of senses, it just can never be as good as a traditional beef burger. Generally I wish I could be vegetarian but beef burgers would be by far the worst part for me if I had to give up meat…
While I agree that beef burgers are great and that beyond meat just isn't the same, I think it's also important to remember that the second best thing to going vegetarian is eating less meat.
Yeah I agree. I do eat veggie burgers from time to time and enjoy them. I just take issue with the claim that these replacements are " just like meat". It’s not, and that’s ok
FalmarriBeyond burgers suck. Have you tried an impossible burger? Those are pretty fucking close
Yeah I have but it’s been years. I think I’m with you that I prefer impossible over beyond burgers
IMO how things taste varies wildly from person to person. To me Beyond burger has a weird flavor that I dislike that never goes away.
Impossible burgers are a much better meat replacement to my taste buds. They’re still not 100%, there’s always a bite or two at the start were they taste off, but after that they taste pretty much like a cheap hamburger.
Yes, that's because it's not an Impossible burger. Now that one... comes really close.
VeraxusI was with you until you mentioned Beyond Meat. BM is just nasty, and bears no taste or texture resemblance to meat at all. That might be ideal for vegans, but it won’t win over any omni or carnivores.
Impossible is a different story. I can make smash burgers with that stuff that are utterly indistinguishable from a real burger. It won’t trick anyone in a meatloaf but for a burger, it’s pretty impressive.
I mostly agree. The impossible burgers are great, much better than I expected! I wanted to try the Beyond Meat burgers to compare… yeah they aren’t as good. I wouldn’t cal them nasty, but for sure inferior to the Impossible burgers.
Impossible burgers taste better, look better, and could easily be mistaken for real meat. I also really like the at they are meant to be cooked from frozen. Just 4min per side in the skillet and it’s about perfect. I cook it with some Worcestershire sauce and that kicks it up a notch!
The BM burgers say they need to be defrosted before cooking. I’m not about to do that because it’s a lot of time and planning. I cook them from frozen and they kinda turn out a bit mushy.
When is the last time you had a Beyond Burger? For a while they were salty af and pretty gross. Just got more from Costco and I would say they are better than Impossible Burgers.
Exactly.
Beyond is just a slightly better evolution of the old Boca burgers. Still meh and you know in one second it’s not beef. If beef like was what you were going for, you’re boned. If not meat and it doesn’t matter, it’s fine
My first impossible burger was in a real burger restaurant (that’s all they cooked) and I had to verify that it wasn’t a regular burger
The difference is most certainly not small. It’s very noticeable. I also love the veggie options, but your position is kind of like saying:
If there’s one dish where I feel it’s a waste to eat animal meat fusilli, it’s hamburgers pasta. Vegetarian alternatives Spaghetti has come a long way and in a burger pasta dish, they’re often the superior option.
AtaraxiaAt least this is a minority opinion. I rely on the availability of meat products to eat. I cannot process carbs or sugars and they make me incredibly sick even legumes and tubers, whole grains etc. Fruit also. It triggers insane inflammation that I can only hold at bay with benadryl and that’s not safe to use habitually.
It’s meat, low lactose dairy, fish, eggs, greens for me and when I do break my diet to have a delicious slice of my boyfriend’s pepperoni pizza I am disabled for a day or more. I need to be able to work otherwise I wouldn’t care if I were bedridden from including carbs and sugars in my diet. I personally don’t believe there’s anything wrong with eating meat as I was raised along side sheep eating lamb and baby birds. No question about it that any other predator on the planet wouldn’t think twice about eating me ass first. I’m OK being part of the food chain.
I prefer the Impossible beef. I just think it tastes better.
Agreed. I bought Beyond Meat patties at Costco because mine was out of Impossible and I was sorely disappointed. Impossible or bust!
And it’s too bad…
People definitely buy up the impossible and ignore the beyond. They had the 10 pack on sale for $10 because it wasn’t moving. Wish I liked them more
jimmydoreisaleftyWhat the!
What kind of Real Meat ™ is that?
The one on the right does look more appealing though…
TrismegistusMxThe patty on the left looks like it was prepared by a vegan.
I'm moderately sure the Beyond patty is the one on the right.
As someone who eats them, I’m 100% sure it’s the one on the right.
I’m pretty sure they meant that the beef one was prepared by someone unfamiliar with cooking beef hamburgers on account of its poor execution. A quip.
That’s the vegan one. Thanks!