# "Beyond meat" (vegan) burgers really do taste and feel like meat. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 3, 2019, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428 "2019-05-03T16:28:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/41 "2019-05-04T11:53:00Z")
[Moderating] **Ambivalid** , remember that this isn’t the Pit. A certain amount of criticizing of spelling and grammar is allowable, but keep it more polite and less personal. Or take it to the Pit, and make it as impolite and personal as you like. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/42 "2019-05-04T12:04:22Z")
I like beef. I’ve never tried the “fake beef” because why. If they were significantly cheaper than beef or tasted “better” than beef, sure, I’d try one. ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/43 "2019-05-04T12:37:01Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I like beef. I’ve never tried the “fake beef” because why. If they were significantly cheaper than beef or tasted “better” than beef, sure, I’d try one. Surely you’d need to try one out yourself to accurately judge that, no? ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/44 "2019-05-04T12:40:56Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I like beef. I’ve never tried the “fake beef” because why. If they were significantly cheaper than beef or tasted “better” than beef, sure, I’d try one. I tried them initially due to cholesterol concerns. The sodium tradeoff was what stopped the experiment. (In all honesty, I still sometimes use Morningstar breakfast sausage patties simply because they’re pretty good. In their own way. If you don’t overcook them and dry them out.) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/45 "2019-05-04T12:57:21Z")
> [@drmark7](#): > > Here’s the deal for me… as a 30+ year vegetarian… I don’t really WANT my burgers to taste “just like real beef.” I would assume a good deal of vegans and long time vegetarians would feel the same way. The Impossible Burger even exudes red juices like real meat does, so anybody who has an ethical revulsion to eating meat I think would still be squicked out by it. I feel like this is more marketed towards meat eaters who want to reduce meat consumption for whatever reasons (environmental ones would be a big one) not as much people who are established vegans (although it’s there for those who are fine with it.) In fact, the White Castle Impossible Burger, if you order it as-is, isn’t even vegan (served with cheese as default–and I don’t know if the bun contains milk or anything non-vegan.) Plus in the initial advertising run, there was a poster which suggested to customers to add an Impossible Burger to their normal beef slider orders. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/46 "2019-05-04T13:38:02Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I like beef. I’ve never tried the “fake beef” because why. If they were significantly cheaper than beef or tasted “better” than beef, sure, I’d try one. For me it, it was mostly curiosity, with a mix of a nagging thought that I really should knock down how much beef I eat not so much for health concerns but more for environmental ones. But, really, mostly the curiosity. When they first came out in this area, I just couldn’t wait to try one just to see how close food science has come to making something that acts and tastes like ground beef and, I found out, quite a bit. That said, I continue to order them from time to time because I actually do like them, and at White Castle they are pretty cheap at $2 for something a bit more filling than a regular slider (at 240 calories–the older ones were heftier, IIRC, at around 300 per slider, but I guess they trimmed them down a bit after the introductory period before they went national.) So there I like to get two jalapeño cheese sliders to satisfy my slider craving and one Impossible slider for a bit of variety and a more “standard” tasting burger experience. The only issue with the Impossible sliders is that they cook them all to order, so it takes 5 minutes to get your order. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/47 "2019-05-04T14:47:35Z")
I wonder if anyone has performed a lifecycle analysis on energy and emissions for these burgers vs beef. My guess is they come out ahead. But I’d like to know how much. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/48 "2019-05-04T14:52:01Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > I wonder if anyone has performed a lifecycle analysis on energy and emissions for these burgers vs beef. My guess is they come out ahead. But I’d like to know how much. :smack: Google _before_ posting. [https://impossiblefoods.com/if-pr/lca-update-2019](https://impossiblefoods.com/if-pr/lca-update-2019) Granted that’s their own analysis, so it warrants scrutiny. Well, any study does. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/49 "2019-05-04T21:06:25Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > There are many ingredients in it. Singling out the pea protein instead of the maltodextrin, methylcellulose, or bamboo cellulose in it is simply uninformed speculation. Maltodextrin is in practically everything. And those other two are just common fiber fillers. It makes more sense that the things that are unique about the burger would be more likel to be what causes any problems. And “pea protein isolate” is probably the most unusual one. That’s not to say it can’t be the other ingredients, or a combination of ingredients. But I know I’d first suspect the pea protein isolate. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/50 "2019-05-04T22:08:59Z")
I tried an impossible burger at white castle and was not impressed. Then I tried vegetarian chicken nuggets from the grocery store and they were terrible. Sucks, I’d love a good plant based meat or lab grown meat alternative. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/51 "2019-05-04T22:25:06Z")
sorry about that i was on my aunt’s tablet and she turned off the spell check and my fingers are rather large for the tiny keys ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/52 "2019-05-04T23:22:04Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I tried an impossible burger at white castle and was not impressed. Try it at a different burger place if you get a chance. It varies a lot. Some of the White Castle ones I’ve had were great; some undercooked and vegetal. As I said above, there seems to be a lot of variation on the things. I would find another hamburger joint that serves them and try them there before writing them off. My cousin, for example, had one at Kuma’s Corner – a place that is famous for their hamburgers in Chicago – and hated the Impossible Burger there. Meanwhile, he tried one again at White Castle and loved it. (And he’s an eat-a-one-pound-beef-burger kind of guy, but open minded enough to check out veggie options from time to time.) There does seem to be a trick to cooking them right, though, to maximize their meatiness and not get some of the vegetal side flavors. That’s why I’m excited to hear there will be a retail release later this year: I’m looking forward to playing around with it. I’m also looking forward to trying BK’s take on it. I don’t like BK burgers, but I have a feeling I may actually like a BK Impossible burger, for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/53 "2019-05-04T23:30:35Z")
Come to think of it, my first experience with “fake meats” was back in the 90s with some vegan cafe that was a couple doors down from the coffeeshop I worked it. They had some sort of Asian “mock duck” dish made with, I believe, seitan. Now, I don’t think it really tasted like duck to me, but it was an impressively meaty texture and had soaked up meaty flavors that I would have thought it was a meat-based protein of some sort had I not been told otherwise. They may very well have been the last time I’ve had seitan, so I’d be curious to try it again and see what I think of it now in that sort of preparation. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2019, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/54 "2019-05-04T23:48:06Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > … > Sucks, I’d love a good plant based meat or lab grown meat alternative. These aren’t bad as long as you don’t overcook them. If you do, they dry out something turribl. Also, they don’t end up looking greasy like the ones in this picture do, even when you cook em proper like. [https://www.morningstarfarms.com/products/morningstar-farms-original-sausage-patties-product.html](https://www.morningstarfarms.com/products/morningstar-farms-original-sausage-patties-product.html) ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2019, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/55 "2019-05-05T01:38:58Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > There does seem to be a trick to cooking them right, though, to maximize their meatiness and not get some of the vegetal side flavors. That’s why I’m excited to hear there will be a retail release later this year: I’m looking forward to playing around with it. For those of us who cook but aren’t foodies, this is just what we need - _another_ way to screw up a main course. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2019, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/56 "2019-05-05T02:11:25Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > For those of us who cook but aren’t foodies, this is just what we need - _another_ way to screw up a main course. But that’s the same with ground beef. I’ve had plenty of shitty hamburger by people who didn’t know what they were doing there, either. So, nothing really different than using any other ingredient. ---
**Author:** ![2ManyTacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/3da27b/32.png) [@2ManyTacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2ManyTacos)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2019, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/57 "2019-05-05T02:45:39Z")
I tried the Beyond Famous Star at Carl’s Jr several weeks ago because I had a coupon for it. The thing came smothered in sauce and left me feeling ‘full’ after I ate it, but it was a different kind of fullness that I have never really experienced before, if that makes sense. Surprisingly, the Beyond Famous Star contains more calories than a normal Famous Star, but I don’t really know where those calories were coming from haha. I still don’t really know how I feel about it, but it’s unlikely I’ll go out of my way to order another one. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2019, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/58 "2019-05-05T02:56:54Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![pohjonen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pohjonen/32/423_2.png) [@pohjonen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pohjonen)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2019, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/59 "2019-05-06T04:35:22Z")
Sounds yummy. > [@](#): > > The Beyond Burger: pea protein isolate, expeller-pressed canola oil, refined coconut oil, water, yeast extract, maltodextrin, natural flavors, gum arabic, sunflower oil, salt, succinic acid, acetic acid, non-GMO modified food starch, cellulose from bamboo, methylcellulose, potato starch, beet juice extract ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2019, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428/60 "2019-05-06T06:23:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > [Moderating] > > **Ambivalid** , remember that this isn’t the Pit. A certain amount of criticizing of spelling and grammar is allowable, but keep it more polite and less personal. Or take it to the Pit, and make it as impolite and personal as you like. I apologize. I will apologize privately as well. That was uncalled for and i realize it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beyond-meat-vegan-burgers-really-do-taste-and-feel-like-meat/833428.md?page=4)