Have You Tried Beyond Beef?
With life and health lately we have been re-evaluating choices. Discovering how a plant based diet might help improve our health while saving the world. I know– talk about DRAMATIC, Linda. On a serious note though, have you thought about plant based? Ever wonder about Beyond Meat products?
Today I thought I might provide an overview of my experience. Remember total “meatatarian” here.
Netflix Documentaries on Plant Based Diets
On top of Kent’s health issues we have also been watching Netflix food documentaries. Have you seen them? The Game Changers and What the Health are what I am talking about.
First The Game Changers, have you seen it? The film, produced by James Cameron, argues that eating any animal products—including meat, fish, eggs, and dairy—can hinder athletic performance, wreak havoc on your heart, impair sexual function, and lead to an early death. Now there has been a lot of discussion regarding the show. Are the studies real, is this truth or fiction? For me, believe what you want, conclude what you need but the film provokes thought. I am not convinced I need to give up meat but I do need to change my habits. Adding more plant based cannot be harmful.
Next up was What the Health, a 2017 documentary film which critiques the health impact of meat and dairy products consumption. It also questions the practices of the leading health and pharmaceutical organizations. Its primary purpose is to advocate for a plant-based diet. Again thought provoking but a lot of controversy over his true intent.
For me both films need to be watched with a grain of salt, no pun intended. Listen to what they have to say but draw your own conclusions. For me they both lead me to believe it can’t all be wrong. Possibly making adjustments and decreasing my dairy and meat cannot be harmful. Quite possibly with my family history it might be a smart move.
Exploring Plant Based Products
We have undertaken an exploration of plant based. Honestly, we are surrounded by those who are lactose intolerant and/or allergic to dairy. Why not try almond. soy and coconut products. The yogurt alternatives are OK and I could get used to them. Heck I even ordered Nutritional yeast to make vegan Mac and Cheese. The “milk” replacements I am still testing. Dairy replacement will be an overtime slow change.
Meat? Well, that is a whole different beast. Face-palm again with the bad pun unintentionally. Finding something that have me the same kind of texture was a little more interesting. Then we heard about Beyond Meat. We purchased the burger patties and that was worked out OK. We were curious about the ground beef substitute. How would it be in an actual dish? So we made Vegetarian Chili and were not disappointed.
How Do You Cook Beyond Beef?
Beyond Beef looks very similar to ground beef, but was it actually a good substitute. We were trying it out for a vegetarian Chili recipe, so we opted to fry up the product and add seasoning.
The texture was the same, the sizzle made it feel right.
Truly if I didn’t tell you it wasn’t beef would you know? Would you be yelling Where’s the Beef like someone else we all know and love?
My Review Of Beyond Beef
Truth- it is not ground beef, the texture is softer. It is also not like tofu, so a plus in my book. It easily takes on the flavor of the seasonings and gives you the additional protein. Would I use this again? Totally. It’s a great alternative and slightly better for me.
I have tested the burgers and now this product. Initially I was concerned about the price but a comparison to store bought ground beef showed me it was comparable. Keeping an open mind I am curious to test out a few more staples like lasagna and Shepherd’s Pie. Stay tuned for more great Plantventures.
