Meatless Burgers

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Meatless Burgers

No cows died during the writing of this article.

By Eliza Truitt, Slate

 

Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2000, at 4:00 pm PT (Pacific Time)

 

Hamburgers are bad for you. They're full of fat and cholesterol,

and like all red meat they're linked to a variety of health troubles,

including heart disease and cancer. But if you're like most Americans,

the hamburger is an essential component not just of the backyard

barbecue but also of your sense of national identity. Is there a way

to eat healthy without becoming a burger-spurning Commie?

In fact, a wide variety of good-for-you, non-meat burgers has

crept into the U.S. marketplace. Soy burgers, veggie burgers,

and their ilk are available not just from your local hippy co-op,

but in your Safeway freezer section. Are any of them good?

Will any of them fool you into thinking you're eating a real

hamburger? I went to local grocery stores, picked up over

30 varieties, and present below the results of my humane,

animal-free research.

 

Soy Burgers, aka Fake Hamburgers

(A note on terminology: Vegetarian burgers have no meat,

fish, or fowl in them. Vegan burgers have no animal products

at all, eschewing things like eggs, milk, and animal-derived

gelatins.)

 

Soy protein—which is derived from the soy bean—has been

shown to provide all sorts of health benefits. It's a low-fat

source of protein, and according to the Food and Drug

Administration, " soy protein included in a diet low in

saturated fat and cholesterol " may help lower your cholesterol

and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. By eating a soy

burger instead of a hamburger, you are not just removing

a source of ill, you are adding a likely source of good.

 

So it's pretty unfortunate that soy burgers are disturbingly

fecal in aspect and generally taste terrible. They're shaped

like hamburgers and are supposed to taste like them,

but these compressed discs of brown soy protein have

a singed-plastic scent that spices can't mask and a texture

that leaves me gagging. They are palatable only when

drenched in ketchup, and even then are a chore. But in this

sea of bad burgers, one stands out as somewhat tasty.

In fact, it's the only soy burger I was able to finish:

the Morningstar Griller. Granted, it has more fat than all

the other burgers I tried (6 grams, while most others had

1 to 2.5 grams—but still far better than a quarter-pound

hamburger, which has 21 grams). But the texture was

not too pencil-eraserlike, the flavor was rich, and it even

tasted vaguely, dare I say, like chicken.

 

Vegan Soy Burgers

Boca Burgers; 365, Whole Foods store brand; and

Healthy & Natural all offer vegan varieties, which contain

no animal byproducts. Picking the best vegan soy burger

is like picking the best way to get your arm mangled

in a corn thresher. VSBs are all mortifyingly unappetizing

to the non-vegan such as myself, and the only way I could

handle them was to sniff it, take a bite, chew a little, and

spit it out. A terrible waste, yes, but if it saves one of my

dear readers from buying a package herself, I'll consider

it a contribution to society. If you don't eat dairy and need

a burger, though, I suppose the best of the vegan soy burgers

I tried was the Meat Free Vegan Burger, produced by Whole

Foods grocery stores. It's clearly good for you: no fat, 4 grams

of fiber, 13 grams of protein, and 80 calories. But the

difference tastewise between it and the other competitors

was tiny. Basically, I liked the texture of this one the best:

It was a little less sticky.

 

Veggie Burgers

Veggie Burgers are a whole different animal from the soy burgers.

Instead of emulating meat, they simply offer a nod hamburger-ward

by using the patty shape. Their composition varies from brand to

brand, usually including a combination of grains, vegetables, and

some soy protein.

 

I found quite a few regular veggie burgers that I honestly loved

and would eat again. Of the varieties I sampled, four made it

into the final round: the Gardenburger Original, Amy's Organic

Chicago Burger, Morningstar Oven Roasted Veggie, and

Natural Touch (what is this, a maxi pad?) Garden Veggie Pattie.

These were all good: excellent texture, good herbs and spices,

and so on. But the Natural Touch wins: It has 2.5 grams of fat

(less than all the others), it's toastable (you can prepare some

of these burgers without even dirtying a dish by putting them

through the toaster twice), has less sodium than all but Amy's,

contains no cholesterol (Gardenburger has 15 milligrams), and

was satisfyingly filling. Do keep in mind that this was a very

close race, though; you won't go wrong with any of the four finalists.

 

Organic and Vegan Veggie Burgers

Two main companies, Amy's and Hearty & Natural, make organic

veggie burgers—i.e., the ingredients were grown without toxic

pesticides and fertilizers and do not include any artificial or

irradiated ingredients—and almost all of these burgers are

also vegan. These were generally quite good (though I did not

like Amy's Texas Barbecue flavor). There's one vegan variety

made by veggie burger Über-brand Gardenburger, but it was

bland, and strangely enough it hadn't completely shaken the

shackles of hamburgerdom (brownish color, uniform texture,

meatlike spices). I must admit, though, that it was far better

than any of the vegan soy burgers.

 

The best vegan veggie burger was the California Veggie Burger

by Amy's. Hearty & Natural's Veggies and Grain was a top

contender for this spot mainly because it seemed proud of its

veggie nature, displaying big chunks of carrot, bean, and corn.

But the texture didn't quite cut it—it barely held together as I

flipped it (this one was not toaster-compatible, so I cooked it

in a pan). Another strange note: On the Hearty & Natural

certified organic Veggie Burger Patties there was a heart

logo with the words " Soy Health Claim " printed on them.

Did someone forget to insert that health claim in there,

or am I missing something? Anyway, Amy's California had

a robust, nutty texture and flavor. Top organic non-vegan

goes to Amy's as well, for its Chicago Veggie Burger.

This was similar to the California Veggie Burger but was

much improved by a heavy dose of cheddar cheese. Yum.

 

Most Nutritious

It would take a real health nut to calculate the relative merits

of a vegan, wheat-free soy burger versus a flax-seed-impregnated

and fiber-enhanced dairy-containing soy burger. Plus, once you're

eating veggie burgers you're already on the road to a healthy diet.

But in case you're at the double-black-diamond level of nutrition

awareness, Gardenburger makes a fat-free LifeBurger with flax seeds

(which are rich in essential fatty acids and have been shown to have

a slight anti-carcinogenic effect), 6 grams of fiber, 16 grams protein

(13 of which are from soy isoflavone flour, which some studies have

found to be especially good for you), and 100 calories. It does have

360 milligrams of sodium—100 milligrams higher than some other

burgers—but flax seed? Come on. Anything with seeds in it gets

my healthy vote.

 

Conclusion

Be suspicious of soy in meat's clothing. In attempting to emulate

hamburgers, the manufacturers sacrifice common sense:

What vegetarian relishes the thought of her meal being just like

the rotting flesh of the animals she's trying to spare? (The back

of the Gardenburger Hamburger Style patty box perfectly expresses

this misguided attitude by exclaiming, " see what a healthy 'carnivore'

you've become. " ) And for those who have turned to veggie burgers

for health reasons, the reality behind the package statements

promising " a lip-smacking juicy burger " is a slap in the face.

These discs of pressed soy are nothing like hamburgers.

The best bets are those veggie burgers that are comfortable

with their own vegginess.

[Guest guest]

Re:

> No cows died during the writing of this article.

 

When was it written? Who pardoned or gave the cows

a temporary clemency?

 

Perhaps no cows died as a result of preparing the article.

I'm sure they'll pay after the article has been circulated

and read.

 

>

> Conclusion

> Be suspicious of soy in meat's clothing. In attempting to emulate

> hamburgers, the manufacturers sacrifice common sense:

 

This conclusion get lost in the elaboration.

 

> What vegetarian relishes the thought of her meal being just like

> the rotting flesh of the animals she's trying to spare?

 

This is the real conclusion.

 

There's no point for a vegan to emulate meat or an animal

by-product diet. The best way to get out of the habit is

never to reinforce it.

 

My guess is that the food industry seeks to make their own

point with their marketing of vegan foods. Think burgers!

 

While the article may try to be cute, the subject is not

nor should it be. Let's find our humor elsewhere. There's

much humor elsewhere.

 

Ernie

[Guest guest]

I've got to kind of agree on the author's final take on soy doctored up to be

like meat. While I handle tofu just fine, any kind of fake " meat "

(soyburgers, wheatmeat, whatever) don't just settle well in my tummy.

 

-Anna

[Guest guest]

I've got to kind of agree on the author's final take on soy doctored up to be

like meat. While I handle tofu just fine, any kind of fake " meat "

(soyburgers, wheatmeat, whatever) don't just settle well in my tummy.

 

-Anna

 

 

Yah, us too. I think that is because the fake meat products tend to be based on

gluten (from wheat) and that is a challenge for

many people to digest.

 

One day years ago, we had found a recipe for extracting gluten from whole wheat,

and decided to do it for fun, planning to make

gluten " meat " balls to put on top of the veggie stew. It's a fairly simple

procedure to do, and it amazed us how much gluten there

is in whole wheat. The resulting foot ball of gluten we got, seemed remarkably

tough. Once it was cooked, it became just a bit

like leather. No wonder it works texture-wise well as fake meat! :-)

 

I have developed a great burger recipe with brown lentils, zucchini, potato and

seasonings that we all like. The trick I have

discovered to making good burgers with veggies is using raw, sprouted legumes,

not cooked ones to mix up with the other ingredients,

so that first time the legume is cooked, is when it is in the shape of the

burger. It creates a much better texture and flavour.

 

Deborah