Anyone try the KFC Beyond nuggets?

[bcla]

Have you seen this? Really unfortunate choice of a name IMO.

https://soylent.com/

Unfortunate? That was intentionally provocative.

 

[georgina]

Unfortunate? That was intentionally provocative.

I will amend that to really stupid name then.

 

[_19disnA]

Beyond meats may be good for those who are vegetarian or are unable to eat meat for some reason. However, if you are eating it to be "healthier" I stay away from it: https://www.mashed.com/192631/what-youre-really-eating-when-you-eat-a-beyond-burger/

^^ Good article. Most of these fad foods try to play up what they think people will find good about them. Coconut oil isn't a health food and that ingredient list above shows several other chemical additives. Many other supposedly 'healthy' foods play up the fact they don't contain additives you can't pronounce. It just depends on what is currently trendy that their marketing people try to take advantage of. Potato chips didn't suddenly become a health food just because 'plant based' is a trendy new marketing term.

Sounds like their newest pitch doesn't relate to health benefits but that it helps save the environment compared to the ways other animals are raised. Not sure if that will catch on with most consumers.

 

[bcla]

I will amend that to really stupid name then.

Sure. But they absolutely knew that they were evoking cannibalism. What would that be called? Edgy is the word I was thinking.

 

[bcla]

^^ Good article. Most of these fad foods try to play up what they think people will find good about them. Coconut oil isn't a health food and that ingredient list above shows several other chemical additives. Many other supposedly 'healthy' foods play up the fact they don't contain additives you can't pronounce. It just depends on what is currently trendy that their marketing people try to take advantage of. Potato chips didn't suddenly become a health food just because 'plant based' is a trendy new marketing term.

Sounds like their newest pitch doesn't relate to health benefits but that it helps save the environment compared to the ways other animals are raised. Not sure if that will catch on with most consumers.

Good quality vegetable protein is easily available, but who wants to live off a diet of vegan protein shakes or tofu? Food doesn't have to taste good to keep us alive, and more expensive food doesn't necessarily make us healthier. The primary reason we spend more money on food is in the hope that it's going to taste better. Spices and most flavorings are superfluous. And we specifically eat things that we know are unhealthy. This whole exercise with Beyond, Impossible, and others is all about making it palatable.

 

[Kimkimba]

We may try them, knowing full well they are not healthy. My dh, youngest dd(14), and I don’t eat meat. We are not vegan (although my dd tries to be).

I never liked meat anyway, but would eat poultry and ground beef. Dh was the same as me but decided a few years ago he wasn’t eating meat and I stopped cause I didn’t really like it anyway. He has way more energy and isn’t bloated. I’ve lost 50 pounds.

My dd just loves animals. No way she’s going to eat one.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

It was always interesting going to Red Robin with a Hindu vegetarian. Not only was meat not on the table, but with a strenuous objection to beef. No objection to anyone else, but man that was odd. His only option was the veggie burger at the time, although I'm not sure exactly what it was. Might have been mostly black beans. I'm not even sure they reserved a part of the grill just for that. Even the Hindus I knew of that had no objection to chicken might have been upset if the grill was used for beef, or others like Muslims who might object if the same grill was used for bacon. I've worked with lots of people from different backgrounds, and finding places that would be fine for everyone could be tricky.

Burger King doesn't cook the Impossible Whopper on a separate setup except on request. They'll clean off an area to do that. Not sure about Red Robin. They claim they have vegetarian/vegan options, which sounds like a separate area, but I guess one should ask to make sure.

The first meal I ever ate at Red Robin was the fish, even though DH told me “you don’t get fish in a hamburger place”. I should’ve listened. We didn’t go back for years, because, well, the fish really wasn’t that good! I believe I have seen it more recently on the menu there, too, but it could’ve changed by now. At any rate, I do like their burgers now. That must’ve been like torture for the Hindu man!

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Not chicken, but I was quite skeptical about a vegetable hamburger. We went to some festival and I had one and I absolutely loved it. I thought it was better than an actual burger. I got one because I think they were out of regular burgers, and it turned out to be such a good thing.

I did try a vegan hotdog before... THAT was terrible. I guess it makes sense because I hate hotdogs anyway. I figured if there was no meat at all in it, I could eat it. Nope, still gross.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Good quality vegetable protein is easily available, but who wants to live off a diet of vegan protein shakes or tofu? Food doesn't have to taste good to keep us alive, and more expensive food doesn't necessarily make us healthier. The primary reason we spend more money on food is in the hope that it's going to taste better. Spices and most flavorings are superfluous. And we specifically eat things that we know are unhealthy. This whole exercise with Beyond, Impossible, and others is all about making it palatable.

But people in India, home of 1.38 BILLION people, have already pretty much perfected the art of making non-meat taste mesmerizing by orchestrating carefully selected spices. They don't use weird chemicals or goop to make their meals palatable, it is delicious AND most live in poverty so they are artful in managing a lack of refrigeration, so it's not like the answer doesn't exist. I've also had Ethiopian and Middle Eastern food which manages quite nicely. Seems the big difference is having or not having dairy, which demands refrigeration and is more European, skip the dairy and it's a whole new game. No need for food alternatives,the whole movement is just bizarre which is fine for adults who opt in but if anyone tries forcing this on kids in poor communities I will be out there protesting in a heartbeat.

 

[Mysterian]

Pigletto! A name that's fun to say.

People aren’t going to fast food places for “real food” or their health anyway.

Then why bother with a Beyond/Impossible burger to begin with? They just prefer the taste over real meat?
If not for the disdain for factory farming, what else would be a fast food consumer's incentive for a Beyond burger?

By promoting the idea that these burgers are plant-based, there will no doubt be customers who mistake these as "healthier eating". Let's face it, Beyond/Impossible is just playing off of peoples' assumptions and selling them a product that isn't much healthier than the beef burger.

 

[bcla]

So McDonald's is working with Beyond now. However, McBeyond would have been an awesome name, but somehow they settled on the less appealing McPlant.

https://apnews.com/article/business-san-francisco-california-34ec860fc6d569551f661613c6765559​

McDonald’s is expanding sales of its meatless McPlant burger to hundreds of locations.​

​

The company said the McPlant __ which it co-developed with plant-based protein company Beyond Meat __ will be sold at 600 stores in the San Francisco and Dallas areas starting Feb. 14.​

​

It’s a major expansion for the McPlant, which was introduced last November at eight stores in Texas, Iowa, Louisiana and California. That test run helped the company determine how a plant-based option would alter its kitchen operations. McDonald’s said the larger product offering will help it understand customer demand.​

https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/product/mcplant.html

 

[bookgirl]

If these show up here I’ll definitely try them. I have real and fake nuggets in my freezer right now. I eat either of them just fine.

I actually prefer Morningstar Farm or Impossible burgers to actual hamburger meat. I really detest hamburger meat. But love a steak.

I have no ethical problem with animal products it’s all texture and sensory with me.

Funny enough I like hotdogs but can’t stand the fake ones. Also meatballs, hate them whether fake or real.

My friends who are veg/vegan/pescatarian tell me I’m a flexitarian. I will eat animal products but often will choose the plant based options over animal, and sometimes eat almost exclusively plant based. It really is just a case by case basis for me.

And predictably the only food I really have problems giving up…cheese LOL. I love Nutritional Yeast but will pass on all other plant based ‘cheese’ options.