I was disappointed in the Gardein Fishless Filets.

[CrispyQ]

http://gardein.com/products/golden-fishless-filet/

I was so looking forward to these! They are not bad, they are just not like fish. They are more like chicken.

The seven grain crispy tenders are still my fave.

http://gardein.com/products/seven-grain-crispy-tenders-2/

[kentauros]

1. I haven't tried their "fish" products.

Probably because pretty much ever "fish" product by such meatless companies never seems that good. I guess that kind of texture and flavor is still the most difficult to replicate.

I've liked pretty much all of the gardein products I've tried, though no grocery has the variety they offer on their website, even if I combined trips to all the ones that do carry them...

Thanks for taste-testing for us, though

[CrispyQ]

6. I would say that cheese is still the hardest to replicate.

How many stores do you go to, to get all the veggie items you like?

Oh my, at least three. If I have some really weird things on the list, four.

[kentauros]

7. I only go to two:

my local (and 24-hour, which is important) Kroger, and Whole Foods, which is at least a ten-minute drive away. I'd love to be able to shop at HEB, but they don't have any decent versions of their groceries nearby to me. I probably should start getting up earlier on Saturdays so I can go to the various farmers' markets in town.

Now, when I run out of Mediterranean spices, then I make the half-hour drive to Phoenicia Specialty Foods

And yeah, "cheese" is still the most difficult to get right of the fake veggie-friendly substitutes.

[Arkansas Granny]

2. I'm not trying to be tacky, but I've always wondered why vegans/vegetarians look for products

that mimic the look and taste of meat.

[SheilaT]

3. I agree. If you don't eat meat

for any reason at all, why in the world would you want something that is supposedly a lot like the meat you won't eat.

I'm a happy omnivore myself, so I cheerfully eat the real thing, but if I didn't eat meat I'd just not eat meat.

I also think that a great many vegans and vegetarians do not understand that we did evolve as omnivores, eating a pretty decent variety of foods, and depending on exactly which ancient group you're talking about, our distant ancestors by no means ate the same diet in different parts of the world.

But if someone chooses not to eat various categories of food, that's fine. Just don't think I ought to eat the same way.

[CrispyQ]

5. "Just don't think I ought to eat the same way."

Last edited Wed Sep 3, 2014, 09:45 PM - Edit history (1)

Your post struck a nerve.

No one in this group would ever suggest that you should eat the way that we choose to. No one. We may wish the world was vegetarian, but we respect everyone's right to choose for themselves.

This is a protected group & yet you barged in & suggested that we don't understand human evolution, like we think all humans were just a bunch of carrot crunchers before the slaughterhouse.

When it comes to diet, we are some of the most educated people out there. We know that everything is interconnected. Many of us are concerned about the way we humans treat our fellow inhabitants (the animals), the way we treat our planet & the way we treat our bodies.

As to this question of yours,

why in the world would you want something that is supposedly a lot like the meat you won't eat.

I refer you to my previous post:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/11312890#post4

[SheilaT]

12. Unfortunately, I often get the feeling from vegetarians and vegans

that my meat eating is offensive and that I should stop immediately. They will all to often spout nonsense which shows they do not understand human evolution and don't get that meat eating is a crucial part of our inheritance.

If someone chooses not to eat meat, I'm totally fine with that. But I will go back to my question of why in the world would you want something that purports to replicate the exact thing you don't want to eat? They are not comfort foods. They are artificial foods that are not remotely like the thing they're supposedly replacing.

I do a great deal of cooking from scratch. I even have been known to bake my own bread, although not lately. I did recently get a new bread baking machine and have yet to put it to use. I like real food, freshly prepared. For me, that includes meat. It does not include very many processed foods, and I'm noticing that the more I cook for myself, the less happy I am with what I get at restaurants, even supposedly good ones.

I suspect if I were a vegetarian/vegan I'd feel even more strongly. It is not that hard to cook from scratch. Michael Pollard says it best: eat real food. Not too much. Mostly vegetables.

[LeftyMom]

13. I'm not sure why you're in our group telling us that we're preachy.

We're not eating processed stuff all that often, fwiw. I clean out the farmer's market. I can like it's going out of style. When I want analogs I prefer to make my own because they're better. People invite themselves over to my house to eat often enough that it's a bit annoying, so apparently I'm pretty good at this cooking thing.

People already answered your question: it's about avoiding suffering. The thing your posts seem to gloss over is that animal foods come from animals. When you consider that it's fairly obvious why veg*ns would choose to avoid them and have no problems with plant based foods which resemble them superficially- the difference is the animal.

And it's Pollan. The line is "Mostly plants."

[LiberalElite]

18. ^^^^^

[flvegan]

10. Enjoyment without the suffering/selfishness. Why not?

Oh, and please direct your nutritional doubts my way. I look forward to that discussion.

[CrispyQ]

4. The main reasons I hear people switch to vegan/vegetarianism are:

Ethics - the inhumane way the animals are treated,

Health - how the consumption/over-consumption of animal products negatively impacts human health,

Environment - factory farms have a huge negative impact on the areas surrounding them.


All of these issues are addressed with a vegan/veg diet.

I do not consider meat replacements to be health food, in fact, I'm not sure I consider them food at all, they are so highly processed. But they are not a staple in my diet, but rather a way to re-create old, familiar comfort foods, not based on cruelty, when I just want something that tastes good.

[kentauros]

8. One easy answer: hamburger and hotdog buns.

If you don't make your own bread (and most people don't, even vegetarians) then you're stuck with the shapes of the various forms of bread out there shaped specifically for people that do still eat meat. The two types of bread shapes above don't translate that well to "salad on a bun" types of sandwiches. Why not use them with a veggie equivalent?

Now, the complex answer that some veg*ns may not be as willing to admit is that some of us do still enjoy the various flavors not only of the "meat" but in how it's prepared. For example: beef stroganoff. Why give up that dish when you can simply replace the beef with soy or micoprotein strips and not kill an animal in the process? (The sauce can also be made from soy milk based sour cream to avoid the dairy.)

In my cookbook "library" of 40+ books and uncounted collections of several cooking magazines, I'd say at least a third of the recipes contained therein have meat in them. And, every now and then, I like to convert them. Meat analogues are often the only way to do that.

[hugo_from_TN]

19. This comment from meat eaters is always funny to me.

They seem to think that hot dog wiener and hamburger patty shapes are somehow natural shapes for meat and it is strange for someone to fashion something similar out of other substances. I've never seen any animals or animal parts that look like wieners and patties - Dachshunds excepted.

[LeftyMom]

9. Honestly, because they're convenient.

Something that only takes a few minutes and doesn't require much effort or many dirty pans is handy. So is something that won't stick out too much if you have to go to a social gathering where everybody else will be eating the real thing.

Plus most of us were raised on the stuff and might have an occasional craving.

I'm vegan because I don't want animals to suffer and die for my wants. I'm perfectly aware that burgers are delicious and chicken is versatile enough to be used in damn near everything. Fakes reconcile the conflict well enough for me.

Weirdly enough this question never gets asked about say, vegan butter or mayo, and doesn't get asked all that often about various milk-like products. It's always faux meats. Which is weird, because those are by far the faux animal products with the longest history, having been used for religious reasons, thrift or wartime rationing long before they were embraced by ethical veg*ns.

[Codeine]

17. Why not?

Most of us grew up eating meat. We're used to the shapes, flavors, and textures of meat. If I can have those things - or at least a decent approximation of them - without having to murder an animal (or more likely pay for the privilege of an immigrant in a meat-producing state murdering one for me) then why the heck wouldn't I? You like meat, yes? Well, so do I -- I just like animals more.

People think vegans are universally disgusted by the flavors of meat - and no doubt some vegans are - but I personally recall meat as tasting pretty damned good. I enjoyed the taste and mouthfeel of meat, but I decided I had no business killing a feeling, thinking being in order to enjoy those things. When someone makes a veggie version of a chicken nugget or a pepperoni pizza then I'm going to enjoy it, guilt-free.

[Chellee]

11. Really?

That's too bad. I liked them very much. I don't know if they're my favorite, but I was never a big fish eater, even when I ate fish. I didn't think they tasted particularly chickeny.

I've used them in fish tacos and just straight up with tarter sauce and fries.

[CrispyQ]

14. Oh, I like them, I just think they taste like chicken.

The breading on them is really fantastic.

[Chellee]

15. You could try sprinkling them with a mixture of kelp flakes and Old Bay seasoning.

That will knock the chickenyness right out.

Probably.

Couldn't hurt to give it a shot anyway.

[CrispyQ]

16. I hadn't heard of Old Bay seasoning before.

I'll check it out.

http://www.oldbay.com/products/old-bay-seasoning.aspx