Here’s How Plant-Based ‘Meat’ Combines With Nutritional Value
Meat isn’t your only option if you want a burger, barbecue sandwich, or the savory centerpiece of a traditional meat dish. But not all plant-based meat alternatives are equally nutritious. Here’s how some of the best options stack up:
Beyond and Impossible hamburgers
These brands make crumbs and beef-like burgers that mimic real ones very well. (They’re not identical, but as someone who enjoys eating beef, if I were to take one of those burgers to a party, I’d assume it was beef unless someone told me otherwise.)
- Calories: 250 to 270 per four-ounce patty.
- Protein: about 20 grams per cutlet.
We have a complete nutritional rundown here . The bottom line is that the Beyond and Impossible burgers are nutritionally very similar to their beef counterpart. They have slightly more calories, fats and carbohydrates, and the same amount of protein as beef per four-ounce patty. (However, beef varies depending on its original fat content and how you cook it, so it seems fair to put it all on the same level.)
Jackfruit
This fruit has a hard, fibrous texture that has inspired many chefs to cook it like minced pork or chicken. Add some BBQ sauce and you’ve got something that looks like a pulled pork sandwich.
But nutritionally, jackfruit and pork have very little in common. There is almost no protein in jackfruit! One cup of jackfruit pieces contains :
- Calories: 143
- Carbohydrates: 35 g
- Fat: 1 g
- Protein: 2.6 g
This makes it nutritionally comparable to raw potatoes , rather than meat. On the other hand, pulled pork contains 600 calories per cup with 64 grams of fat and 36 grams of protein.
Jackfruit is definitely a lower calorie option than pork; but a slider made from this material is closer in nutritional properties to a mashed potato sandwich.
Tofu
Tofu may not be as trendy as other meat alternatives, but it’s still tasty and versatile, and it’s also high in protein. Nutritional information varies by brand and preparation, but for example, six ounces of House Foods Super Hard Tofu contains :
- Calories: 160
- Carbohydrates: 4 g
- Fat: 9 g
- Protein: 16 g
For comparison, 100 grams of chicken breast (about 3.5 ounces) contains 21 grams of protein in 172 calories. This makes tofu a worthy alternative when you consider the fact that it is less dense. In other words, it takes up more space on your plate than a piece of lean meat like chicken with similar nutritional value.
Seitan
Seitan is almost pure wheat gluten, so if you’re avoiding gluten, it won’t work for you. But it’s another great high-protein plant-based ingredient that has the texture and density to replace meat in a variety of dishes or even deli meats. A 100-gram serving of seitan contains :
- Calories: 143
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Fat: 2 g
- Protein: 19 g
This makes this plant-based protein another real protein (sorry, jackfruit) that can replace lean meats. It’s worth noting that the protein in seitan doesn’t contain all of the essential amino acids we need, so make sure you’re also getting protein from other sources , like beans (or tofu!) to balance it out.
Vegetarian burgers
It’s impossible to tell what’s in a typical veggie burger, they’re so different. So we’re just using this PSA space to check the nutritional value of your chosen patty. Some contain a lot or at least a moderate amount of protein; others almost all carbohydrates. Take a look at what it contains and make sure if it is not high in protein, you are getting this nutrient from other parts of your diet.