You Need to Season the Fake Meat
When it comes to meat substitutes like those made by Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, I’ve noticed that people tend to think of them as packaged, ready-to-eat foods like frozen pizza rolls or chicken nuggets. Just cook, eat and voila , even the pickiest carnivore couldn’t tell what they were eating – ah – impostor!
This is a two-pronged misconception: First, I would argue that meat substitutes should not really expect to taste “just like meat”, but this may already be a conversation; and secondly, Beyond and Impossible products must be seasoned in the same way as raw beef. Rather than expecting them to taste straight out of the box, you should treat them like a canvas that you throw a ton of spice on. (I know, I know, I’m a white guy who claims that adding flavor to a spiced meal is a “trick,” but not enough of you spice up your impossible burgers.)
This is how I did it for the recent Impossible Burger evening. Since I had a package of Impossible meat that was not preformed into patties, I poured the seasoning mixture onto a plate and formed patties there, allowing the meat to collect spices along the way. This method spreads the spices all over the patty, not just the outside.
I went with a mixture of garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, black pepper, and Trader Joe’s mushroom umami seasoning. This combination, as you might guess, is absolutely successful, but this is far from the only way out. I want to try a more herbal blend soon, which includes rosemary, thyme and garlic. If you don’t feel like messing around with fresh herbs or rummaging through your spice cabinet, at least take the time to sprinkle a few healthy pinches of salt on the outside of your non-beef patties. Vegetarians deserve a taste too.
You can make three pies in a standard Impossible Meat package, so I formed two for myself and my boyfriend, then mixed the remaining spices with the remaining “meat” and put them in the refrigerator. (We threw it in the roast the next day.)
After a few minutes on the stove over medium to high heat, these babies were ready to go, and while they didn’t taste “exactly like meat,” they did taste good , and that is how lunch should taste.