Hi,
A few weeks ago, a friend dropped off the Farmland version of plant based kinda sorta like meat. Her husband had been sent to the store to buy ground beef and came back with plant based look alike. They were not interested in trying it, so they wisely dropped it off at my house.
A few people have inquired privately why people send their unwanted food to me. Exactly when this trend started, I cannot really recall. I guess in my circle of non-food-centric friends (yes, I have friends who don't really think too hard about their next meal), I am known to like a challenge. Plus they don't want to throw it away and know I don't mind being the place the can lands after being kicked again.
I recall from eating prior examples of plant-based 'meats,' I am fine until I identify some underlying non-meat-associated tastes like cooked peas. I have found drowning the plant-based meat substitute in a strong flavored sauce works well for me.
Today, I made a taco salad with the major components of cooked ground plant-based 'meat,' chopped onions, tomatoes, slivered cabbage (a substitute for lettuce) and cheese are cloaked in Catalina dressing.
'Browning' the plant-based 'meat' was a study in futility. It never browned, it remained red while crumbling smaller and smaller. A small taste of this cooked 'meat' had enough salt and seasoning without any additions from my side. Unlike some plant-based 'meats,' there was no oozing of oils when cooking. Nor does the volume shrink by 10-20% like ground beef. A one-to-one substitute of the Farmland product to ground beef nets a greater volume of plant-based 'meat' to the ground beef it substitutes.
The family liked the overall taste of their meal, which I squarely give a nod to the homemade Catalina dressing. It would offer great flavor to cardboard.
Regards,
Cathy2