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Beyond Meat Burger Review

June 19, 2021   63 Comments

This Beyond Meat Burger review is for those of us looking to changed it up. Some plant-based burger patties have been showing up at Burger King (and selling out).

Beyond Meat Burger Review

What are they?

They are not your typical vegetarian substitute for meat like my Mushroom Lentil Burgers or my Portobello Burger.

These Beyond burgers are trying to mimic an actual beef hamburger.

How do they do it? I’m not exactly sure but one fact that I noticed right away was that this burger has 20 grams of fat (5 grams of which are saturated). The saturated fat is from coconut oil and is not the same as the saturated fat you would find in beef.

What I find really interesting is that the nutritional make-up of the 4 ounce Beyond burger versus an 85% lean beef burger isn’t that different.

Beyond Burger:
Four ounces = 270 calories, 20 g fat, 5 g saturated fat, 5 g carbohydrates, 0 g sugar, 20 g protein, 3 g fiber, 380 mg sodium, 8 Freestyle Smt Pts

Beef Burger:

85% Lean Meat, Four ounces = 284 calories, 17 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 0 g carbohydrates, 0 g sugar, 29 g protein, 0 g fiber, 81 mg sodium, 8 Freestyle Smt Pts

Obviously, if you want to mimic meat it doesn’t hurt to have the about the same fat and protein content.

Here is the Beyond Burger thawed:

You are supposed to thaw it before cooking and as you can see it is red like meat. They use annatto - a natural red dye and beet juice extract to get the color.

It is made with pea protein isolate (no soy or gluten), canola oil, and coconut oil. There is a little cellulose from bamboo and other stuff but I don’t have a problem with the ingredients.

It does grill up like a burger and was easy to cook. This is as easy as any pre-made meat burger you can find at the grocery store.

How did it taste? It had a crispy exterior and a soft interior - like a rare burger. The consistency approached meat and I found it quite tasty. Was it like meat? Not exactly, but it was pretty convincing.

But, I have a few problems with the Beyond Burger. First, these two patties set me back $7! Ouch! These patties are running $14 per pound.

Also, I was hoping for that a plant based burger would be lighter (fewer calories) than a beef burger but, alas, Beyond has added a ton of fat to ensure it tastes good. You can add fat to almost anything to make it taste really good (I drown my kale in olive oil sometimes to get my kids to eat it).

These patties are better for the earth than cow meat but there is a lot of plastic packaging that isn’t planet friendly. Also, I would like to know how much energy it takes to produce one of these babies. I am sure that these are better for the environment than beef but not as good for the planet as my portobello burger.

Have you tried the Beyond Meat Burger? Please share your review.*

Other posts you might like:

Mushroom Lentil Burgers

Mushroom Lentil Burgers

Mushroom lentil burgers are a very healthy replacement for 8 ounce beef burgers....

Try A New Burger This Summer

I know what you are thinking - "Hello, lovely.....nom nom nom" Yes, that is a portobello mushroom burger that you will be making this summer....

Get Free Email Updates! Yes please!

First 20 Comments: ( See all 63 )

Sadly these are filled with glysophate! I did learn this after my son got the whopper made with it and I could not tell the difference! Take out the crappy chemicals and I’m all about this burger!

Burger King carries the Impossible Burger, another plant-based burger, NOT the Beyond Meat brand.

I'm curious about the comment or who said the Beyond patties are filled with glysophate. That's not an ingredient in the package - where is this information from. Also, The beyond sausages use a compostable tray in their packaging. I hadn't noticed that the burgers do not. I plan to write the company to ask why. It's such a great product. Switching to compostable packaging would make it even better!

So far I've opted to go support a local restaurant and buy my favorite Santa Fe burger than to buy a hyped-up chemical pattie. I, too, am interested about the actual carbon footprint of the Beyond (as I believe that corn ethanol creates a bigger carbon footprint than the gasoline it replaces; I live in corn country and drive by an ethanol plant twice daily when I go to work-nonstop diesel truck traffic in and out of there all day long, 7 days a week.) I am very interested in comments from people who have actually tried it.

I've tried the Beyond Burger and I think it's pretty good. I paid $5.99 for the package of two at my local grocery store, so it is expensive. I'm not a big meat eater, but even my husband the carnivore approved of it. I will probably buy it again.

We tried them and were quite surprised. I found them tasty and even my husband liked them. I will be continuing to look at the packaging as that is one of my concerns too. And I also found them a little pricey. But if they do turn out to be okay for the planet and the air I will be buying them again and hopefully sales volume will go up so the price can go down.

How does a regular beef burger of 14 grams of carbohydrates?

I've tried both the Beyond and Impossible burgers a few times each, and I'm not impressed with either. The texture is very nice, but they don't taste like meat. In fact, they taste like soy-based products, even though they are soy-free...they taste like the frozen meat-free meatballs I've been getting from whole foods and Aldis, as well as the much older Boca Burger...maybe they use similar flavorings. The other problem is that both of these burgers gave me gastric symptoms, so they must be harder to digest. My favorite veggie burgers are the ones that don't taste like meat, like the ones at Houstons and J. Alexanders.

@Traci - that was a mistake and I have fixed it. Thanks!

@Donna - I don't see glyosphate on the ingredient list so I am also interested in that information.

@Steve - sorry about that - you are right! The Impossible burger and the Beyond burger are getting lumped together but they are different brands. THANKS!!!

I’ve tried the Beyond Burger, the Impossible Burger and pretty much every other plant based burger (and sausage) out there. I also make my own. All of them have merits. I eat a whole food plant based vegan diet so processed foods aren’t a routine part of my diet. That said, I’ve only been vegetarian and then vegan for 10 years so I still remember how burgers taste and these are pretty darn close. Like everything, if you’re interested try it. If it’s just not for you that’s your choice too.

I have tried the pre-made burgers that you are reviewing and really liked them. I agree about all the crazy overboard packaging. I also purchased the package that is like a block of meat (so you can break it up like for stews or chili, tacos, etc.) the texture is a little weird but IRS so much better than the normal "crumbles" from the frozen section we have been used to using. My hope is that more folks will love this stuff and the pricing will eventually come down.

For anyone interested in the carbon footprint, there was a somewhat recent NPR episode on the footprint of "plant based"versus regular meat patties. It aired about 2 months ago. I personally don't like the beyond meat burger and find that these and many others use a lot of fillers with plant names in them. This was also an issue that was discussed on NPR- can we really call them plant based if they aren't made with whole plants? That is how a plant based diet is defined in the nutrition research literature. Yes these might be a better alternative and definitely better carbon footprint than regular burgers (spoiler from NPR) and theoretically should be better for health but I have a problem with them being called plant based and the high amount of fat (I am not a fan of coconut oil either). That's my personal/research based opinion.

Watch the sodium....

Tried this burger and although pricey was very tasty. I will try it again. Believe after a while the price will go down, hopefully!

As a very long time vegetarian (30+ years actually closer to 40!) I can not wrap my head around these. Admittedly my friends tease me that I am a horrible vegetarian because I only like a limited number of vegetables but I have gotten by and had two children while following a non meat/seafood diet. My son bought the Beyond Burgers a couple months ago because he wanted to try them even though he is a meat eater. I did not like the look and when he cooked it the smell was so disgusting to me I could not even try a bite! He took a couple bites and threw the rest away. Could not eat it he said. Unfortunately we dine out pretty often and I find many restaurants are turning to these rather than a veggie/black bean burger which I would much prefer. It is just too much like the meat that I don't eat to stomach for me. I am hoping it is a passing fad and that the black bean burgers I buy at the store won't be replaced with these!

As a vegetarian I also think they resemble meat to much. I also hear people say they taste just like meat. Well that is exactly why I would NOT like to try them. I don’t want to eat something that tastes like meat!!!

I think Bey Beef is a great step towards awareness; health of planet, animals and US! I liked it when they first came out about 2yrs ago, but after a few times I decided my health would be better off with my home-made burgers. Never a huge beef burger lover, my favorites were always the toppings! But I get it, lots of Americans are all about their burger ’n fries. So Impossible and Beyond Burgers are a step in the right direction. Soon WFPB will be understood as the cure for all the top killers like this article below identifies. Very interesting how the dairy/meat industries influence our education on this very important topic. I remember when doctors recommended moderation to smokers much the same as they tell us today to eat less red meat. BUT, when the scientific data is finally laid bare for all to see, we act in our own best interests. Thank you for this important review, Lisa!!

https://www.forksoverknives.com/new-reports-controversial-c…

I've seen the labels and tasted both the Beyond Meat and Impossible Burgers. As stated, maybe better for the environment than supporting the beef industry, but also a non organic product loaded with fat and calories. No better than beef as a health option. As a semi vegetarian, I might occasionally order these at a restaurant or serve at a BBQ, but I would not purchase or eat them at home. I much prefer the whole, plant based burgers made with beans and grains, like the Mushroom Lentil Burgers posted on this page. Much healthier option.

My adult offspring are vegetarian and I am working toward it. Our main reason for not wanting to eat meat is because we love animals. They way they are treated is horrible and heartbreaking... and to eat their flesh is disgusting. Yes saving the planet and having improved health is important... but for us, the less animals raised just to be killed on this earth is the key purpose of not eating meat.

That said I am so happy that Beyond meat patties exist. I do not like the majority of the meatless burgers out there. This satisfies me! And my kids like them too. Win, win! Yes they cost more but they are totally worth it.

We eat them as a treat- like an expensive steak. I really like them.

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