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I am an omnivore, but deeply interested in meat substitutes. Before trying the burger by Impossible Foods, it was my opinion that the patty by Beyond Meat was d

I am an omnivore, but deeply interested in meat substitutes. Before trying the burger by Impossible Foods, it was my opinion that the patty by Beyond Meat was definitely the best. I am a big burger consumer, and I tend to rank the various substitute burgers on a scale that indicates how satisfied I feel afterwards, and how accurate the imitation is. I felt like the Beyond Burger was 8/10 in terms of being as satisfying as a burger, but only 6/10 in terms of being a good imitation. For an example on why I use the different scales, plant-based patties tend to sear differently than real beef, tending to produce a thin crisp layer. This isn't great in terms of being a good imitation, but it actually has really good mouthfeel, so it increases the enjoyment. Being 8/10 in terms of satisfaction is a pretty important threshold for me. It is at the level where I can eat one and feel like I ate a burger. Most veggie patties are in the 4-7 range (Gardein is pretty good) in terms of satisfaction, and even lower imitation quality. When I first had the Impossible Burger a couple years ago, it was 9/10 satisfying and 8/10 imitation. It still had the distinctive plant-based patty crispiness, but the internal texture was much more accurate. This was back when the Impossible was only in a few dozen restaurants in the country, so this was at a nice place in Las Vegas. I got an Impossible and a Wagyu beef burger side by side for comparison. By the time I finished, the most obvious physical difference I'd noticed was that the Impossible burger loses heat much faster than a real beef burger. In January 2019, Impossible began rolling out their 2.0 recipe, and they are now in hundreds of locations. I got the 2.0 at an upper tier burger place ($20 for a burger) and again did a side-by-side test. The Impossible still lost heat faster than a real beef burger, but the characteristic thin crispy sear on the patty was reduced significantly. Visually, the inside of the patty was virtually indistinguishable from real beef. It's 10/10 satisfying and 9/10 imitation. I think it's indistinguishable from a Burger King quality burger, but still not quite as hot and juicy as a more expensive gourmet beef burger. I imagine they might be able to just make a less healthy version that is packed full of various oils and whatnot to get that quality. Once the Impossible Burger rolls out to grocery stores later this year, I will never have to buy ground beef again. To Beyond Meat's credit, their Beyond Brats are the best veggie sausage I have had, and as far as I know, Impossible doesn't have immediate plans to take on that market. I've found that they have supply chain/production issues with Beyond Brats, though, as they are almost always sold out at the Whole Foods near me. TL;DR I believe Impossible Foods is going to eat Beyond Meat's lunch

leovander 8y ago
I wish I could update this more than once. When you compare the Beyond Burger to the Impossible Burger, the Beyond Burger feels like a block of red play-doh. "Meat is red so this must be red." Don't get me wrong I will still eat it, but the Impossible Burger feels miles ahead, its just that the Beyond Burger feels to have hit the larger markets first. I can't wait until I can start cooking my own Impossible meat at home, here's to hoping that the Impossible Burger does well at Burger King's trial run.
- codezero 8y ago
  I like that you and GP like Impossible and dislike Beyond for the same reasons I like Beyond and dislike (too strong of a word, let's just say prefer Beyond) Impossible. Again, this is why I'm hoping they are both successful.
codezero 8y ago
Interesting take. I've always said Impossible tastes more like meat, but has a bad texture match, and Beyond tastes less like meat but has a better texture. With that said, I think the flavor and quality of Beyond is higher, for me. Impossible still hovers around low-grade, poor texture ground beef. I want them both to be successful because the more options we have the better. I think Impossible is likely to be more successful targeting current meat eaters, though, so you may be right about their longer term success. I've found the variance of each burger to be highly dependent on the preparation, so I think a real fair test would be made-at-home side-by-side. I enjoy the Beyond patty made at home on a skillet without much extra besides a bun and catchup and mustard, this says a lot. I'm a recent vegetarian (4 years).
- gamegoblin 8y ago
  Have you tried the Impossible 2.0? It's noticeably better. I agree that preparation has a huge impact on quality. I once had an Impossible 1.0 that was so badly prepared I ate 1/3 of it and then gave up. I am wondering if Impossible will come up with a specialized cooker (imagine a waffle press sort of thing, but for burger patties) that will automate temperature management and cook time in order to reduce variability. But I assume their final goal is to just make their substitute cook exactly like real beef.

leovander 8y ago

I wish I could update this more than once. When you compare the Beyond Burger to the Impossible Burger, the Beyond Burger feels like a block of red play-doh. "Meat is red so this must be red." Don't get me wrong I will still eat it, but the Impossible Burger feels miles ahead, its just that the Beyond Burger feels to have hit the larger markets first. I can't wait until I can start cooking my own Impossible meat at home, here's to hoping that the Impossible Burger does well at Burger King's trial run.

codezero 8y ago
I like that you and GP like Impossible and dislike Beyond for the same reasons I like Beyond and dislike (too strong of a word, let's just say prefer Beyond) Impossible. Again, this is why I'm hoping they are both successful.

codezero 8y ago

Interesting take. I've always said Impossible tastes more like meat, but has a bad texture match, and Beyond tastes less like meat but has a better texture. With that said, I think the flavor and quality of Beyond is higher, for me. Impossible still hovers around low-grade, poor texture ground beef. I want them both to be successful because the more options we have the better. I think Impossible is likely to be more successful targeting current meat eaters, though, so you may be right about their longer term success. I've found the variance of each burger to be highly dependent on the preparation, so I think a real fair test would be made-at-home side-by-side. I enjoy the Beyond patty made at home on a skillet without much extra besides a bun and catchup and mustard, this says a lot. I'm a recent vegetarian (4 years).

gamegoblin 8y ago
Have you tried the Impossible 2.0? It's noticeably better. I agree that preparation has a huge impact on quality. I once had an Impossible 1.0 that was so badly prepared I ate 1/3 of it and then gave up. I am wondering if Impossible will come up with a specialized cooker (imagine a waffle press sort of thing, but for burger patties) that will automate temperature management and cook time in order to reduce variability. But I assume their final goal is to just make their substitute cook exactly like real beef.