Saturday, September 17, 2011

Toficken, or Seiticken, or ummm...Well, it's just NOT chicken.

I tried another vegan meat substitute the other day, and I wanted to share the results.  What I used was West Soy Chicken Style Seitan.  I'm providing a link, just so you can see what it looks like in the package, but this is not where I got mine.  I got it at Whole Foods, and I didn't pay that much for it.

Anyway, we like a lot of stir-fry type dishes, and R's favorite is Pad Thai, which he actually makes more often than I do, and he does an awesome job.  We usually use chicken, but sometimes use cubed firm tofu.  We decided to try the chicken substitute this time.

The verdict?  Well, it looks like chicken.  It comes out of the package in pieces that look just like shredded white meat chicken.  And it tasted okay.  Not exactly like chicken.  I think what bothered me was that the texture was a little rubbery.  Not bad, but definitely not chicken.

I asked R, if he had not known it wasn't chicken, would he be able to tell?  And he said no, probably not.  But I think I would have known.

My opinion is, I still prefer to just not eat meat at all, than to eat fake meat.  I'd rather have the cubed tofu, or even just have the rice or noodles with veggies, and not try to pretend I'm eating chicken if I'm not.

Also, I'd like to share that I was driving to the store this week and seriously craving meat.  I was thinking of all the types of meat I might like to buy, hamburger, chicken, a nice beef roast...When I drove right up on a chicken truck.  And I was stuck behind it, following all those pathetic looking chickens.  Dirty, crammed in their cages, staring at me with their beady eyes.  And I just thought, ugh, I cannot eat one now.  EG doesn't eat poultry for this very reason.  She just thinks it's gross.

Then I passed the truck, and I swear, came upon a pick up with the back full of goats, and a TURKEY.  It was a conspiracy, I tell ya.  I got to the store and bought some tofu.

3 comments:

Karen M. Peterson said...

Fake meat is just weird. If I'm eating a vegetarian dish, I want it to just be vegetarian. None of that fact grossness. No thanks!

Wyatt said...

We hear you! But we do like this soy based sausage called 'Gimme Lean' (like Jimmie Dean..haha)!
It's actually pretty good :)

Wyatt's Mom

Sisy said...

"Field Roast" makes a really good faux sausage. My husband grew up eating German sausages and even he thinks they're really good.

I so agree though! So many fake meats miss the mark so far.

Kudos for that change!!