I’m trying to eat less meat, so I decided to cook outside of my comfort zone.
Hannah Wong / BuzzFeed
Hey! I'm Hannah, and while I'm not vegan or vegetarian, I try to avoid eating a ton of meat in my diet.
Especially red meat. And it's not that I don't like the taste of meat. (I do!) But for health reasons and because I feel best when I'm eating a mostly vegetarian diet, I'm always looking for new plant-based recipes that actually taste good.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Luckily, there's no shortage of meatless recipes out there — but TBH, I'm often skeptical of them.
For example, can the average at-home cook actually turn cauliflower into something that resembles General Tso's chicken, or make canned jackfruit pass for pulled pork?
So in the name of ~meatless science~, I gathered some of the most popular meat-free recipes and products (plus one ridiculously good-looking dairy-free recipe) and put them to the test.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Hannah Loewentheil/BuzzFeed
Did it work? Sadly, no.
The results: If you're looking for a really good roasted carrot recipe, give this a try. If you're looking for a legit bacon substitute, forget it. The marinade, which is made with tahini, maple syrup, soy sauce, and liquid smoke, definitely gives the carrots a smoky-sweet taste once they're roasted. But the veggies didn't get nearly as crispy as real bacon. I let my carrots roast for 10 minutes longer than the recipe calls for, and even while the edges started to char, the carrots were still sort of soggy. This could have been my fault, because I had a hard time slicing the carrots super thinly (as the recipe points out, I should have used a Y-peeler or mandoline), but even my thinnest slices didn't crisp up. This was a no.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Hannah Loewentheil/BuzzFeed
Vegan-Friendly Gardein Chick'n
The idea: While researching this post, I noticed that Gardein kept popping up as a favorite on food blogs and in my conversations with friends. The brand makes vegan-friendly "chicken" out of wheat, soy, and vegetables — and people seemingly rave about it. I decided to try two frozen chick'n products (the mandarin crispy chick'n and seven-grain crispy tenders) to see if they lived up to the hype.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Did it work? I had to text my mother about this.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Did it work? Yes and no.
The results: The sticky sesame cauliflower came out really good. In fact, it was probably one of the most delicious ways I've ever eaten cauliflower. But did it mimic the texture and taste of sesame chicken? Not quite. Although it was breaded, the cauliflower never got very crispy, and while I used cornstarch the way the recipe instructed, the sesame sauce didn't get very sticky. It was more similar to the consistency of soy sauce than of a glaze. That being said, for a dish that isn't fried, this was probably one of the more delicious veggie dishes I've made at home. I would definitely try this again and serve it over rice...or maybe even try a fried version to achieve a super-crispy texture.
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
via BuzzFeed/Food
