Review: MorningStar Farms Grillers Originals 2018

Please note: this review refers to the older recipe of the Grillers Original. This was replaced with a newer version sometime around mid 2018. You can read our updated review of the new recipe here.

With the world madly, deeply in love with upstarts such as Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods lets take a minute to recognize one of the stalwarts of the meat free industry. MorningStar Farms have been at for more than four decades and these burgers are one of the stars in their lineup for my money. We always have some on hand in our freezer for a quick and healthy meal.

First up lets get the obvious out of the way – they don’t bleed faux blood nor do they look at all like a real burger. These are old school vegetarian patties – they’re not even vegan. They’re very much a processed and engineered product (GMO is used here, I’m fine with that mind you) and certainly not a veggie burger in the mushed lentils and carrots variety.

I’d stand these up against my other favorite veggie burger, The Beyond Burger all day long due to two main factors: price and ease of preparation. You can literally sling one of these in the microwave and be eating it 120 seconds later. With the Beyond product, you’ve got several minutes of cooking ahead of you, not to mention clean up – those things spatter grease like no tomorrow. When you’re in a hurry these things are wonders.

Taste wise there’s plenty of umami to keep your palate interested through the whole burger; see below, I even make double burgers when I’m extra hungry. Just be sure to keep a good ratio of toppings to patty as you would with any burger creation. One of my all time favorites – caramelized onions – works really well with these patties I should add. Texture wise these are stellar too, plenty of bite and chew. I doubt you’d fool anyone into thinking these were real meat, but then I think that’s true of all the faux-burger products.

Due to these burgers taste, texture, price and nutrition (see below) these win our coveted Smart Buy badge.

MorningStar Farms Grillers Originals what’s in the packet

In this value pack there are eight patties, there is also a smaller four pack available on the market too.

MorningStar Farms Grillers Originals cooking instructions and nutrition

The triple bonus of these burgers over Beyond and Impossible is the nutrition. There’s virtually no fat here, they’re not trying to emulate the mouthfeel of a real hamburger, so say goodbye to all those saturated fats. And again, as you can see from the packaging, cooking is as simple as can be. I should note that as you cook these from frozen, don’t think about throwing onto the summer BBQ or grill, that would probably fail badly – go with Beyond there for sure.

What’s a fair price?

I paid $6.48 for this eight pack which makes each patty just 81 cents. Four packs came in at around $3.64 at the same store, just ever so slightly more per patty.

What dishes can I make with MorningStar Farms Grillers Originals?

This isn’t a product you’ll be breaking down to use as ground meat substitute, you can use the Grillers Crumblers for that. You’ll largely be making good ol’ burgers with these patties, and there’s nothing wrong with that at all:

For a different spin on the usual burger how bout this Italian ‘garden’ roll I made this Summer; using fresh tomatoes and basil from my garden, plus a little balsamic and mayo for good measure – this made for a vibrant Summertime lunch treat:

More MorningStar Farms products and dishes

• MorningStar Farms Veggie Corn Dogs
• Incogmeato Chik’N Tenders review
• MorningStar Farms Italian Sausage Style Crumbles review
• Italian-style nachos
• Incogmeato Chik’N Nuggets – some of the best around
• MorningStar Farms Buffalo Chik Patties review – 2020 version
• MorningStar Farms Veggie Bacon Strips
• MorningStar Farms Incogmeato Burger
• Loaded veggie tots
• Thai red curry with rice noodles
• Thai jungle curry with rice noodles
• Sweet potato fry nachos
• Sloppy Joes with MorningStar Farms Crumblers
• Vegan BBQ Plate with MorningStar Popcorn Chikn
• Thai Yellow Curry with Cous Cous
• Loaded OreIda crinkle cut fries with chipotle mayo
• Nachos with MorningStar Farms crumblers
• Loaded cauliflower tots with MorningStar Farms crumblers
• Buffalo salad with MorningStar Farms Nuggets
• MorningStar Farms Original Chix Patties review
• MorningStar Farms Popcorn Chik’N Veggitizers review
• MorningStar Farms Mini Corn Dogs
• Review: MorningStar Farms Veggie Lovers Vegan Burgers
• Review: MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles
• Review: MorningStar Farms Grillers Original 2019

Stuart Melling

Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you!  I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC – Utah’s biggest and oldest online food magazine; I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune.  I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV shows.

I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have covered the Utah dining scene for the better part of fifteen years.   I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand.   I started Shop Smart to catalogue my adventures in the grocery store and kitchen.  Follow along on Instagram too!