You better hold on tight, 2020 looks like the year that meat free products are really going to start hitting the mainstream in serious volume. Every company under the sun from Tyson to Dupont are plotting their own line. By this time next year it might be hard to keep track of all the entrants in the ever increasing space.
Case in point, the Simple Truth brand from Kroger (Smiths) which recently debuted the new Emerge product line. We especially loved their burgers but here we have the Meatless Kielbasa which come four to a vacuum sealed pack:
Once opened there’s no way to reseal these, so you might want to transfer to a container or baggie in the refrigerator.
Sadly these aren’t comparable to the Emerge line. A quick glance of the ingredients (see below) shows an old school formula using wheat gluten – indeed the whole format isn’t unlike the Tofurky line of products. If you’ve ever tried a wheat gluten based dish, the taste and texture here is unmistakeable. It’s a strong taste and there’s little extra seasoning here to tame things. Caveat emptor.
These sausages do pack in a whopping 27g of protein though, and not all that much fat. If you’re looking for a relatively healthy way to add meat free protein to a dish these are certainly worth a look in. Just don’t rely on the sausage alone to carry the dish, be sure to use in hearty sauces or load up with plenty of toppings.
Simple Truth Meatless Kielbasa ingredients and nutrition
Other Simple Truth products
- Simple Truth Meatless Kielbasa review
- Simple Truth Emerge Plant Based Patties – a surprisingly good burger
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!
Be a lot better if the skin wasn’t so tough.