Blink these days and it’s more than likely you’ll miss yet another plant based burger launch. I’m not 100% sure when this particular offering from The Meatless Farm Co debuted, but it was certainly new to me when I recently picked it up at a local Kroger/Smith’s.
First impressions weren’t the best, here’s the product raw out of the box. The patties have the same faux-fat flecks (try saying that with a mouth full of burger!) that I first saw in Beyond Burgers revamp. The attempt here though looks much more artificial:
The ‘it’s not beef’ moment continues after cooking. Here’s a few pictures of the final cooked product. For reference I cooked this up in the pan with a little oil:
As you can see the burger retains its perfectly round shape through cooking, it doesn’t crisp and curl and char like the Impossible or Beyond. There’s also an unappealing red hue that cooking doesn’t offset. The interior is better offering that familiar meaty-shred texture you will find in many plant based options. But what about the tasting, how do these stack up?
Not fabulously I’m afraid. I’m always hoping for the next killer burger, but sadly I have to say these were perhaps my least favorite in the new wave of plant based options. The patty has an immediately noticeable flavor that’s distracting, slightly fake and plasticky of sorts. It’s a quirky, “this isn’t too bad” at first growing to a, “this really is quite off putting” towards the end. There’s a heaviness on the palate that becomes wearing. I cooked both burgers (I tried one also in my air fryer) but in neither case could I finish, a few bites went to the trash can in each case.
The packaging on these Meatless Farm Co burgers states that they’re new and improved. Sadly, I think they need a little more work before I would try them once more. These are a pass for me.
The Meatless Farm Co ingredients and nutrition
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Overall
Are The Meatless Farm Co burgers any good?
For us these are a pass. They’re significantly behind the two leaders of the pack – Impossible and Beyond – when it comes to taste and texture.
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!