By Olivia Critoph, Epigram Food Deputy Editor
Fake meat has received a lot of criticism recently. Either people seem to be confused as why vegetarians would want to eat something that tastes like meat, or dislike that the word meat is used to describe something which isn’t meat.
However, I believe fake meat is one of the greatest recent inventions in the food industry.
I can understand why if one doesn’t like the taste of meat why they may not want to eat fake meat which is similar in taste to the real stuff. However, it is not like fake meat is taking over the vegetarian food industry, you are still able to buy soya mince, bean burgers, and all the other alternatives people have traditionally used as a replacement for meat.
However, in light of the knowledge of how devastating the meat (and dairy) industry is to the environment and its contribution to climate change, many may choose to make the ethical decision, and want to cut meat out of their diet. Having fake meat available, which doesn’t taste dissimilar from real meat but at a fraction of the environmental cost, may mean those who are attempting a vegetarian or vegan diet, are far more likely to stick to it. So I really don’t understand why it seems strange to people that there is a ‘meat’ being produced, where people are able to get the taste and texture which they enjoy from meat, but without the huge ecological footprint.
All things considered, I would urge anyone to try some exciting new fake meats.
Firstly, Seitan is a fake meat made from wheat. It is often used as a substitute to chicken, and it's delicious. I haven’t seen it in many supermarkets yet, but it has started appearing in restaurants. The tastiest place I can suggest as to where to try seitan would be Ooowee vegan, the burger I tried when I was there was ‘The Side Chick’, which I would highly recommend to anyone.
Another great find, which you can find in most big supermarkets, is of course the great Linda McCartney’s vegetarian hoisin pulled duck. I normally fry the duck a bit and put it in a wrap with hoisin sauce, and I have to say I was shocked by firstly, how tasty it was, but also how similar it was to duck, I genuinely thought they might be lying about it vegetarian.
So, if you’re a big meat eater, then Seitan chicken and Linda McCartney’s vegetarian hoisin duck is a great place to start if you want to reduce your meat intake, but find it a struggle to remove the meat from your diet. If you don’t like the taste of meat, remember you don’t have to try eat these fake meats, so please understand how brilliant they are for the vegetarian food industry!
Featured image: Flickr/ Prehensile eye/ Quorn
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