I am a big fan of meat alternatives in a vegan diet. We all have food memories, history and culture and it’s nice to have something “familiar” yet compassionate. And they can be so darn good! Today Nicole Sopko, vice president of Upton’s Naturals, helps us understand the meat alternatives in the grocery store.
The Meat Alternatives section of your grocery store is one of the sections that can be most confusing for the uninitiated. This area is refrigerated and sometimes found by the dairy section or by the produce, depending on the layout of the store you’re in. More recently, stores are beginning to locate these kinds of products by the conventional meat products. After all, it’s all just “fake meat,” right? No way! While some of the products you’ll find have been seasoned to satiate an omnivore’s tastes, several of the products commonly found in this area have been around for thousands of years! See below for a breakdown of what you might find and figure out which products are best suited to your needs.
Vegan Quick Tips from Nicole Sopko: Navigating the Meat Alternatives Section
1. Tofu – This mildly-flavored (read: SUPER versatile) meat alternative is made of cultured bean curd and has been around for around 2,000 years. Tofu comes in a variety of styles from soft to firm, and can be found refrigerated or on your grocer’s shelves. Tofu can be used not only as an alternative to meat (usually the firm or extra firm varieties), but also in baking and other sweets (usually the soft or silken varieties).
2. Tempeh – Tempeh is a flavorful food made from soybeans that have been fermented into a dense cake. Tempeh can be flavored in a variety of ways and its unique texture is useful in a variety of applications from sandwiches to stir frys and more. Tempeh can also be found in soy-free varieties made from various grains or legumes with the same fermentation process.
3. Seitan – Also thousands of years old, seitan is created by using water to wash the starch away from a wheat and water dough, leaving behind the protein. Seitan comes in a variety of styles from the very mildly-flavored (which is more versatile) to the more flavored (which is easier to heat-and-eat). Seitan is high in protein and often has a simple, easily-recognizable ingredient list.
4. Soy Protein – When people reference the large amount of soy foods that have been consumed in the Asian diet for centuries, these are not the products that they’re talking about (that’s tofu and tempeh). Soy protein has only been used in food products for about the past 50 years and varies greatly in its quality. When purchasing soy protein, it is best to stick with organic, as a wide variety of soy protein isolate is extracted with a product called Hexane, which is a known neurotoxin. Soy protein is a complete protein that has a texture that is very similar to traditional meat.
5. Hybrids & Others – Multiple meat alternatives available on the market are hybrids of some of the products discussed above. Blends of wheat, soy, and other products are great for creating meat alternatives with uniquely refined textures and flavors. Many of the products you’ll find on the market that are most representative of traditional meat foods are hybrids of some kind. These foods can have more-complicated ingredient lists and contain less-desirable elements such as “natural” flavors and “autolyzed yeast extract” (MSG), so do your reading before buying.
Vegan Quick Tips on JLgoesVegan.com
Nicole Sopko is the Vice President of Upton’s Naturals – a completely vegan seitan company based in Chicago, Illinois. Nicole is also a certified yoga teacher and has been vegan for over 17 years. In addition to her role at Upton’s, she also operates two yoga centers, one of which is located within the Upton’s Naturals factory building.
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Nicely done…Luv Upton’s! I recently visited the Breakroom and had a scrumptious meal:-)_
I can’t wait to get back to Chicago – I want to visit the Breakroom, too, @relleven:disqus!