Impossible Whopper Review

5 years ago I gave up eating beef. I eat lots of fish and chicken and try to stick with lots of vegetables and beans. I’ve tried lots of vegan based “burgers”. Some of them are “ok” but it’s not a real burger. When I was in high school I was on the wrestling team and we were always “cutting weight”. After a match we ALWAYS went to Burger King and I’d get a Whopper with cheese, large fries and a shake. Those days are a long time ago! The Whopper had that perfect mix of meat, roll, ketchup, pickles, onions, lettuce, tomatoes and I guess mayonaise. So really the meat was about 20% of the experience.

Impossible Foods came along in 2011. The company’s stated aim is to give people the taste and nutritional benefits of meat without the negative health and environmental impacts that occur with traditional animal farming. Without getting into the chemical description of what’s going on I’ll give a VERY basic description. The plant-based burger has more protein, less total fat, no cholesterol and fewer calories than a similar-sized hamburger patty made with beef. The original Impossible burger contained more saturated fat and sodium than an unseasoned beef patty, but Impossible burger 2.0 reduced the fat by 40% and sodium by 30%. It’s also gluten free since they replace the wheat with soy protien. The saturated fat is primarily from coconut oil which is what keeps it moist and creates the “sizzle” when you cook it.

Here’s where the fascinating science comes in. They determined that the “heme” molecule, found in blood was the primary flavor producer in a grilled beef patty. They were able to “make” plant based heme from the roots of soy plants. Trust me…..there’s LOTS more to that part than I’m going to get into here. Initially the FDA didn’t know enough about this new “additive” and didn’t declare it safe, but in July 2018, they did accept the unanimous conclusion of a panel of food-safety experts that the protein that carries heme is safe to eat. We’ll see……I don’t believe a lot of what the FDA, CDC, NIH, CIA, FBI or any of those government agencies have to say these days!

Ok……let’s eat this thing! I’m HOOKED. I have no idea how good or bad they are but I’m telling you I’ve probably had about a dozen over the last few months. How good they are depends a LOT on getting it right off the grill . BTW there is quite a bit of controversy over the fact that they can’t be VEGAN since they are cooked on the same surface as beef. Who cares…….this is SCIENCE and “forbidden” pleasure…..not a moral exercise! Several times I actually had to stop and “dissect” the burger because I SWORE they gave me real meat. I’m not kidding! The condiments are just right and the Impossible Burger provides the right taste and texture to pull it all off. It really is IMPOSSIBLE how this thing tastes and each time I have one I’m more confused.

So bottom line…….give it a try. I don’t want to get all “doctor” on you here, but like lots of things in life ……. a little moderation. At the very least you can feel good you didn’t kill some poor cattle on a feed lot in Omaha that spent it’s last days being fattened up with corn and then meeting it’s fate on a ramp! Oh….and by the way, Impossible Foods now has a whole line up of products you can experiment with at home.