This article was written 23.03.08, I’ve since learned these sausages have undergone a name change! They’re now called Field Roast Italian Garlic and Fennel Sausage. They’ve also got a new look.
Out of Field Roast’s limited sausage flavours, these Italian sausages were my favourite.
I’m not exactly sure when it happened, but at some point ‘Italian’ started to mean ‘spicy’, so I’m less eager to try Italian flavoured foods now.
That said, these sausages are pretty good! They actually remind me of the Tofurky Italian sausages (which are now also spicy?), though if you can definitely tell the difference between them.
For starters, these sausages are definitely spicier than Tofurky’s. That’s not to say they’re overtly spicy – someone with a higher spice tolerance might not even be able to taste it – but with the Tofurky ones, you don’t get the spiciness until you go to swallow. These ones, you can tell they’re spicy while you’re chewing.
If you were to stab these with a fork and hold them up, they’d definitely sag, but they wouldn’t break like the Tofurky ones. Their firmness is somewhere between the Tofurky and Beyond Meat sausages. This also means they’re fairly soft to bite through. Their firmness is about on par with firm tofu.
They also don’t have a ‘skin’ you need to break through, so if realness is something you’re looking to avoid, you’ll want to grab these over the Beyond Meat ones.
These Field Roast sausages are also pretty light colour. Similar to their Smoked Apple and Sage flavour, they’re more grey-brown than dark ‘meat’ brown.
With only 4 to a pack, their $8.99 price (Good Rebel) is a tad on the expensive side, but if you wait until they go on sale, or buy them as a special occasion instead of a staple, that shouldn’t be a problem.
All in all, these sausages get the job done and are sure to satisfy your craving, even if they won’t fool a meat eater.
I first tried these bad boys in May 2018, and I’ve gotta say, unlike some other vegan offerings, my opinion of these hasn’t really changed.
Like the name suggests, the batter surrounding these mini dogs is corn bread. While it doesn’t have an overtly corny taste, you can definitely tell it’s not a ‘normal’ breading. The mini notdog on the inside also has a good flavour. It’s not exactly how I remember real hotdogs tasting (and it’s definitely a different flavour than the Yves Notdogs), but they’re still good. They have more of a smoky, savoury taste to them.
I know Field Roast also makes a few different sausage flavours. To date (22.08.09) I’ve only tried their Apple Wood Smoked Sausage. I don’t believe this is the dog they use in this product, as when I tried the Apple Wood Smoked ones, I didn’t like their flavour all that much. I just found something weird about the hint of apple in the faux meat.
The dogs used in this product are a lot tastier in my book. They also have a great texture to them. They’re not too mushy, but they’re also not 100% simulated meat like Beyond Meat’s Sausages.
One thing I don’t like about this product is something you’ve seen me complain about in a lot of these reviews: there’s not nearly enough of these guys in a bag! There was less than 20 the last time I bought them, and at $10.99 a bag, that’s kind of expensive. It’s practically $1/dog!
You could easily fit 20 (at least) in the size of bag they use. I’m sure they have their reasons for keeping half the bag air, but then that begs the question: is that really the best way to package them?
Why not use a cardboard box, instead? That would not only preserve the freshness and allow you to add more per item, but would also eliminate the need for using what appears to be a plastic bag with a foil lining.
That said, I’m not trying to bash Field Roast or this product. I think it’s very tasty, and I recommend you go out and try it if you haven’t already. Just be aware if you wanted to buy a few bags of these for a party, you might want to give yourself a little extra budgeting space.
*This post was written 20.04.15, when the corona virus lock-down was in full swing. Please excuse any references/jokes that are no longer applicable.*
We’re officially into summer now, but who says quarantine means you can’t have a barbeque? You can have your very own self-isolated BBQ party, and one of the best things? You wont’ have to worry about your vegan patty sharing the grill! (Also, anytime you randomly smell BBQ on the breeze is a good time. Sooo, if not for yourself, do it for your neighbours!)
One of the best things about a BBQ-ed burger? The cheese. But just because you’re vegan (or veg-curious), doesn’t mean you need to eat a naked burger! There are tons of vegan cheese options available, and today I’m gonna be reviewing one of the best candidates for a burger topper: Chao Creamy Original.
Now, to be fair, I haven’t actually tested this cheese on a burger, but I did try their Tomato Cayenne cheese on one, and that was pretty good, so I imagine this one would lend itself well, too.
I personally tried this cheese on a homemade naan pizza (posted on my Instagram), and cold out of the fridge. Because if it doesn’t pass the Alone Test, is it really worth it?
I’m happy to report this cheese definitely passed! My brother even tried it, and said ‘if I didn’t know this was vegan cheese, I wouldn’t be able to tell’. (He mixed it into a scrambled egg sandwich, though)
It has a very soft consistency, even to the touch. I felt I had to be gentle with it. This cheese is made out of tofu, but doesn’t have that typical ‘tofu’ taste. Straight out of the fridge, it actually doesn’t really have much of any taste, kind of like tap water. You know it has a taste, but it’s not very distinctive. Which is great, because that means it’ll blend in to whatever you make with it, instead of it overpowering the dish. Especially on a burger, the cheese should be in the supportive role to the patty, not the other way around.
This cheese also melts pretty well.
It doesn’t stretch like cow cheese does, but it doesn’t puddle melt either, like some other vegan cheeses. The flavour also gets more intense when it’s cooked, so if you want to really taste it, I’d definitely recommend cooking/melting it.
When it’s been melted, and then cooled off, it has a slight rubbery consistency, and the whole piece of cooled-melted cheese will slide right off whatever it’s on, so it’s definitely best to eat it when it’s still warm, but not burn-your-mouth hot.
A down side to this cheese is the price. It comes in a pack of 10 slices, which is good, but it being $9+ (both at Vegan Supply and Good Rebel), it makes it one of the more expensive cheeses. Comparatively, a 10 pack of Earth Island ( that’s Follow Your Heart, to you Americans) slices is $7.95 (at Good Rebel), or even $6.99 at Loblaws! (I checked their online store, and didn’t see a result for Chao)
I know I basically complain about this every time, but it still pisses me off! We’re supposed to be wanting more people to go vegan, right? So why are the vegan substitutes so much more expensive? I understand that perhaps they’re not as big as others, and vegans shouldn’t rely on the pre-made packaged stuff as much, but damn! How can we expect people to even begin to give it a chance with such steep prices?
A pack of 22 Kraft cheese slices is $4.49 (at Loblaws), and that’s for double the amount! And yes, I realize they probably (definitely) aren’t on the same quality line, but just… you see what I mean, right?
This cheese is pretty awesome, but many people won’t know or give it a chance because of the price, and I think that sucks! Give it the due it deserves!
I’d recommend going out and trying this cheese, if you can find it. It’s pretty good, and especially if you don’t like the overwhelming taste of Daiya, or the potato-y taste of Earth Island, you’ll definitely like this one.
And, being in self isolation is probably the best time to try new foods, just in case they don’t agree with you.
It’s April, and although good weather has yet to happen, I’m gonna go ahead and pretend it’s getting warmer, and closer to BBQ season, and hope Mother Nature will get the hint.
I have seen this cheese a lot in vegan shops, but I never wanted to give it a chance, I always stayed with the familiar. (Daiya) I finally took a chance and bought it, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.
It’s not as… strong as Daiya. You know when you have Daiya in your mouth, and you know you have Daiya in your mouth, because it’s so overpowering? (Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Daiya cheese! But when you’re making a dish, like, say, a quesadilla, you want to taste the other foods you put in there, not just the cheese) This cheese doesn’t give you that distinctive taste, it blends better into the background.
While milder in that respect, the cayenne gives it a nice little kick of heat. It’s not overly hot (I can’t handle spicy food very well at all) at all. I have to say though, one ‘con’, would be that I didn’t distinctly taste tomato. It was more of just cheese and spice. I don’t know if I would’ve liked it very much if it had tasted like tomato (I’m more of a fan of them if they’re in something, I don’t like them by themselves), but, if you’re gonna call the flavour tomato and cayenne, I expect a bit of that. Or, maybe it did taste like tomato and I just didn’t notice/realize? This was the first flavoured cheese I’d had, so I wasn’t too sure what to expect. I actually thought I wasn’t gonna like it at all (the concept of flavoured cheese still seems a bit odd to me), so it fared better then I thought.
If you do decide to try this cheese, (which, I recommend) you should definitely melt it on something. I tried a piece cold so I could get a taste of it alone, straight from the pack (it’s harder to decide whether or not you truly like a product without doing so, I think) and it wasn’t that good, I have to say. I definitely wouldn’t want to eat the slices of it as a snack, like I do with Daiya Monterey-Jack blocks. (Which I also recommend you try, if you haven’t already. I’ve started having to buy them in fours just so I have enough for a week. I can eat a whole one in a day)
After trying it cold, and finding it ‘meh’, I melted it in a quesadilla and it was amazing! Even though it did that classic vegan cheese ‘puddle-melt’ thing, it was still good. It gave the quesadilla a nice flavour, and it faded into the background well, not over-powering the other flavours (like Daiya would have).
Also, I don’t know why, but this cheese reminds me of summer. I don’t know if it’s the colour or the flavour or what, but it just kinda… does. Maybe it’s because I think it’d go good on a Field Roast burger (I haven’t tried them together yet, but I know it’s gonna be good) or, maybe I’m just getting impatient and want BBQ season to start. Either way, I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
I definitely recommend trying this cheese (melted) if you haven’t tried it already, and, if you get a chance, put it on a burger, or in a quesadilla, etc. I also think it might make a good nacho topping. (Keep your eye on my Instagram so you don’t miss when I try that!)
I have to confess, even before going vegan, I never really liked the taste of beef. I admit, my preferred meat was (and still is) chicken. I don’t know why, but whenever we were cooking beef, and it would make the whole house smell like fat/beef – it always made me a bit nauseous to smell. (I have no idea why) I really only ever ate beef as meatballs (buried under spaghetti sauce), or in a burger at my families annual BBQ. I never really ate it by itself, it always had to be hidden in something else.
Needless to say, while I was excited to try a new vegan burger, I had a bit of doubt I’d enjoy it much because these are fake beef burgers. But, I’m glad to say, this burger surprised me. I cooked it as per box instruction (5min, flip, 5min.) and added cheese, lettuce, and red bell pepper, topped with a squirt of ketchup on a toasted bun. The texture is a good, solid texture. It really gives you that nice bite you want from a burger (that ‘meaty’ bite, not squishy or overly chewy), they’re not too thick, but not pancake thin either.
All in all, this is a burger I could (and probably will!) eat by itself, just bun-patty-bun. Could also cut it up and put it in a salad, or even just eat with your hands like a caveman, no toppings/bun. It’s that good. It doesn’t need to be buried under a million different flavours. It’s a great stand alone burger. When I was cooking it, it smelled kind of like brown rice (I’m assuming that it might’ve actually been the barley) so that was good, I’m very glad that it didn’t have that classic beef/fatty smell – it smelled like I was making a stir fry. Also, it is carnivore approved! I gave it to my (toughest to please with vegan food) friend and they said it was ‘the best vegan burger’ they’ve had (with the exception of my seitan chick’n burgers). Score!
Okay, so that was the good, now for the ‘bad’:
After pulling the patties out of the box, I have to admit, I don’t like how they’re packaged together in the plastic. It reminds me of when people make a roast and they tie it up with rope, I don’t know, that kinda bothers me.
Also, there was only 4 in a box, which is disappointing because they’re so good. I’d like to see them come in a bigger box, even if it’s just two extra – I felt like they need more per box. Especially if you want to get them for a cook-out/party – you’re gonna need at least three boxes, and at $12 per box, that’s kind of crazy to spend on burgers alone.
I don’t know, maybe that’s just me, I know they’re really amazing quality, but even if they lower the price down to $10 or $8, that’d be better.
Also, when I went to flip them, they seemed a bit flimsy – they didn’t fall apart, but if I wasn’t as careful, they looked like they could’ve. I don’t know if maybe they needed more time on the one side, or maybe I suck at flipping things, but they were kind of the same like when you go to flip a pancake the first time, and if you don’t get all of it on the flipper, it kind of sags and gives you that panicky moment.
Other than that though, I highly recommend checking this burger out, you won’t regret it. It might even please the non-vegan family/friends (or fool them).
So, have you tried the Field Roast burger? What are your thoughts on it? Like it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments!
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