Tag Archives: turk’y

Gardein Stuffed Turk’y w/ Gravy Review

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I know, I know, I missed Canadian Thanksgiving. But, I figured most of the people reading this are in the US, so I’m not late. (Technically)

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I want to start off by saying I haven’t tried the other ‘holiday loafs’ that are out, so I can’t really do a comparison.

That said though, this one is good. The ‘stuffed turkeys’ were a lot smaller than I thought they’d be (they were only about the size of my palm), and for only having 2 per package, if you were planning on sharing, that kinda goes out the window.

Honestly, why do vegan companies insist on doing this? You want more people to go vegan? Make some family sized products! Then at least you have enough for people to try without them eating 50% of the only food you can eat at the get-together. Seriously, it’s getting ridiculous.

Okay, sorry about that, getting back on track, you probably won’t want to share these, because they’re so good. I mean, it could be better (without the breading, it just tastes like tofu) but it’s pretty good for what it is. I wouldn’t say ‘this will fool a meat eater’ or anything because it won’t. You 1,000,000% can tell it’s tofu with breadcrumbs and stuffing. But that’s okay! Not every vegan substitute needs to taste exactly like meat! I personally am fine with eating a mushroom burger that tastes like mushrooms. I’m one of those people who actually likes the taste of veggies, so for me, this tastes good.

If you’re someone who was hoping to find a holiday roast or something to fool a meat-eater, or like the closer-to-meat tasting substitutes, then this product isn’t for you. For that, I’d recommend Beyond Meat. Their beef burger tastes so much like beef I actually don’t like it as much. (Too weird for me)

I do wish that the stuffing didn’t come inside the turk’y as well. I don’t know if it’s how I grew up or whatever, but we never left the stuffing inside the meat. It would get cooked in there, and then served separate in it’s own bowl as a side dish. Also, I feel like by adding the stuffing it’s a biiit of a rip off, because you’re getting less ‘meat’. And again, for how tiny they are to begin with, you’d think they wouldn’t be that stingy. I’m also not too much a fan of the cranberries, but that’s just personal taste.

The breading holds up pretty well (as long as you oil the pan/use non-stick) and it isn’t too soft to cut through, either. I think they should’ve seasoned the ‘meat’/tofu itself though, just to give it a better flavour. If the breading comes off and you eat the stuffing separate, the ‘meat’ is pretty bland.

Also, for the gravy: You should give two packs of gravy, or make the pack of gravy resealable. That way, if you only want to make one of the little stuffed turk’y things, you can save some of the gravy for the second. As it is, you either have to eat both at the same time, or, eat one dry and one with gravy. And, while I’m complaining, put more gravy! The one pack is barely enough to cover one of the stuffed turk’ies. Remember, after you pour gravy over something with breading, the breading will soak up the gravy, thus making it ‘dry’ again. Hence, you need more!

All in all, for being a frozen meal, it’s pretty good. If you wanted to bring it for Thanksgiving dinner though, I’d recommend buying two packs. That way you’ll have enough should people get curious enough to try it, and you’ll have leftovers. (And, let’s face it, isn’t that the best part of Thanksgiving anyway?)


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Gardein Turk’y Cutlets and Gravy Review

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Apparently American Thanksgiving is coming up (Nov. 22nd – two days after First Try comes out!) so I thought this month, I might as well review a Thanksgiving related food. Enter: Gardein Turk’y Cutlets.

I’d like to start this review out with a sort of disclaimer: as I’ve said in other posts, before going vegan, I was pollotarian, which means the only meat I ate was poultry (chicken, turkey, etc.). I’ll admit, I like the taste of chicken the most out of meats. So, during these reviews, most of the products I try will most likely be faux poultry, or, if they seem skewed in that if/when I do review faux beef/pork/etc. product, I might not like that as much as some of the faux poultries, take my opinion not as gospel.

Okay? Okay. So, let’s get started.

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I’m not gonna lie, these cutlets taste like their Mandarin Orange Chick’n Nuggets and their 7 Grain Crispy Tenders – pretty plain tofu/seitan with breading. I find that – out of the Gardein faux meats I’ve tried – all the faux poultry kinda just tastes the same, with an exception to different breading. Which is fine – I like that taste, so it’s all good.

But the gravy… it tastes like turkey. Not like, ‘oh, it’s sage’ – no. This gravy tastes straight up like turkey. My meat-eater friend confirmed – this tastes like they used real turkey drippings to make the gravy. If this gravy didn’t come out of a Gardein pack, and was just sitting on the table/otherwise handed to me by somebody else, I’d assumed they made a mistake and gave me non-vegan gravy.

And, while I understand wanting to make vegan food that tastes like meat, to me, I just… I don’t know how to feel about this. It tastes a lot like meat gravy, so much so, I got that wretch in the pit of my stomach, because that smell is associated so much with the dead body of a turkey. It was a bit off-putting, to say the least.

I’m one of those vegans, who is okay with eating plants that taste like plants – if it’s close in taste, I’m all for it. When I get skeptical/uneasy, is when it tastes exactly the same. Give me a mushroom burger that tastes like mushrooms, I’m happy. I actually like the taste of plants, so that doesn’t matter to me. (I touched on this more in my Beyond Burger review)

Obviously, if you’re someone who enjoys vegan food tasting near identical to the real thing, I’d say go for it. I’m not going to not recommend something just because it tastes too ‘real’. Also, it’s not even that – this product is good, the chick’n itself tastes like their nuggets, so you could even just use the cutlets without the gravy packet, if that’s something that would freak you out.

I’d say, if you are going to try the gravy, do so more then once – after getting over the initial shock of how close it tastes your brain calms down and it really does start to taste like sage.

All in all, I’d recommend this product, with probably just a word of caution about the gravy. It can throw you if you’re not expecting it, but you shouldn’t let that stop you from trying an otherwise good product. I know I, myself will definitely buy this product again in the future, (just as I did with the Beyond Burger), but I would do so with the expectation of knowing what I’m getting. I think that would help your first taste-test go well, too.


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