Beyond Meat's Beyond SausageNow Available In Whole Foods

Vegan Beyond Sausage - Soy and gluten free.

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Beyond Meat Burger Lovers
For those of you who have fallen in love with Beyond Meat Burgers (see my review), the vegan hamburger that really tastes like a hamburger, you've no doubt been waiting anxiously for their Beyond Sausage. I personally have been stuffing the suggestion boxes at every Whole Foods in my area asking for them ever since I read that Beyond Meat had a sales agreement with Whole Foods.

So I was pretty excited to find them in my little Sebastopol Whole Foods last week. I grabbed all three flavors and couldn't wait to cook them. 

Although some vegans avoid foods that even look or taste like meat, Beyond Meat makes great products for vegans and vegetarians who miss burgers and sausages and for meat eaters who are trying to eat less meat or who are transitioning to a plant-based diet. Most of all, people eat products like this because they taste great.

Beyond Sausage comes in three flavors:
Brat Original
Hot Italian
Sweet Italian

Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up
The first one we tried was the Brat Original. It didn't taste like a bratwurst. In fact, it had an anise flavor which we weren't expecting. My mini focus group (me, Doug, and our nephew Cody) gave it a rating of 3.5 to 4 out of 5 in terms of flavor and texture although Doug and Cody both said that they would eat them again. Unfortunately I give the brat a thumbs down.

The brat was just OK. I was disappointed in the flavor.

Today I made both the sweet and hot Italian Beyond Sausages. They were wonderful! The sweet was yummy and the heat of the hot sausage was just right. They earned a 5 out of 5 rating on texture and taste. We will definitely buy them again.

I mixed them with bell peppers, onions and mushrooms (but do not cook them together.)

First I sautéed the vegetables, removed them from the pan and set aside.

I grilled the sausages using the same pan.
Then, removed them from the pan and cut in pieces.
I put the vegetables back the pan to heat and to get the flavoring of the sausages. 

The dish tasted like traditional Italian sausage and peppers. Delicious!

I give both the sweet and hot Italian sausages a big thumbs up!

Nutrition
Like the Beyond Meat Burgers, these aren't what I would call a health food but they aren't a sinful one either. They are made with pea, rice, and faba bean protein and have fat from coconut oil and sunflower oil. They are 190 calories each, providing 16 g of protein, 12 g of total fat, 5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 5 g carbohydrates, 3 g of dietary fiber, and 500 mg of sodium. 

Cooking
I cooked them on a ceramic coated pan with no oil, since they have quite a bit already. I found that they take a few minutes longer than the 7 minutes they recommend. And like I do with the Beyond Meat burgers, I blot them lightly with a paper towel to reduce their fat content. 

I look forward to making the Italian sausage again and putting them on top of a big bowl of spaghetti! And if I do buy the Brat Original again, I will try cooking it on a BBQ grill.

Thanks Beyond Meat!
You've got to love a company that has a mission like this:

We believe there is a better way to feed the planet. Our mission is to create mass-market solutions that perfectly replace animal protein with plant protein. We are dedicated to improving human health, positively impacting climate change, conserving natural resources and respecting animal welfare. At Beyond Meat, we want to make the world a better place and we’re starting one delicious meal at a time.