Suma wrestle with our taste buds again

Suma’s Baked Beans and Vegan Sausages (reviewed here: https://veganonadesertisland.com/2016/09/11/review-suma-baked-beans-with-lincolnshire-style-meat-free-sausages/) in a tin received a lot of publicity when they first went on sale, their new Meatballs in a Bolognese Sauce and Baked Beans with Vegan Burgers were released quietly on to the market – but they have been noticed by vegans lucky enough to have an independent health food shop nearby. I am such a vegan

Suma is one of the biggest ethical companies in the UK, so I’m always pleased to sample their products and support their business.

The meatballs excited me most as I love vegan meatballs and often have them with pasta.

These make it quick and easy to cook such a dinner. You simply heat through and throw it on the pasta – taking care not to splash it all over your white shirt of course.

They do have that food in a tin taste – it’s hard to explain, but I swear it is a thing. The meatballs are nothing spectacular, but they are nice – just not overly spiced. You can solve that by throwing a few chilli flakes into the sauce yourself – I added some veg to bulk it out because you can’t have pasta without mushrooms. But those who dislike spicy food will be pleased with them as they are.

The Bolognese sauce has hints of tomato – which shouldn’t really come as a surprise, and it works. The meatballs are small – but they come trapped in a tin, so what do you expect until they invent Tardis tins?

The same goes for the burgers – they’re more like baby birds with awesome baked beans. In fact, the baby burgers’ ingredients don’t differ greatly from the meatball ingredients, but I preferred the Bolognese sauce to compliment them over the baked beans. The beans come in a rich sauce and the burger bites are meaty and not overly spiced, but they’re nice – just not as enjoyable as the Vegan Sausages and Baked Beans – but nothing in a tin comes close to that!

What this does do is give students, those in a hurry and vegan campers a choice of three different meals in a tin and that has to be a good thing.

Baked Beans with Vegan Burgers ingredients

Vegan Meatballs in Bolognese Sauce ingredients

http://www.suma.coop/

No Bull, it’s a bloody vegan burger

 

The Iceland No Bull vegan burgers were eagerly anticipated thanks to the PR machine going into overdrive on social media.

Sold as being “meat-like” and being “bloody” (well beetroot juice bloody anyway), they were marketed as vegan burgers for those who miss meat – or vegan burgers for non-vegans I guess.

I fell into the “why do you want it to look like meat?” camp when I first heard about them. But, as others pointed out online, new vegans and vegetarians may miss the texture and look of meat and want something a little more authentic than seasoned vegans such as yours truly.

 

 

I do like the rustic packaging – that gives it a “meat feel” from the word go – but plain, to me, says “better for the environment” more than anything else – so that’s a thumbs-up.

I also like the ingredients list – which, for a processed food item, is pretty small really – that, to me, suggests less nasty additives, which is always a good thing.

At £2 for a pack of two quarter pounder burgers, the price is right too. By their size, the four to six- minute cooking time quoted on the pack is optimistic at best. I’ll try cooking them in the oven next time as there’s a real risk of burning the outside before the middle is done – I had to microwave mine to add heat.

They certainly look and taste meaty. I can’t remember what a beef burger tastes like, but I doubt it’s as good as this. It does look red too – it doesn’t exactly bleed, but it does look like a meat burger – whether this is a good or bad thing is up to the individual.

They’re both tender and succulent and they really do melt in the mouth – without falling apart while cooking – an issue with some veggie burgers.

The important thing is it’s a substantial meal and while it looks and tastes rustic, it packs a flavour punch way beyond its bargain price tag. They have a hint of spice and you can’t taste the beetroot – although I’m sure it adds to the overall flavour of the impressive meal.

I bought mine from an Iceland Food Warehouse and was impressed by their vegan selection – as well as these and the usual Linda McCartney offering, they had a few Frys and vegan Quorn products as well as the new vegan-friendly Indian range recently introduced.

A Wicked vegan pizza review

Ever since Tesco announced a vegan marriage to Wicked Kitchen I’ve been curious to try one of the resulting offspring.

I have now had the opportunity to eat one of their babies and share my thoughts on the meal.

Vegan pizza seems to be a thing at the moment. I reviewed the very tasty Goodfellows offering here: https://veganonadesertisland.com/2018/02/25/review-goodfellas-vegan-stonebaked-falafel-pizza/ and thought it a good idea to give my loyal blog readers an opinion on a competitor.

At £4 for a 280g pizza, it’s more expensive and smaller than the falafel pizza reviewed in the link, so, I do think it’s quite a pricey offering.

As you will see from the photo, there is a rather long ingredient list, but everything on it does seem pretty natural – although I don’t like sugar, inverted sugar syrup and black treacle all being on there – but I guess, there is an underlying sweetness to most pizzas.

I must say that, again, this is a cheeseless pizza – I will endeavour to review a pizza topped with vegan cheese in the near future.

I used to make pizza toasties as a kid – so I was intrigued by a bread base pizza. It works pretty well – it’s crispy and tastes like a normal pizza base – however, there is too much base and not enough topping for my liking – especially for four quid.

The tomato sauce is, for me, the basis of all pizzas, this product does have that, so it does taste very pizza-like – always good for a pizza.

I also like the idea of shredded king oyster mushrooms as the “meat”. I’ve seen a few posts online using this as a replacement for pulled pork – and I’m a huge fungi fan, so it’s a win-win situation for me.

The mushrooms did remind me of pulled jackfruit, so they definitely work as a meat replacement. I would have liked more of them – but I will look out for the mushrooms themselves to use in my own recipes.

The overbearing taste here is one of chilli heat. If you don’t like spicy food this pizza is definitely not for you. I actually thought the chilli distracted from the other tastes – it hid the mushroom taste too much for my liking. I like chillies – but I like mushrooms more!

But if you are a chilli fan – and plenty of people are – this pizza will definitely not disappoint.

It’s nice that we have more and more vegan options and this is a nice offering – but I still prefer the Goodfellows pizza – it’s bigger and cheaper too!

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/298910498

 

Farmfoods Veggie Kitchen products reviewed

It seems that a there isn’t a week going by without a new vegan product launch these days.

One the one hand, it’s great news there are so many products from which to choose, but, it does mean that with so many supermarkets fighting for the vegan pound, our independent health food shops have difficulty in competing. As someone who always bats for the small guy, I find myself torn between trying the new ranges and supporting small businesses.

Farmfoods isn’t generally seen as a big player as far as supermarkets go – but it is good for those on a budget – when I bought products from their Veggie Kitchen range, I got three for a fiver!

I decided to try all of the vegan-friendly products in the Veggie Kitchen range because it really didn’t cost me very much to do so.

Sausages. The sausages are of a similar size and texture to Linda McCartney’s famous veggie sausages – the benchmark by which vegan-friendly sausages are usually measured if we’re honest.

The Farmfoods effort has a similar rusky taste, but they have a herby hint that’s very pleasant indeed. I prefer them to the Linda McCartney ones – and they are certainly value for money – you get eight in a box!

Meatballs. These seem to lack the seasoning hit that their sausage sisters provide. You get a hefty pack and a meaty texture, but they are just a little bit bland. However, this does mean they soak up other flavours well and are great in a passata with pasta or in a nice onion gravy as part of a roast dinner.

We have to remember this is cheap processed food, so sometimes you need to spice things up a little with sauces or seasoning.

Mince. You get a substantial pack of soya mince to use in your spaghetti Bolognaise or shepherd’s pie. Again, the mince alone is a little bland, but then, who eats mince on its own?

It works perfectly in a good spag bog, and that’s all you need really. It doesn’t have a dominant flavour, and, I guess, that’s the point really. You get a lot for your money, meaning it can be stretched across several tasty meals.

Burgers. The Veggie Kitchen burgers have a meaty look and texture. By meaty, I mean substantial – they don’t look or taste like a dead animal – I feel the need to make that clear in our Veganverse. These also lack seasoning, but bung them in a bun with some salad and relish and you have a great burger. They also go brilliantly with gravy.

I have to point out, that while not exploding with taste, none of the products are offensive to the tastebuds – none of them are horrible and none of them are overly disappointing.

Southern Fried Chicken Poppers. These are my favourites in the range. The coating gives them a slight crunch and provides a mild peppery taste – one that’s very agreeable too!

The texture is gorgeous. They almost melt in the mouth – while, again, not having a powerful flavour. But they are perfect with ketchup, which, importantly, means they are very kid-friendly and they get the thumbs-up from me.

2019 may well as well be known as the year of the vegan sausage roll! Everyone seems to have been at it – new vegan-friendly sausage rolls have been popping up everywhere – and Farmfoods have got in on the act too.

As with many of their products, these no-frills mini-rolls do the job. They’re rather lacking in a herb or spice hit, but they’re certainly not horrible – and I’ve bought them more than once – which is an endorsement of sorts in itself.

All-in-all, if you’re after cheap, quick, processed food, or freezer staples, you could do worse than popping down to Farmfoods.

https://www.farmfoods.co.uk/

 

Sunday dinners, Veganuary and plastic

Review – V-Bites Meat-free Meatloaf

A vegan meatless meatloaf had to be worth a try post-Christmas.

Being vegan doesn’t mean you have to automatically skip traditional Sunday meals, and I’m always on the lookout for new and exciting dishes to throw into the mix.

V-Bites came up with the goods on this occasion.

As part of their VegiDeli range, I was excited to find this in my local Holland and Barrett – and even more excited to give it a try.

I have liked the Cheatin’ roasts and love Macsween Veggie Haggis – my favourite roast substitute as it’s totally natural and very filling – but like a boy in a vegan sweet shop, I get excited by new vegan foods.

As Veganuary rumbles on, the hunt for “meaty” replacements to tempt new vegans grows, and this is certainly “meaty” – maybe too much so for some vegans.

The main problem I had with my Meatless Meatloaf was actually getting into the thing. You need to remove the tight plastic casing to cook the thing – it’s harder to get into than the Free Masons – mainly due to the metal clips at each end!

Also, plastic is bad – its affect on the environment is directly deadly for many animals – so, V-Bites, how about dropping that bit? To be fair, a lot of processed vegan food comes in a plastic prison and it’s something we really should be pulling companies up on – it simply isn’t cool!

Once you’ve got into it, it takes a fair while to cook – definitely closer to 50 minutes than 45 (the packaging says 45-5o minutes) – but, on the plus side, it is a chunky beast – I reckon you could get three good servings from it.

So, how does it taste?

It’s OK, in short. Personally, I thought it could do with a little more seasoning – or some seasoning really. A few herbs would have certainly livened it up – or maybe I’m too used to plenty of herbs and spices in vegan dishes – but many meat dishes are powered by these plants to make them taste better too!

It has a nice meaty texture, look and is certainly tender. The taste reminds me a little bit of some vegan minces on the market – so a good gravy, tomato sauce or mustard certainly adds a welcome flavour punch to this substantial and filling dish.

You can buy online here: https://www.vbitesfoods.com/product/meat-free-meatloaf/

But what’s your favourite vegan Sunday dinner? Please comment below – or in the social media thread which brought you here. I also welcome your recipes for vegan dinner dishes.

Also, I’m after your Veganuary stories for future blogs, so please get in touch.

A vegan meal out at Wagamama – food review

Wagamama’s new vegan menu has got the online plant-based community excited – so Peterborough’s Vegetarian and Vegan group decided to hold one of its social nights at the local branch to see what all the fuss is about. I thought it’d be rude not to review my meal for the lovely vegan community out there.

I went for the kare burosu for my main. At £10.95 it was actually a substantial and very filling dish (it actually came in a bowl). The mushrooms interacted with the vegetable broth to produce a strong, rustic taste – mushrooms are my favourite meat substitute, so this was a definite thumbs-up from me. The wooden ladle provided to eat it with added to the rustic feel too.

 

The dish had a strong chilli kick – another plus in my book – which didn’t overpower the other flavours but complimented them perfectly. The soft tofu was delicious addition – and it was cooked just right. Tofu is a very hard ingredient to get right – Wagamama has succeeded here.

Wagamama didn’t skimp on the veg or the herbs in the meal either – and the udon noodles were divine – they are certainly my favourite noodles – thick and substantial. There was also plenty of fresh coriander to garnish the bowl.

I complimented my main with a side of yasai steamed gyoza – basically vegetable dumplings with a balsamic dip. They’re divine.

I’ve always been a huge dumpling fan, and these hold a perfect selection of vegetables the balsamic sauce is just the perfect compliment. A hint of chilli finished it off perfectly.

I also tried the wok fried greens and the broccoli and bok choi were delicious – stir-fried in garlic and soy sauce – they had just the right amount of crunch. I like broccoli cooked in soy sauce anyway, and this just reinforced the opinion of my taste-buds.

The edamame with salt side dish also gets a thumbs-up – it certainly had a kick to it. The salt definitely enhanced the beans’ natural flavour.

I had to try a dessert to finish off the evening – it’s vegan law. We had a choice of two sorbets and I went for the pink guava with passion fruit one – very nice it was too. I love a strong fruit flavour and this definitely didn’t disappoint in that department.

I chose a Kansho craft beer to wash down my food and I’m glad I did. The growth in the craft beer market is good news for vegans as we can actually drink a lot of them – and as most are made by independent breweries they score high on the ethical scale too.

This one had a pleasant zesty taste and looked like Irn Bru. It was light and, again, I enjoyed it very much.

You can check out Wagamama’s full vegan menu online – https://www.wagamama.com/our-menu/vegan

I have tried the yasai yaki soba before – I had that with rice noodles. I’m a mushroom fiend, so I pretty much go for anything with mushrooms and dish also impressed me. It’s not as substantial as the kare burosu but is a bit cheaper. It’s also less spicy – if you have a more delicate palate.

Wagamama must be commended for offering such a comprehensive vegan menu. The staff were also very friendly and helpful. The layout of the Peterborough restaurant is very welcoming. It’s well lit, unfussy and spacious. Wagamama also offers takeaway and delivery services.

An extremely pleasant evening.

 

All hail the kale! Strong Root Kale & Quinoa Burger

Both kale and quinoa have been called super foods – so this should make these burgers super super!

Well, they are quite nice. And, it’s always nice to find new vegan foods that sound pretty awesome – in a healthy way too! Although, these go perfectly with chips – should you wish to not overdo the healthy thing.

Who doesn’t love kale right? Kale crisps are the perfect homemade vegan treat – health and quick, and for immune system boosters – well there isn’t a better food on the planet.

Crumbs, vegans even wear T-shirts with Kale written on – you don’t see that with potatoes!

But let’s not underestimate Queen Quinoa! Oh no! She is a complete protein and an awesome wheat-free alternative to grains – in other words, you don’t need to feel guilty when chowing down on these burgers.

So what are they like? Well, inside they are very green – kale green in fact – surprising that!

They come in a pack of six, so they are pretty small – a strapping young (ahem) like me needs three with a meal! But, as they’re pretty healthy, I’m not complaining – and no animals have been harmed in making these burgers – I don’t emphasise that fact enough on here!

The coating lacks crunch, but adds flavour – I will happily forego crunch for flavour – and they only take 15 minutes to cook in the oven – bonus!

They taste – well, natural!

They aren’t over-seasoned – or seasoned much at all, it seems – although salt does feature on the ingredients list!

They are soft, delicately flavoured and complement most dishes – so, overall, a thumbs-up from me.

 

Nuts about vegan desserts

A review of two coconut-based vegan desserts.

I’m a huge fan of Koko’s dairy-free coconut milk. It is my vegan milk of choice, therefore when I spotted coconut desserts waving at me from the supermarket shelf I just had to give them a try.

Somebody had actually recommended the Coconut Collaborative dessert in a Facebook share of a previous blog, so it’d be rude not to give that a try too.

Koko’s Dairy-free Strawberry Dessert weighs in at £1.25 for two 125g pots.

It’s quite creamy, but the coconut hit is so slight that it’s almost non-existent. Whether or not this is a good thing depends on where you stand on coconut taste-wise. My guess is that if you don’t like it, you probably wouldn’t be buying a coconut-based dessert. I could be wrong. And, to be fair, you don’t need to like coconut to like this offering – and, alternatively, you won’t necessarily like it if you do like coconut.

To me, the whole product doesn’t have a distinctive enough taste to wow me either way. It’s light, fairly sweet (it does contain sugar) and there are a few small pieces of strawberry to brighten things up a little.

I didn’t hate it – but I didn’t love it either. It works well as a more interesting cream-alternative poured over something rather than a stand-alone dessert in my view. Worth checking out if you’re a vegan (or dairy-free) looking for an alternative to the many soya-based desserts on the market.

 

I did, however, love The Coconut Collaborative Blueberry Yoghurt Alternative. A more luxurious offering than the Koko dessert, it will cost you around £1.50 for a 120gm pot. I think it’s worth it.

You can smell and taste the coconut in this one.

It’s creamy too, and, it contains a good helping of fruit. The blueberries add a nice colour to brighten up the dessert too.

Like the Koko offering, it’s soya-free, but this one only contains natural sugars too – that’s probably why the coconut taste is more prominent, this dessert does not have the sweetness hit like its competitor. I, personally, like that.

Not only that, but the blueberries add a slight sharpness to the taste party too.

I find strong coconut flavours a little chalky, but we don’t quite stray into that category here.

Coconut fiends will adore this one.

That’s a vegan wrap! Co-op Falafel and Houmous Wraps reviewed

 

Vegan options are springing up all over the place – Pret’s tasty offerings, for example, have received plaudits from across the social media world.

It’s well-known that supermarkets have also been quickly introducing ranges to tempt vegans to part from their tallow-free cash in recent months – so I decided to try out Co-op’s perfect vegan-friendly lunchtime snack offering.

Famous for being the “ethical supermarket”, the Co-op has received particular praise from vegans for their jam and custard donuts. At two packs for a quid, these have long been a staple of vegan junk food addicts up and down the country. Their Falafel and Houmous Wraps are, I’m guessing slightly healthier than their sugar-laden shelf fellows.

I, personally, find falafels a little dry, so pairing them with creamy houmous is the natural thing to do – they go together like Friday nights and chips! I also prefer the hummus spelling of the dish – but the CO-OP has chosen to go with “houmous”, so I’ll stick to that for accuracy’s sake.

At £2.65 for two, you certainly get enough for the savoury side of your lunch, but I would have liked to have seen a little more houmous thrown in if I’m honest. But what there is does its job and means the wraps are not too dry – they’re not too wet either, which is probably why they haven’t been over-generous on the sauce.

A word of warning, the wraps are chilli wraps and, while mild, they do add a little heat and possess a pleasant spicy aftertaste. When mixed with the natural spice of the falafels, this can produce a satisfying taste to those of us who dislike bland food. But, if you don’t do spicy, you won’t like these.

They have a nice crunch to them too – perfectly provided by the lettuce, red cabbage and small pieces of carrot. So, as well as feeling that your hunger pangs have been satisfied, you come away with the smug feeling that you’ve eaten something relatively healthy while on the go.