Dixie Diners' Club - Beef (Not!) Ground (1 lb bag)

Love this stuff. Best soy crumble.

I quit eating ANY beef for three reasons... Health/price and political. The Cattle/Ranchers/Beef industry is out of control and I will not spend one Buffalo Nickel aiding and abetting their environmental practices. It's criminal. That said... This stuff is just like ground beef. My only suggestion is to season the heck out of it if using for tacos or any standalone dish. In chili... You will not know the difference. And that is fact. **Update... I bought this on 9/3/21 and I was going to reorder today 10/27/21. I paid $12+ which is an OK price. Today? $18+! A $6 increase in a month and a half? Nope. Looking elsewhere as TVP is made everywhere. If you are OK w/ $18+ this is for you. Good Stuff. Me, I'm on a budget. Oh well...

I had used the ground version & was impressed with how it adapted well in recipes calling for ground beef & decided to try the strips. I was thinking beef stew, stroganoff & the like. The reconstituting step is not exactly the same as I found the strips if "hard boiled in the microwave became a jerky consistency. On my second attempt I simmered for the prescribed time & viola here were strips moist & soft. I also used a little beef stock for simmering & it absorbed the flavor into the strips. Now I have a great substitute for beef in stews etc. as well as a substitute for ground beef in chili, lasagna etc . No more worrying about taking up freezer space, freezer burn. Or expiration dates! It sold me!

Wow, I am shocked at how well this turned out. I'm a hardcore carnivore and actively avoid vegan/vegetarian stuff but my BP is up and I need to lose some weight so I figured "what the heck" and bought a bag of this. I took a 1/2 cup of this, a 1/2 cup of hot water, added a splash of Worcestershire sauce, a dash of garlic, salt, and some steak seasoning mix. Microwaved the bowl for 2 mins and took a taste and I was pleasantly surprised - It actually tasted and felt pretty darn close to ground beef! I can't vouch for it mixed plain but if you season it up a bit it's more than passable! Gonna make a cheesesteak out of what I mixed up right now, will try tacos next and post an update!

I just made a lovely vegetable not-beef soup. I wanted it to have a bit of "meat" in it so I added a cup of these bits. Honestly, it would have better to have the larger size for my soup, but these were what I had. I fed the soup to 3 people who are omnivores and they all agreed that it turned out perfect. They were wondering what the "meat" was, as they truly thought it seemed like meat, but knew that I wouldn't start using meat after 35 years being a vegetarian. (I used Better Than Bullion no Beef for the broth.) I admit that this is the first time I've used this product. It was always highly recommended in my vegetarian and vegan cooking classes. I was pleased with how this worked out. I am back so I can buy the larger sized chunks for my next soup. In the future I think I will use the smaller chunks in vegemeatloaves and vegeburgers as the texture will be perfect. I definitely recommend this product. Do not expect it to be a one size fits all. Instead, this product needs to be used for its strengths.

OK, when you are pouring the water to rehydrate this "meat" it has an off-putting smell. If you've ever had a puppy and you had to soften its food with warm water, that's the smell, but don't let that deter you. After I diced up some onions, and put in taco seasoning, and cooked it on the stove, no one in my family could tell that they were not eating meat. I've also used it with spaghetti sauce and again no one could tell the difference. This is some great stuff! If you are trying to sneak in some meatless dinners on your family this is the tool you need! Oh and I almost forgot it's so much cheaper than buying ground beef in the store. Out of the one bag I bought I have fixed tacos for 6 people and spaghetti sauce for 6 and still have probably and half a bag left. My family are big eaters so that's saying something. I got two full meals and probably have two more left in the bag for $11 and some change! Can't beat that! Another thing I like about this is you can store it in your cabinet and it doesn't take up refrigerator space. I already ordered 2 more bags.

My original review is below, but I took a star away because I really don't like all the powder in the bag. I don't know if that can be fixed, but to me it spoils the meat effect a little. The product is still very good and delivers on its promise. One other thing: if you want that meat flavor, I recommend Orrington Farms Vegan Beef Broth Base. It really does taste meat-like (it wouldn't fool a meat eater, but for vegetarians it is excellent). Have tried a variety of not meat products and this is among the best. First time I used it, I made not meatloaf. I put a bunch of cumin, garlic, marjoram, and oregano (all measured by eye and instinct) in a cup of water, heated the water to near boiling, and put in the not ground beef. Let it sit for a few minutes and tasted it. It was delicious. Put it in the refrigerator and checked it after a few hours. It had firmed up nicely and I could tell it would be very much like meat. Made the not meatloaf with bread crumbs and some seitan as a binder and the usual meatloaf seasoning. Look, as a vegetarian I don't really care about fake meats, but my wife still wants meat flavors and we both miss the texture. Well this was so like meatloaf, we've found a solution to the texture/flavor problem, and I didn't think that would happen. Can't wait to try the not chicken pieces.