Everyone’s talking about . . .

Meatless meatballs

Why are they in the news?

BECAUSE they are, apparently, ‘the future of fast food’.

Really? Who says so?

LEON, of course. You may have noticed the High Street food chain’s 49 stores up and down the country are making a lot of noise about them with big window displays, amid endless talk we should all consider vegan substitutes in our diet.

Isn’t a meatless meatball a contradiction in terms?

LET’S not be pedantic. The idea is that they taste meaty but are actually made of wheat protein.

Anything else to get my teeth into?

YOU’LL find some accompanying aubergine, black olives, tomato sauce (with vegan garlic aioli), rice, lemon juice, onion, soybean, all in a little box costing £4.95.

How does that compare with Leon’s Moroccan Meatballs?

POSITIVELY if you’re on the porky side and watching your weight. The vegan option has 566 calories, compared with 778 for the real thing, and there’s a big difference in price. You’re looking at £6.95 for meatballs with actual meat in them.

Is Leon part of a greater vegan conspiracy?

THAT wouldn’t be fair. It claims to be a dedicated follower of foodie fashion and is moving towards an ever-more expansive meat-free menu because, it claims, that’s what people want. ‘A plant-based diet is better for you and less calorific,’ says a spokeswoman. ‘There’s also a far greater consciousness about gut health.’

Gut health?

OH, YES. One of the pioneers of this was an Austrian called Dr Franz Mayr (1875-1965), who believed that what goes on in the gut stays in the gut. So be very careful what you eat. Today, people pay a lot of money for a week or two in the Mayr clinic, where you hardly eat anything at all.

People hardly eating anything won’t be good for Leon’s balance sheet will it?

NO, BUT the Leon plant burger (492 calories), made of edamame and lemongrass, is proving popular, along with the vegan falafel wrap and the Brazilian black bean stew, which is gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan.

Does all this mean I’ll soon be able to get a vegan burger at McDonald’s?

IT CAN only be a matter of time. Its chickpea burger is already on the menu — but McDonald’s is unlikely to call it the ‘future of fast food’.