Impossible Burger can be delivered
Plant-based Impossible Burger still isn’t available in South Florida supermarkets, four years after it debuted in a New York City restaurant and nearly a year after it first showed up in supermarkets in Southern California.
But South Florida consumers can now have it delivered to their homes via Impossible Foods’ new online delivery service.
But be warned: It’s pricey to have it delivered.
A four-pack of 12-oz. packages costs $49.95 plus shipping, according to the Impossible Foods’ website.
By comparison, Ralphs supermarket in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., will sell you the same four 12-ounce packages for $31.96. Of course, first you have to travel to California which will significantly increase the price. Ralphs doesn’t ship the product.
The product, which enthusiasts have hailed as the first vegetable
based burger that tastes like actual meat, has won fans in South Florida who’ve sampled it in restaurants ranging from Duffy’s Sports Grill to Burger King. But until now, it hasn’t been available for South Florida home chefs to use in their own recipes.
Impossible Foods says the product can be used in just about any recipe that calls for beef. Recipes on its website include tacos, chili cheese fries, sloppy joes, cheesesteak sandwiches, chorizo and claims, spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna, quesadillas, and gyros.
Home chefs can find 40 more recipes in the book “Impossible: The Cookbook,” available from Impossible Foods website, Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.
Other configurations available for home delivery are:
■ Package of 10 quarterpound patties and two 12-ounce packages for $59.99.
■ A five-pound package for $64.99.
■ Two packages of 10 quarter-pound patties for $69.99.
Consumers who spend more than $75 get free shipping. Neither a news release about the availability of home delivery nor the company’s website mentions availability of the Impossible Sausage pork substitute recently introduced for Burger King’s Impossible Croissan’wich.
If delivery of Impossible Burger seems too expensive to justify, you can find its main competitor, Beyond Burger, throughout South Florida, including Publix, Winn-Dixie, Walmart, Target, and BJ’s Wholesale Club.
Walmart sells two quarter-pound Beyond Burger patties for $4.84.
A story comparing by the tech-oriented website CNET.com comparing the two products found that both burgers can be labeled vegan because neither contains any animal products or byproducts.
Impossible Burger’s main protein source is laboratory-derived soy leghemoglobin, which makes the burger “bleed.” Beyond Burger gets its red color from beet extract.
CNET says the Impossible Burger “tastes enough like real beef to gross out vegetarians,” while Beyond Burger leaves a “somewhat coconut-y aftertaste.”
Whether they are a healthier alternative to real beef is subject to debate.
Both products rely heavily on added flavors and nutrients to appeal to beef eaters.
A quarter-pound serving of each contains about 300 calories, 20 grams of protein and nearly 400 milligrams of sodium. The Beyond Burger packs 20 grams of fat, while Impossible Burger has 14 fat grams. A similarsize burger patty has slightly fewer calories and fat and a fifth of the sodium.