Pro Chefs Blind Taste Test Every Veggie Burger

[Narrator] We gathered three veggie burger experts

to blind taste test every veggie burger

we could get our hands on

to see which ones meet their standards.

[exciting music]

[wrapper rustling]

[patties thudding]

MorningStar Farms Garden Veggie Burgers.

Smells very vegetal.

I see some carrot. It looks like there is onion.

So it's a little thin.

I like a little bit more of a hardy burger.

With a veggie burger,

one of the things that I'm looking for is its texture.

I don't want the texture to be mushy.

Something that is not going to fall apart immediately

when I pick it up.

And if it's in a bun,

I don't want it to squeeze out the sides.

There should be some sort of crisp or char.

I want it to be moist and juicy.

It can't be overly moist and it can't be overly dry.

So you need to have a combination of ingredients

that are basically going to help each other out.

Another thing that I would look for

that's very important is a balance of flavors.

I wanna feel like I'm tasting the actual vegetables in it.

I just want those flavors to be well-seasoned

and shining through.

I could see a lot of the whole vegetables in here.

There's red bell pepper, there's onion, there's carrot.

It's funny 'cause it had an a lot of vegetable aroma.

Like I could smell peppers and onions,

but I can't taste them.

It tastes a little bit cardboardy to me.

And there's like a sheen of oil on my fingers,

so not ideal.

I like this texture.

It's hardy and it almost doesn't feel like plants.

It's sticking together really well.

Given the texture and the mouth feel,

to me this tastes like a synthetic binder for sure.

I think the binder in this actually

may be some soy-based protein.

When I say binder, I just mean something

that's absorbing moisture in the other ingredients

and holding everything together.

I think it's either xantham gum or methylcellulose.

Methylcellulose is derived from cellulose,

which is a fiber.

Its thermal behavior is a bit unique

and that it solidifies when it's hot

and it melts when it's cold.

It just doesn't have any other textures in it

to make it feel satisfactory.

It's not my favorite. [chuckles]

Morningside?

[wrapper rustling]

MorningStar.

Soy protein concentrate. That was right.

Soybeans, which are the basis of tofu

and a lot of other soy-based products

naturally contain a lot of plant-based protein.

You want protein because it does two main things.

Number one, it helps our growth and development,

so it helps our muscle growth.

But then it does some other really important things.

It slows digestion and it also helps create satiety,

which means that it's gonna help keep you full

and keep you full longer.

The protein from soy is a complete protein.

A complete protein is something that contains

all nine of the essential amino acids.

So there are 20 amino acids that exist in nature

that we consume.

Nine of them we must obtain through our diets

and 11 of them our bodies can synthesize for ourselves.

So all animal products are gonna be complete proteins.

Plants are incomplete.

Plants are usually paired together in a meal

to make all nine amino acids.

Although there are some exceptions to the rule.

Soy is that exception.

[Director] Would you eat it again?

Probably not.

[plastic rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Dr. Praeger's California Veggie Burgers.

I am seeing chunks of vegetables.

I see some green peas, carrots,

some red bell pepper again.

I do like the variation of color in this.

Ooh, okay, edamame.

Edamame is immature soybeans

and so it is a complete protein.

[Lourdes] It is not holding together.

I like that when you first bite into it,

there's a slight crisp.

So I appreciate the texture of this.

I'm tasting a lot of real vegetables in here,

which is great.

I love to be able to identify

what ingredients are in my food.

Using the whole edamame was really smart

because it adds a heartier bite

when you actually bite into the burger.

I think this would fall under the classification

of a California veggie burger,

which basically just means this burger

is primarily made of vegetables,

not so much processed protein ingredients.

Is this Dr. Praeger?

Is this Dr. Praeger's?

Dr. Praeger?

[box thudding] I was right.

Dr. Praeger's, yes.

Oh, California burger.

Well, I'm impressed.

The first ingredients are all vegetables.

It doesn't have a lot of additives.

It says it's made with 10 different veggies,

which is great.

But there is only five grams of protein per patties.

If you're gonna use this as your protein source,

it's not a great option.

There's arrowroot powder in here.

It's a starch of a tropical root that helps to thicken.

It's very much like corn starch except you can freeze it.

And there's cornmeal.

Which is what it's giving it that sweet kind of flavor in.

That is the coating on top that I was referring to

that's making it crisp and giving it that texture.

I like it. [hands tapping]

I'm a Dr. Praeger's fan now.

[box rasping]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Aldi Earth Grown Veggie Burger.

It's a little bit mushy.

Vegetables are largely water,

so you do need to think about moisture control a lot.

It's really important to have a balance of ingredients

to combat the amount of moisture you have in a burger.

I would definitely add more binder, something starchy.

Starch absorbs moisture and it also creates structure.

A lot of vegetables.

There's corn, there's edamame, carrots.

The flavor is very flat.

It didn't really have any spices,

so it just tasted like green peas.

It needs seasoning.

[Priyanka] This had a little bit more mush than I'd like.

Once you have mush, you're never gonna have juiciness.

It's just gonna have this kind of mushy environment.

If it's a meat burger,

the meat itself is gonna give it the heft.

If it's a bean burger, the starch is gonna give it the heft.

If you're using only vegetables, it's gonna be difficult.

Plants have cell walls surrounding each of their cells

and there's moisture.

There's water inside the cells

and, of course, there's water outside the cells.

But when you freeze a vegetable,

it expands and it can create jagged edges

and it can pierce those cell walls.

Once that cell wall has been pierced, it's been compromised

and now there's no longer any real structure

for that vegetable.

I think the key to not having a mushy burger

is having some sort of coating.

Cornmeal, that could be breadcrumbs,

that could even be crispy quinoa

to add some sort of crunch factor.

[packaging thudding]

Oh, Aldi. Okay.

Vegetable burger made with 11 vegetables.

See there's no spices.

So I feel like this is lacking a bit.

This is starting out strong with a lot of whole foods,

which I love.

It feels pretty much like I can make this at home.

They are not advertising protein as heavily on this package,

which to me, I like.

Everybody's trying to promote protein

like it's going to solve all of our universal problems.

Spoiler alert, it's not.

I think people need to focus more on fiber.

Fiber is really important for your gut health.

It helps regulate your blood cholesterol.

Helps to regulate your blood sugars.

Fiber's on the package, so I like that. [laughs]

They use whole oats, which is great

and that's gonna amp up the dietary fiber.

I know it's not sexy. Fiber is not sexy.

[plastic rustling]

[patties thudding]

[Narrator] Trader Joe's Vegetable Masala Burger.

[sniffs] There might be some curry powder in here,

which I'd be very excited about.

And there's a lot of yellow inside.

Maybe it has some turmeric?

As I squeeze down on it,

I'm actually seeing a lot of oil come out onto my fingers.

Hmm.

Up until now,

this has definitely the most flavor and the best seasoned.

I like the flavor on this one because it taste Indianish.

Turmeric, maybe like mustard seeds, maybe cumin.

I think it's a delicious thing, whatever it is.

I don't think it's satisfying as a veggie burger

because it doesn't have that hardy texture

that you can really sink your teeth into.

[Lourdes] The texture is still a little mushy.

I always make sure

to either rest the veggies on a paper towel

to make sure that it absorbs any excess moisture

or you could even squeeze it.

So if you're using something like beets

for color and texture,

you have to make sure to squeeze out all of the moisture.

Otherwise, it's just gonna completely ruin

and disintegrate your burger.

[packaging thudding]

Okay, it's Trader Joe's Vegetable Masala Burger.

With authentic Indian spices. [laughs]

Sorry, I'm laughing at the authentic

'cause it's probably not authentic,

but I did appreciate the flavor on it.

So potatoes is the first ingredient

and it's important to see what the first ingredients are

because that means that it's the ingredient

that the product contains the most of.

So the second ingredient of this burger is canola oil.

So that explains the greasiness.

Masala essentially means spice blend.

It is a catch-all word for a mixture of spices.

It only has two grams of protein per serving.

You could plop some plain Greek yogurt over this.

I think it would compliment it nicely

and then that would amp up the protein content.

[packaging rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] NoBull, the TRUE veggieburger

This one's thick.

I'm picking it up and already it's falling apart,

which is not great.

I can see grains and seeds.

I'm seeing green lentils.

I see some rice.

Yeah, it's quite mushy.

Oh.

This is not great.

This is so bad. [laughs]

It has a chalky texture on the tongue.

It falls apart. It has zero flavor.

Forget spices. I don't even think there's salt in here.

And because there's no salt, I'm not really tasting any

of the other ingredients either

because salt brings out flavor.

I am tasting a little bit of lentil,

so this is definitely a lentil burger.

I just wish we could maybe bring

some of the curry powder from the Trader Joe's burger

and put it in here.

Lentils on their own have a very earthy taste.

You need to season it and you do need to amp it up

with some other flavorings to deliver the flavor expectation

that someone's gonna have for a burger.

[packaging thudding]

NoBull, the TRUE veggieburger that has no spices.

I mean, it does have lentils and I saw some seeds.

So seeds also provide protein

and you can compliment the legume,

which is the lentil with the seed

and then get a complete protein.

Oh, and there's chia seeds in here.

Chia seeds are a great binder

and great vegan egg substitute.

If you bloom chia seeds in water, it becomes gelatinous.

And so they can create a lot of texture

and structure and jelling.

So they function as an emulsifier and a thickener.

This is no for me.

[packaging scraping]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Impossible Burger Patties.

This looks like a meat analog to me.

The appearance of this is terrible.

It does smell very meaty.

You know, like the coloring, it's very like monotone.

Like a regular burger has ridges.

If I'm eating an alternate meat burger

or an analog meat burger,

I am looking for basically something that tastes like beef.

Something that is juicy, greasy,

and yeah, has like good caramelization too.

Okay, we're going in, guys. Wish me luck.

Hmm, I don't like that at all.

It tastes bad. [chuckles]

It smells like some of the the the higher end dog food

that I've seen.

The flavor of this is a little weird

and it definitely tastes like manmade.

It's like a compilation of synthetic ingredients,

like chemicals.

You would have a protein ingredient

usually something like a soy protein, wheat, or pea protein.

And then it is combined with a bunch of other things

like different oils, different binders,

perhaps different extracts to make it that color as well.

I bet you this one has methylcellulose

'cause it has that gumminess in it

and you could see I'm even trying

and it doesn't give too easily.

I think it hits on the juicy factor.

I think it's mostly oil though.

Is it Impossible Burger?

I think this is Impossible.

[packaging rustling] [Lourdes grunts]

It's soy protein. So it is essentially tofu.

Soy leghemoglobin is derived from a soy plant

and it's fermented.

A bacteria is used in the process

and it creates essentially heme.

Heme is a form of iron

and it's used in this to fortify the patty

so that it amps up the iron content,

but it also imparts color, which you could see here.

And theoretically, it would also impart flavor

and aroma that's similar to beef, which I don't pick up on.

Not for me.

[plastic scraping]

[patties thudding]

[Narrator] Beyond Burger Plant-based Patties.

I really like that there's this like dark ring

of caramelization around the perimeter.

That's really giving it the personality of beef

and it's kind of telling me it's going to be delicious.

[Lourdes] Oh look, it even drips into my bun.

So you're definitely seeing a lot more texture

and also it really smells like beef.

And this is the first one that has texture on the outside.

Yeah, this is really good.

I don't think it's gonna fool a meat eater,

but it could come so far the closest.

[Alexandra] If I ordered this out somewhere,

I might think this is real beef.

There's like a satisfaction you get from biting into it,

so it has a nice thickness, a nice moisture.

I believe this is pea protein.

Whatever you're using to get protein from,

be it soybeans or peas, you would turn that into a flour

and then use a chemical solvent to separate the protein out

and then dry that out.

I'm gonna guess that this one's Beyond.

[packaging thudding] Yeah.

Oh and it's Beyond.

So Beyond Burger uses pea protein as its main protein.

A lot of people are allergic to soy.

So this is a great substitute for people

who are trying to get plant-based protein.

It looks like they combine it with some rice protein,

some brown rice protein,

and that mix will then give us that complete protein

or give us all of the essential amino acids that we need.

They're using a variety of legumes

to achieve the texture and then beets for the color

'cause beets do look very bloody.

This is a pretty genius product

for people who don't want to eat animals.

I'm impressed.

[packaging clattering]

[patties thudding]

[Narrator] Beyond Cookout Classic.

I'm seeing like red on the bun, which looks like blood.

Some people like that.

This looks a little bit more manufactured.

I do like the thickness of it. Looks very meaty.

The texture of this looks very similar to the Beyond.

It's very hard to get this kind of gelatinous, stretchy,

chewy, meaty mouthfeel texture from vegetables alone.

It doesn't taste like mushroom at all,

but the texture of it feels mushroomy

and I love mushrooms so I don't mind that.

You do taste the difference

or feel the difference between the dried sear on the outside

and the juiciness on the inside.

So the way that foods can achieve browning,

it's one of two mechanisms.

It's either caramelization, which is sucrose based

and this doesn't taste very sweet so I doubt that's that.

Or there's a reaction called the maillard reaction,

which is when amino acids will interact with reducing sugars

and create not only browning

but these complex flavor molecules.

I think it tastes pretty, pretty good

for an alternative meat.

Honestly, this has been the most edible

meat-like version for me so far.

This kind of tastes like beef that is overcooked.

Like, all the particles seem like separated.

It's a little bit dry.

But it's still better than the Impossible.

I don't like the look of it.

So I would not buy this personally. I wouldn't eat it again.

Oh, it's Beyond.

[packaging thudding] Beyond. Interesting.

What is the difference? What happened here? [laughs]

So I think the way that this is engineered

is specifically to be cooked on a grill.

You need a little bit more sturdiness

when something hits a grill.

So when you're flipping it,

it doesn't fall apart into the grates.

It's got that methylcellulose,

which is what's holding it together.

Two different types of oil.

Expeller-pressed canola oil, also seeing coconut oil.

Whereas the first Beyond Burger only had avocado oil

and I don't think the texture of that

would hold up when putting on direct flame.

And it's frozen so it's not going to disintegrate

when you put it on direct flame on a grill.

[packaging rustling]

[patties thudding]

[Narrator] MorningStar Farms Veggie Grillers.

These thin patties remind me of sausage patties.

This is almost looking like a breakfast sausage.

The smell of this is a little bit more appealing to me.

We're back to the more aromatics and spices maybe.

It's got good texture.

As I break into it, it doesn't fall apart,

so there's definitely a binder in there.

It's very dry. It's very cardboardy.

When you stay at a cheap hotel

and you have the hotel breakfast in the morning

and then you get the breakfast sausage.

That's what this tastes like.

It has like a decent seasoning,

but it's really, really greasy.

It definitely has some spices. So that's appealing to me.

Maybe this could be seitan,

which is essentially just taking glutenous flour

and mixing it with water and continuously kneading it.

You can actually do it at home

if you take some wheat flour

and and cup it in your hand

and allow water to run through.

This could have some of that glutenous

wheat flour in there

to give it that sort of slight chewy, meaty texture.

There are a couple of things that companies can use

to add like a savory, meaty flavor to veggie burgers.

One of those things is yeast extract,

which I think is what's happening here.

Which is Vegemite if you're familiar with that.

And it delivers a deep, dark color

and it also delivers this umami flavor

and it does so because it's rich in glutamic acid

where that umami flavor derives from.

Is this MorningStar?

Is it? Is it?

Am I becoming an expert? I think I am.

Yay. [packaging rustling]

It's MorningStar Grillers.

If I wanted a plant-based breakfast sausage patty,

I would buy this. [chuckles]

So I see that there's yeast extract in this.

I'm assuming it's used to give it

that more umami meat-like flavor.

It's got 16 grams of protein.

Actually wheat gluten is the first ingredient

listed after water.

Wheat gluten is seitan,

which means that it's relying on gluten

to be its primary protein source.

I think texturally, if it was just a little bit more moist

and had a little bit more depth,

then I would find it to be edible.

But right now, it's just too cardboardy for me.

[plastic rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Gardein Ultimate Plant-Based Burger.

The aroma here smells a little stale.

It's definitely giving beef.

We're seeing that dark ring

that you would kind of get from, like, a smash burger.

The sugars and the proteins react to high temperature

and they turn a darker color

or new flavor compounds are unlocked,

and it makes things taste yummy.

It's got some good thickness, which I do appreciate.

It's extremely gummy.

I'm having a hard time pulling it apart.

Hard to even break through. It's very strong.

Or maybe there's just like an imbalance

of the different binders

and chemicals that were used in the patty.

When you squeeze it, you actually see some of the juice.

It feels quite moist.

This is a lot meatier than the MorningStar.

And it does have like a smoky flavor to it,

which I like.

Flavor-wise, it tastes slightly smoky.

Very, very meaty.

It delivers in terms of texture, juiciness,

that satisfaction of biting into it.

I'm tasting a lot of coconut oil.

Fat is really important in any kind of food, right?

Because it's a flavor carrier.

To mimic that juiciness

and mouth feel that you would get in beef,

coconut oil is the one that's used quite a bit.

It stalled at room temperature

so it's able to coat your mouth

and give you kind of mimic that same texture.

That coconut flavor is so strong

that I really don't wanna taste it again.

Gardein?

[packaging thudding] It's Gardein.

Oh, Gardein.

This has like very masculine coated branding to me.

The Bros, the Meatbros.

And I'm looking at the ingredients.

It's textured pea protein,

but it's similar in terms of its formula

to the original Beyond Burger.

So coconut oil is the third ingredient.

That explains the heavy, heavy coconut taste here.

I still think the avocado oil one is so far the best.

[plastic rustling]

[patties thudding]

[Narrator] Boca All-American Veggie Burgers.

It is thinner

than the couple of burgers we had right before.

Looks cardboardy. [chuckles]

This, to me, is like a Sausage McMuffin.

[Priyanka] So sad, oh.

Looks like there might be some grains a little bit.

I don't know what this orange is.

It looks like it would be cheese or something.

I feel like if it was actual cheese, it would stretch

and there's like nothing stretching here.

Mm.

Mm. cardboard.

It is not juicy at all.

Very, very dry.

There is no satisfaction to biting into this now.

It's almost like a hockey puck.

Ultra processed, over-engineered.

Is it Boca?

[packaging thudding]

Oh, Boca Burger.

It's Boca.

I feel like this is the original vegetable burger.

The third ingredient is reduced fat cheddar cheese.

I think that if they actually used a full fat cheddar,

it might have added a little bit more fat

and moistness to this.

I was not tasting cheese in this, no.

So that's a little bit of a surprise.

[plastic rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Actual Veggies Black Bean Veggie Burger.

Now we're back to the vegetable style veggie burgers.

I feel like I recognize this burger

because it has this scalloped, like round to it.

I feel like I used to eat this growing up.

It looks like a little seashell.

For the first time today,

I'm seeing a black bean, which is great.

I love a black bean burger.

There's some red peppers here, onion.

This is looking promising, guys.

We gotta harvest the vegetables in here.

This is a little bit thicker

than the other vegetable-based patties we've had so far.

I think this has a nice texture for a vegetable-based patty.

It has a nice amount of spring to it.

So you can see the beans.

It's got the heft. It's not falling apart.

But more importantly, the flavors feel well-defined

and they feel a little fresher to me.

I think this is Actual Veggies.

Actual Veggies?

[packaging thudding]

Oh, Actual Veggies.

This is the black bean veggie burger

with red pepper and caramelized onion.

There's a laundry list of vitamins and minerals

that are present here.

But when I'm looking at the ingredient list,

I don't see any fortification

in terms of vitamins and minerals,

which means that these vitamins and minerals

are coming from the food source themselves,

which is a good thing.

You would probably not add oil to the actual mixture

and just add it to the pan when you're cooking them.

So I think this is a very close match

to what you would make at home.

I like you, Actual Veggies.

[plastic rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Dr. Praeger's Black Bean Quinoa Veggie Burgers.

This looks so sad. [chuckles]

[Priyanka] This tastes better than it looks.

This is definitely potato-based.

It does not belong between two pieces of bread

'cause it would be way too starchy.

In terms of the flavor, you know, it's seasoned,

but it also has spices.

I see beans and corn.

The flavor is good.

There's definitely some paprika, cumin,

garlic, onion powder.

It definitely has a mushy bite when you bite into it.

This is more oily than juicy,

and that oily is giving me the perception of moist.

Because of that, I'm not a huge fan.

I would say, I'm fairly satisfied. Is it Dr. Praeger's?

Dr. Praeger?

[packaging thudding] Dr. Praeger's is back.

Okay, I think I'm a fan of Dr. Praeger's.

I think that's what we're establishing here

because I liked the first one that I had too.

[Alexandra] And this is the black bean quinoa.

It's the first time I see quinoa.

Finally, someone's using quinoa in a burger, right?

Personally, I don't think quinoa belongs

in a veggie burger.

I think it's a little bit too earthy.

I think it's a great addition to burgers.

Mainly for its nutritional content.

It's one of the few plant-based products

that is a complete protein.

I was not tasting any quinoa in here.

I'm not getting that texture

you would normally get from quinoa,

so they must have pureed to some degree

or maybe derived a flour.

They had jalapeno, cilantro, garlic, chili, cumin.

So yeah, that's why I'm feeling

that Indianesque flavor in this.

Approved, Dr. Praeger.

[packaging rasping] [packaging rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Original Veggie BUBBA burger

The height of this is good.

It's pretty thick, which I like.

I like the crust on top.

You could actually see a lot of the chunks

of the vegetables and the beans, which I appreciate.

This is really, really veggie heavy.

This feels like a natural food to me,

like something I could have made at home.

All right, we're seeing edamame,

so we're on the right track here.

When I'm pulling it apart, it's quite mushy.

It's coming apart really easily.

Given how many vegetables are there,

I expected a little bit more

in terms of texture and even flavor.

It's kind of muted on both fronts.

It's a little salty.

I'm not getting any other spices,

and I feel like spices would be really nice in here.

I think this is like almost too far

feeling like a health food for me.

Like, I don't necessarily wanna be tasting

that much carrot in my veggie burger.

Oh. Oh.

Okay. Yeah, I would not have guessed this.

Oh, BUBBA Burger.

This is pretty good

for a brand that only usually does meat.

[Alexandra] I feel like this burger tastes

what this box looks like.

Ooh, they used flax seeds. That's good.

The flax seeds are an interesting addition

because those can gel up and create structure.

The second ingredient is rolled oats.

Those are oats that are steamed and rolled,

so they're flattened and they cook quickly.

It acts as a binder.

It absorbs moisture from the vegetables

and it does have a little bit of protein and fiber.

I would perhaps serve it on top of like a salad

or something along those lines.

Something that's a little more crisp and fresh.

[packaging rasping]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Amy's Organic Sonoma Veggie Burger.

It looks really dry.

This looks like they pureed or mashed up the black beans.

That's why it kind of has this like grayish color.

There's no, like, green or red in here

to help balance that gray of the black bean.

This is not good.

It just tastes like they mashed up some beans

and, like, put it together.

I think this has the most crunch

of the burgers we've had so far.

Either because of quinoa

or maybe there's some sort of nut added to this.

Maybe like a walnut or something.

It falls apart.

So I'm curious to see what kind of binder it has.

I think the salt is pretty overpowering

to the other flavors.

Just salt in this. There's no spices.

There's really no other vegetables

and it's just, like, boring.

Like, I don't wanna eat this.

This is not satisfying to me.

Is this Amy's?

[packaging thudding]

Oh, Amy's.

Quinoa and walnuts are pretty high on the ingredient list.

I think they probably ground the walnuts down too fine.

I didn't get that texture at all when eating it.

[packaging rasping] [plastic rustling]

[patty thudding]

[Narrator] Trader Joe's Quinoa Cowboy Veggie Burgers.

For some reason my mind went to a falafel.

[Alexandra] This was actually what an Indian

veggie cutlet looks like.

I'm not even touching it,

but I can tell that it's crunchy.

Okay, I'm guessing there's gonna definitely be

quinoa in there and black beans and a bunch of vegetables.

Corn, black beans.

Somehow I'm anticipating like a southwestern flavor.

[food crunching]

There's a crispy texture to the outside, which is nice.

You immediately get that crunch factor.

[Alexandra] This one is not dry.

It's like moist and mushy.

Little bit too mushy on the inside for me.

It is very oily. That's the thing.

If the interior was held together

just a little bit better, this would be almost perfect

because the outside is quite good.

And this is the spiciest one we've had.

I taste that there might be some smoky paprika,

maybe some cumin, garlic and onion.

Very flavorful, full of spices.

Yeah, I think it's pretty good.

But not something I would necessarily consider a burger.

I don't think it has the mouth feel

of a satisfying veggie burger,

so I wouldn't put it in a bun.

Is it Trader Joe's?

[crew laughs] [packaging thudding]

It is Trader Joe's. The Quinoa Cowboy.

[Lourdes] The Tex-Mex makes perfect sense.

Oh, it has breadcrumbs

and I don't think we've seen breadcrumbs yet.

I think it's what's giving it

that crunchy texture on the outside.

It doesn't seem overprocessed, over formulated.

There's a whole slew of spices.

Which again, like, we have not seen a ton of

since the last Trader Joe's burger,

so I think that's what's making it like so satisfying.

I do prefer this Quinoa Cowboy Burger

over the Trader Joe's Authentic Masala Burger. [chuckles]

[Narrator] Now let's see

which veggie burgers our chefs like the most and the least.

In terms of flavor,

my favorites today were both of the Trader Joe's,

but in terms of texture, I really like the Actual Veggies.

It wasn't greasy and it had a nice chew to it.

Just a pure veggie burger,

there's a tie between the Trader Joe's Cowboy Quinoa

and the BUBBA Veggie burger.

I think the Trader Joe's inched up a little bit

on the flavor,

but what I loved about the BUBBA Burger

was that it was thicker.

You could really bite into it, and I loved the texture.

My favorite burgers today

were the Dr. Praeger's Veggie Burgers.

The Dr. Praeger's burger had whole vegetables.

Specifically the edamame.

The textural component was really satisfactory

so it didn't feel mushy.

You had a lot of nice texture from the edamame

and whole vegetables.

I could see what I'm eating.

Of the analog meats, I really am a fan of the Beyond Meat.

I think it's really, really similar to beef.

The nutrition profile, the flavor, the texture,

and the sense of you'll get from biting into that burger.

My least favorite burger was the Impossible Burger.

So my least favorite was the Impossible Burger.

It wasn't visually appealing.

The flavors weren't there,

and it actually delivered a very odd aftertaste.

My least favorite of the day was the NoBull Burger.

It was really gritty, it was chalky.

It was too much lentil and not enough flavor.

I am happy to see that a lot of the veggie burgers

on the market have actual vegetables in them.

If I was at a cookout

and I had to pick between an analog meat or a veggie burger,

I'd get away with eating any veggie burger.

That's not fine, but I'd be very picky

with the analog meat that I would pick.

There were some that I just really did not like.

There's a burger out there for everyone.

It's just a matter of finding

the right veggie burger for you.