5 new and delicious sustainable bites
Here’s everything we didn’t spit out at the Plant-Based World Expo
Hi crew, and welcome back to Cool Beans! Once a year, we skip lunch and make our way westward to Manhattan’s mammoth Javits Center to snack our way through the Plant-Based World Expo. Showcases like this are a great place to taste the latest fare from established brands like Oatly and Impossible, but also to discover newbies from around the world.
While there were no real earth-shattering innovations or totally new takes on animal-free edibles, we were glad to discover plant proteins with increasingly convincing meat- and fishlike textures and a vastly improved array of plant-based cheeses. Of course, there were plenty of flops, including an unremarkable soy-marinated, mushroom-based “beef,” and a spit-it-out bad bourguignon that brought up long-suppressed memories of the worst cafeteria mystery meat.
There were, thankfully, some real winners. These are the best things we scarfed at the show:
Konscious Smoked Salm’n
Konscious nailed the smoky flavor and (pleasantly) oily mouthfeel of nova with its newest product, Smoked Salm’n. They served it on spoons, rolled into spirals with dabs of ersatz cream cheese and a crown of kelp-based caviar. Made from carrots, pea hull fiber, and a starchy root vegetable called konjac, it sure tasted loxlike and would be entirely convincing layered on a bagel with a schmear, sliced tomato, and capers. It’s not in retail yet, but the company’s got other things you can taste, namely its sushi rolls, which are in the freezer section at Whole Foods.
Plant Ahead Fresh Mozzarella
One of the absolute freshest bites of the day came from Plant Ahead, which skewered its faux mozzarella with cherry tomatoes and basil and drizzled the whole thing with evoo. Of the many (many) faux mozz’s we tried, this one, made from potato starch, was a good mimic for the milky creaminess of the OG. It was a welcome sub in the classic caprese—as it would be in other recipes calling for the fresh stuff. No word yet as to when and where it’ll be available in retail, but we’re keeping an eye out. (The company’s take on parm was impressive too.)
Impossible Corn Dogs
We already know and love their hot dogs, so it’s no great surprise that we somewhat swooned for Impossible’s soon-to-market corn dogs. The delightful bite was pretty indistinguishable from what we’d expect to walk around with at the State Fair: crisp cornbread coating concealing a traditional-tasting but animal-free frank. We hope they’re out by the Super Bowl, ’cause they’d make an awesome addition to the game-day menu.
Shicken Tikka Kebab Skewers
London-based Satvinder Bains and her family came up with their faux chicken recipes during COVID lockdown so they could enjoy restaurant-quality food at home. At Shicken’s tasting table, the tikka kebab definitely hit that mark. The flavor and texture are remarkably chickenlike, and the cubes, made of textured pea protein, are marinated in a deliciously familiar spice blend. This dish wouldn’t seem out of place at your favorite Indian restaurant, which is just as Bains intended. Shicken has limited distribution in the U.S. (check Sprouts and Costco), but we’re looking forward to finding it in more places soon.
Oatly Soft Serve
After sampling a couple of vanilla-and-chocolate soft serve swirls with the signature chemical aftertaste of so many dairy-free desserts, Oatly’s offering was a creamy, dreamy showstopper. The confection debuted in January at Carvel stores around the U.S., but this was our first IRL taste. We also got to sip on the company’s half & half, which is available in food service but not yet in grocery stores. It tasted udderly authentic (sorry, not sorry) stirred into little cups of cold brew, and hit the consistency right on the head.