*NEW* Vegan Product Review – Mheat By: Chantal D
Mheat Original RRP £3.75 + P&P from Sgaia Foods [available in some UK stockists already]
Mheat, as you might guess, is a new plant-based, vegan, meat replacement – new to the market this month.
It’s the creation of Hilary and Alberto – “Enthusiastic explorers, dedicated learners, avid listeners and happy herbivores.”
Mheat is essentially a version of seitan – which is made from gluten extracted from wheat.
I liked the contemporary simple packaging that Mheat arrived in – it gave this an artisan feel that I think will appeal to mainstream shoppers. It’s vacuum packed and has a great shelf life. The cost is reflective of this – on a par with a beef steak, but more expensive if bought online, owing to the P&P costs [this is a chilled product & requires specialist packaging].
It looks very similar indeed to meat products that you might see presented in this way and I think the psychology of this will translate well for people new to veganism and looking for easy meat replacements.
I’ve spoken with the lovely Hilary about Mheat and it seems incredibly versatile – she was able to give me lots of ways in which to cook with it – it can even be sliced and eaten cold in a similar way to a cold cut of meat in a sandwich. Again, this is great for those people who are used to cooking with meat in these ways – it means zero change to their way of life – apart from they are saving life by using this! Perfect.
I did indeed try some cold straight out of the pack and it has quite a bit of flavour, which I didn’t expect. It’s well seasoned and I would describe it as being ‘savoury’. I could envisage having it in a sandwich and it being similar to something I might have eaten a few years ago!
It’s quite firm – not as soft as tofu, for example, but not quite as firm as meat such as cold beef and not as chewy – although it does have some ‘chew’ factor.
I opted to make kebabs! Really lazy I know – but that’s owing to my lifestyle these days – I’m looking for dishes that are quick and easy to prepare… well who isn’t really?!
So I cut it into quite chunky pieces and marinaded it for half an hour with this Reggae Reggae classic sauce along with some courgettes, red onion and mixed peppers.
I then skewered it and grilled it under a hot grill turning occasionally until all of the veg had softened and the edges were just caramelising. At the same time I microwaved the quinoa mix (I did say it was easy!)
So all in all, very simple. No real cooking skills required! Prep time probably about 10 mins and cooking 8-10 minutes. Et voila! Carribbean BBQ Mheat Skewers with Quinoa. Protein packed for sure! Served 2 people very generously.
The other way I would consider using this would be to use it in a strognoff – I think it would be perfect in that. I’m not sure I would griddle it on its own and serve it plain.
The acid test: Carnivore feedback…
“OMG have you cooked me meat? Chantal what have you made, no way you’ve done this… what is it, lamb?…. mmmm what is it, beef? It’s really tender and tasty…”
Yes! I was sneaky and fed this to a non-vegan friend. Who – loved it! He said if it hadn’t been me that cooked it for him he probably wouldn’t have even questioned what it was. This really interested him and surprised him.
Thank you Hilary and Alberto – this is now another way in which we can show it’s #easy2bvegan 😉
This sample was sent to me free of charge through the blogger review service of the VEGAN lifestyle ASSOCIATION. I have not been paid for this review and it is a genuine reflection of how I found the product to be. Chantal D
Further info:
Mheat (Original) RRP £3.75 plus *new* product – Fillet for roasting due out 23.11.15
Sgaia Foods are listed with the VLA here.
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NOTE: If you’re a full lifestyle vegan, write a blog and would like the opportunity to review new vegan foods, products and services then please contact us!