Fake Meat

            Before I became a vegetarian I was really worried about how I would get through the cravings for meat that I would undoubtedly get. I had heard of people that were vegetarians or vegans that ate fake hamburgers, but I immediately thought that that would never compare to actual meat and I would never be able to eat something that was made out of who-knows-what. I also thought that even if the ‘fake hamburgers’ were good, then what about the cravings for other the other types of meats that I would get; like hot dogs, bacon, sausage, chicken, or barbecue ribs.

            The first time I had tried fake meat was when I got it from the school lunch room when I was in middle school. I expected it to be absolutely vile, horrid, and mushy (and not just because all of the other food from school is vile, but also because it was not made out of real meat). Now, I will admit that at first, it did not taste like meat but it was not anywhere near gross or mushy. I liked it enough to know that I could go a while with only eating fake hamburgers, rather than real hamburgers. I think that once a person goes without real meat for a certain amount of time, fake meat is the only thing they know that compares to the ‘meat’ that everyone else eats and talks about on a daily basis.

            About a week after becoming a devoted vegetarian, I made the life-changing discovery that there are companies out there that specialize solely in making fake meat for people like me that crave meat and meat-related foods. Soon enough after that discovery, I became fairly well-acquainted to the general area in most stores that sell this type of stuff. I then discovered that not only are there companies out there making fake meat for all of the vegetarians, but they have a wide variety of the types of meat they make. If you can name a type of meat that you are craving, there is a large chance that you can find it in the vegetarian aisle, and if not then it can be found somewhere else. They sell things like chicken nuggets, barbecue ribs (boneless, of course), chicken patties, steak cutlets, bacon, and sausage.

The only type of fake meat that I have tried and was disappointed with was the bacon, it looked and tasted like cardboard. But, the chicken and barbecue ribs are heavenly, in my opinion. Another thing that surprised me was the fact that they not only sell fake meat, but they also sell entrees with fake meat replacing what would have been the real meat in them. They also have bags of fake meat to substitute real meat in homemade meals so you would never have to be left out at supper time at home with the family, just because of the fact that you do not eat meat like the rest of them.