What is beyond impossible? That’s the question Nestle asked itself every night as it gently laid its head down to sleep. Then, it came. Like a bolt of lightning, an answer jolted straight into the collective brain of the 153-year-old company — “Awesome.” At least that’s how I’ve chosen to believe it went down. These plant-based meats all have such epic names that they deserve epic origin stories, ones in which a Swiss company is a person with thoughts, and a bed, and a head!
Anyway, Nestle is getting into the plant-based meat game with the “Awesome Burger,” which is set to hit store shelves this fall. Food & Wine reports that the Awesome Burger is being made in collaboration with Sweet Earth, a Nestle-owned California based brand that’s already well-versed in the manufacturing of veggie burgers. Although the Awesome Burger won’t be Sweet Earth’s first plant-based food, it will be the first time the company attempts to make a product specifically designed to mimic real meat.
“We’ve got a great chew, it’s very juicy. The color is very meaty, and it transforms as you cook it,” co-founder of Sweet Earth Kelly Swette told Fast Company. The Awesome Burger is reportedly made from yellow peas and an average patty contains 28 grams of protein versus the 20 grams that would typically be found in a beef burger of equivalent size. This makes it more in line with the Beyond Burger, which is also pea-based, rather than the soy-based Impossible Burger.
We’ll have to wait and see how the Awesome Burger will stack up against Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, but Nestle didn’t become so big by playing around, so the heir to the Iron Throne of plant-based meats (are we allowed to make GoT references still?) may bear the name “Awesome.”
