Mr. Humm, the Eleven Madison Park chef, is not reading too much into this meaty moment. “Food culture is always shifting, but I don’t think these recent trends mean a rejection of plant-forward cuisine in the long run,” he wrote in an email.
Are you eating more meat? Less? Same?
As for us, our eating habits haven’t changed. Never got into the (highly processed) fake meat trend, always try to buy from local farms, and seed oils are a total non-issue in this household.
I’m eating less red meat, as it doesn’t agree with my gut, although I’m having roast lamb today. Never got into plant-based “meats”, so that isn’t an issue.
I usually get a couple nice ribeye’s from local butcher every summer, around $35-$40 a pop, but I get at least 2-3 meals out of each. Imma hit up my ex chef/friend for a box of BLSO chicken breasts to split with my sisters, can’t find that quality/price in any grocery store around me.
Plant based fake meat was never going to make it to the mainstream. For one, it’s ultra-processed, and two, you’re not going to flip centuries or millennia of habit consumption with something that isn’t better, just as costly and a fad. That said, I’m eating less beef due to price and health. When I do eat beef, I go for quality (grass fed) over quantity. Industrial ag-biz beef has many issues.
No changes here. Twice a year we get a few NY strips from Costco, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and a packed into a silicon freezer bag and into the deep freeze.
Defrost one at a time, which is enough for both of us for a single meal (plus some side or salad).
Ground beef gets bought when we’re feeling semi-lazy and do gringo kit tacos.
I’ve tried plant ‘meat’ in things like tacos and White Castle sliders. Unless/until it becomes as cheap or cheaper than actual meat, the taste and texture don’t incline me to make a switch.
Sometimes the whole “plant-based” thing can get silly. I have a jar of artichoke hearts in brine–just the artichokes, salt, citric acid–and it has Plant Based on the label.
When I was in college (early 80’s) there was a place called “Murray’s Steaks” they sold 100 TVP Meat Flavored Patties for $10. Those things kept me alive through college. The taste was OK, and it did (kind of) taste like hamburger. I wish I could get a deal like that today, I’d buy them in a second.
After cleaning out our chest freezer, I found one London Broil and a 5 pound chub of hamburger and that’s it for red meat. I’m saving the 5 pound chub to make hamburgers to cook over Mesquite wood, this summer.
Unless we find a really good deal on clearance – no more red meat for quite a while.
Never got into plant-based “meats”, so that isn’t an issue.
