Veggie Burger Review... Or Is It?

I don't know if I should really call this a "review" since I'm really only talking about two types of veggie burgers but I've tried so many different types and none of them have really impressed me except for these two... so there, my review is really saying that all the rest suck but these ones are really good!

The Boca Burger Original Vegan Burger was introduced to me by Monica and my first time having it was grilled on a BBQ and then I put basil, white onion, tomato, avocado, balsamic vinegar and some crushed garlic on it. Amazing!! However, I knew that it was quite possible that it could have been the sunny, hot Sunday afternoon, the kids playing in the pool, the summer smell of a charcoal BBQ burning... maybe even the basil and balsamic/garlic that I had exprimented with that made it by far the best veggie burger I had ever eaten. So I didn't have too high of expectations when I made the next one at home in the toaster oven with just some onions, tomato and avocado on some slices of whole grain toast. Delicious again! Since then I have had many more and they have all quenched that nostalgic need for a good ol' burger on a hot summer day.

Dr. Praeger's California Veggie Burger was introduced to me by my Stepmom a few years back as she attempted to find edible items for me as I had declared myself vegan forever in May 2006 after reading The Food Revolution by John Robbins. I haven't really eaten them since but I remember thinking they were pretty good. Monica recently reintroduced me to them again and they are even better than I remember! What I like the most about them, which I can not say the same for the Boca Burger, is that they consist of all ingredients that I would have at home... ok, well I suppose I don't have "All Natural Vegetable Gum" hanging around, not to mention I hate the saying "all natural" since that really doesn't mean shit. Just because it's natural (and what is the definition of natural?... there is no FDA regulation on that statement) doesn't mean it's nutritious or safe for you. Cheetos and Cheez Whiz can probably say all natural on their packaging so that word doesn't really mean much to me. But my point is that, for the most part, they seem to be made with "good stuff".

Here is the ingredient list for Dr. Praeger's California Veggie Burger: Carrot, Onion, Stringbeans, Soybeans, Zucchini, Oat Bran, Peas, Spinach, Expeller Pressed Canola Oil, Broccoli, Textured Soy Flour, Corn, Oat Fiber, Red Pepper, Arrowroot, Corn Meal, Corn Starch, Garlic, Salt, Parsley, Black Pepper, All Natural Vegetable Gum.

Here is the ingredient list for Boca Burger Original Vegan Burger: Water, Soy Protein Concentrate, ,Wheat Gluten, Contains less that 2% of Methylcellulose, Salt, Caramel Color, Dried Onions, Yeast Extract, Sesame Oil, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Natural and Artificial Flavor (non-meat), Disodium Guanylate, Disodium Inosinate.

Wow, I must admit, after typing out the ingredients from the Boca Burgers maybe on second thought this should be titled, Eat Dr. Praeger's California Veggie Burgers. I would suggest you go to Wikepedia and look up Methylcellulose, Disodium Guanylate and Disodium Inosinate and make up your own mind.

I think after reading up on those ingredients I'm going to stick to the Dr. Praeger's from now on. Also, I noticed Dr. Praeger's has a gluten free version of the California Veggie Burger too. I also looked up the Vegetable Gum that is in Dr. Praeger's on Wikipedia. It says it is derived from a number of sources, depending on what type of gum it is, but that it typically originates from woody elements of plants or seed coatings... much better!

So, there you go... try Dr. Praeger's for a nice veggie burger. I wouldn't say it tastes anything like a meat burger but it's round and you can put it on a bun!