A behind the scenes video has just surfaced thanks to CNET – depicting exactly how the fake meat Beyond Burger is created.
The video, published by CNET, was uploaded just days ago. Unsurprisingly, it’s already garnered over 100 thousand views. It features the current most popular meat-free burger alternative – the Beyond Burger.
So, how are these burgers created?
It all starts in the analytics lab. The E Mouth, or, mechanical mouth, analyses the texture of the burger. Dr. Parker Lee, one of the company’s scientists spoke to CNET.
“It’s gonna measure the force that the burger is exerting when you try to compress it, or, how it feels when you try to chew it,” Lee said.
A commonly asked question is whether or not the burger chews right. That’s something this technology aims to address. The data from the E Mouth is entered into a computer system, and compiled in a graph, depicting what each individual bite may be like.
The next process is when the burger enters the ‘Colour Lab’, because, well, why eat a burger if it doesn’t look the part too?
Using colouring from a beet, the burgers are able to get the same treatment as a normal meat burger when being cooked. Beyond Burgers will change in colour when you apply heat to them.
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“[The burgers] are heat sensitive, and will in fact change colour as you cook them,” said Lee.
Beet ‘powder’ is created using commercial machinery, which is then applied to the burgers.
Another colour technician from Beyond Meats is tapped for the role of creating the perfect combination of colours for the burgers. The technician – Julie Wushensky – said all colours come from “fruit, vegetables and edible flowers”.
“What this seeks to look at is a lot of colour blending. All of that plays at cuing your mind that what you’re seeing is meat,” she said.
Wushensky continues, “So that’s my job, is to create those subtle cues, the colours, that make it vibrant just like an animal meat product.”
The colours in their burgers come from all kinds of other colours – orange, blue, red, green – which all blend together to create what looks like a meat burger.
Chris Sanchez, Executive Chef at Beyond Meats says “When it [the burger] comes to the culinary room, we want to see how it behaves in your plate, and see how you can cook it as well.”
Then, products are prepared into full meals, so they can fully test their prototypes as if they’re the real deal. This process ensures they’re creating products they’re sure their customers will love.
Find out more about these vegan delights in the full video.
Watch the full Beyond Meats fake meat burger creation video:
