[aaubry]

I don't know why some people want vegetarian food to taste like meat. I enjoy eating meat, but the best vegetarian foods that I had did not taste like meat at all, and it is how it should be. It's like with sugar, if I want to avoid consuming it, I don't replace it with sweetener, I just don't put the sugar in and enjoy the untainted taste of the other ingredients.

[ageitgey]

> I don't know why some people want vegetarian food to taste like meat.

There are lots of reasons people want vegetarian versions of meat. Here are some of the most common:

1. Still want to eat meat, but want to reduce the environmental impact of meat production.

2. Don't want to eat meat for moral/preference reasons, but still enjoy the taste of eating it.

3. Want to eat meat, but don't like the dietary impact and want a healthier replacement.

[pnongrata]

As a complement to your list, I'd say it's more marketable AND makes the transition for some people more smooth.

[Aromasin]

I also thought this when I was still eating meat, but changed my tune rapidly when I went vegan. Frankly, if I'm craving a comfort food like a beef burger, I want something that hits as close to home as that beef burger without being a beef burger. I can have a bean burger, or some other food that doesn't try to be meat, but that's not what I need to fulfil my current craving.

It's not trying to be this "best vegetarian food that you had that did not taste like meat at all, how it should be". It shouldn't be like anything. Both food options can co-exist. You're completely misinterpreting the niche it's filling. If I want tasty food, I'll eat something that's veg-based and tasty, not mock-meat. 90% of my diet is curries, chillies, stews or stir-fry's and I'm more than satisfied - but if I crave something that I can't/won't eat, you bet your arse I'm going to go for the worse tasting, greasy, salty, crave fulfilling option, be it an Impossible burger or some crappy cardboard tasting mock-meat.

[cannonedhamster]

Beyond burger does not taste like meat, it's just good tasting (to my family). Impossible tastes meaty and I don't like it, nor does my family. I've been a vegetarian for over 15 years and seen veggie burgers go from hockey pucks or green mush to what we have today. The ability to use these replacements means less changes in ingredients for recipes, easier for everyone including meat eaters when planning large get togethers, and less comments when in public. Believe it or not I really don't enjoy explaining to everyone why I choose to eat the way I do, these make it easy. When you're a minority in a society, there more options to seamlessly blend into that society, the easier life is. You also seem to be in the minority of people who don't want a sugar replacement. Diet soda is popular for a reason.

[dariusj18]

As a life long vegetarian I agree, however for me when things taste more like their meat analogues they offer up more traditional flavor combinations. And when they cook similar to their meat analogues, they offer up more preparation possibilities. Ex, cooking tofu on the grill will never get a good sear like a Beyond Burger allows.