With Thanksgiving coming up… a lot of
us are thinking about prepping the big turkey. Some
people will be eating Tofurky instead. It’s a meat
substitute made out of tofu. Rebecca Williams got
a cooking lesson from a devoted Tofurky fan and her
meat-eating boyfriend:
Transcript
With Thanksgiving coming up… a lot of us are thinking about prepping the big turkey. Some people will be eating Tofurky instead. It’s a meat substitute made out of tofu. Rebecca Williams got a cooking lesson from a devoted Tofurky fan and her meat-eating boyfriend:
Jennifer Sullivan is a vegan… so she doesn’t eat any animal products at all – no eggs, no milk, no meat. Every Thanksgiving… she eats Tofurky. It comes in a little box.
(opening box)
“Okay so it’s a little different. (laughs) It basically comes as a little loaf. Tofu loaf.”
It’s like a squishy little brown football… in plastic.
“You just take off the casing here… (crinkling plastic) put it in a casserole dish… you’re gonna want to cook that for an hour and 15 minutes…”
While Jennifer bastes her Tofurky in the oven… her boyfriend chops potatoes and asparagus.
(chopping under)
Jim Blough was raised on beef and pork. This is his very first Tofurky.
“The name was kinda funny at first because I guess I never thought of it. You know I’ve had a lot of tofu… now. You know it’ll probably be a little different taste but it’ll be something I’m sure will be very delicious and I’m looking forward to it.”
Jim and Jennifer have been together six months… so maybe you’re thinking, uh huh… he’s just trying to be nice. But Jennifer says she doesn’t force Jim or anyone else to eat tofu.
“That’s okay, that’s their choice. I’ve just chosen a different lifestyle.”
(Oven timer beeps)
“All right, here’s our Tofurky… pretty much just like a turkey, nice and brown.”
(Tofurky sizzling)
“I’m gonna let Jim do the honors he’s gonna carve the Tofurky for the first time.”
(Slicing sound)
Jim: “You know, texture-wise it carves like a turkey…”
Yeah… it’s not quite as dramatic to carve a little brown Tofurky.
“Hopefully it tastes good after our cooking now… (laughs).”
Okay, now… the verdict.
Jim: “It’s really good… when you chew it, it has consistency like a turkey… it’s not mushy or anything it’s very firm. Jen: It’s really good!”
Yeah, okay, well… the real test… will be Thanksgiving Day. Jennifer will meet Jim’s family for the first time… and yup, you guessed it – she’ll be taking a Tofurky.
For The Environment Report, I’m Rebecca Williams.