Viana - Chickin Fillets

I've gotten pretty used to having Gardein as my staple meat analog, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to try others. I stumbled upon a brand I'd never heard of called "Viana," when I was at Pangea in Rockville, MD. Viana is from Germany, just like my mother, and based upon my personal experiences, I consider Germans to be hearty meat-eaters.  But, maybe things are changing across the ocean. (I haven't been there in like 15 years!) This company has been in existence for 15 years under the parent company, Tofutown, and they also make the delicious whipped cream that vegans crave called "Soyatoo."

These Chickin Fillets are made of tofu, water, wheat protein, sunflower oil, almonds, sea salt, yeast extract, rice flour, cane sugar, palm oil, maltodextrin, tumeric, locust bean gum and spices. They are sold in packages of two and are refrigerated, not frozen. I liked that they refer to their product as the "The Happy Veggie Chicken" on the front because it's really funny. Another thing I noticed on the package is that they are really high in fat at 15 grams per fillet, which I didn't particularly like.

So despite the high fat, I decided to give them a try. Heck, I already bought them!  I simply sauteed a fillet in a pan with some cooking spray as per the directions. I wanted to eat it by itself to get its true flavor.

The texture was really different -- it was particularly dense and breaded...like breaded tofu, which I guess is technically what it is. It just isn't what I'm used to. The breading was an interesting complement to the tofu inside. It tasted okay, but isn't something I'd go out of my way for in the future.

If you are just looking to try some other alternatives, definitely give the Viana Fillets a try. But, if you are happy with your Gardein, I'd suggest you just stick to Gardein for now.