In my decades of enjoying plant-based eating, I have not encountered a food that tastes almost exactly like real meat.

I have encountered foods that share a very similar texture to meat such as:

• Jack fruit
• Cubed or Shredded Seitan
• Soy-based Hot Dogs

Some plant-based foods share a similar spice and seasoning profile as their real meat inspirations such as plant-based sausages and bacon, but the similarities end with the seasoning profile.

In my experience, there is no vegan food that I would consider similar to a steak, pork chop or roasted poultry.

Interestingly, perhaps, I find nutritional yeast to taste almost exactly as what I remember to be the taste of cheese. The texture is not similar, but the strong, pungent, tangy flavor of the yeast is as close to its non-plant based counterpart as I have encountered any vegan food being.

Non-dairy cheese can look like cheese, but like meat substitutes, I have not encountered one that captured the sharp, enjoyable funk of real cheese. Put non-dairy cheese on a spicy pizza, it works fine, but it is no replacement for a chunk of sharp-cheddar.

If you are new to plant-based eating fake meat products may help you with occasional cravings. They may also make the social impact of a vegan life-style less problematic - you can eat a burger right along with the meat-eaters at the family reunion. Beyond that, there may be greater value in embracing the unique taste and texture of plant-based eating and not try to recreate meat-based food with non-meat substitutes.