While we do appreciate the Gardein brand of vegetarian-friendly meat alternatives (their take on fish is especially delicious), we weren’t quite sure what to make of their new Ultimate line the first time we tried it. While we thought their Ultimate Nuggets were halfway decent, we weren’t as impressed as we were hoping to be. The Ultimate line, it seems, is mostly about branding.
But we’re giving this line a second shot today, as we’re checking out the Gardein Ultimate Plant-Based Buffalo Chick’n Wings. As huge fans of buffalo sauce, we’re hoping these faux chicken wings are the food to win us over to the Ultimate offerings.
Cooking these is pretty simple, though their is an additional step compared to the non-buffalo version: With these wings, there’s a sauce packet that needs to be thawed separately. This means that you’ll want to cook the entire batch of wings at once, rather than splitting it up over multiple cooking sessions. That’s not a dealbreaker, of course, but it should be noted so you can properly plan your cooking. We just cooked up the whole batch and put the leftovers in the fridge, so it was no big deal. (If you want to read the full cooking instructions straight off the bag, check out the package scans at the bottom of this review.)
As you can see in the image above, these come with more sauce than you’ll ever need. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does create a buffalo soup in your mixing bowl. It’s probably best to transfer these to another serving dish once you’ve mixed them with the sauce.
Now, we have to admit that these don’t taste or feel like real chicken. Gardein is certainly not giving Impossible a run for their money in that regard. And even the overwhelming amount of buffalo sauce isn’t enough to mask that. The fake, wheaty flavor of the faux chicken cuts through that sauce.
And the sauce isn’t the best buffalo sauce we’ve tried in our many years of reviewing frozen food. This has a strong vinegar taste, which is so potent that you’ll be able to smell it. Without that, we think this would be a pretty incredible sauce, but that vinegar aftertaste lowers it a notch in our book.
These are definitely on the spicier side of the stuff we’ve reviewed here at Freezer Meal Frenzy. These have an intense heat level to them. Now, if you’re the type of person who builds an entire personality out of eating the spiciest foods possible, you’re not going to be impressed by anything you’ll find in the freezer aisle. That’s said, most people (especially those who, like us, have a very Midwestern palate) are going to find these to be on the high end of the spicy scale.
The package recommends eating about six of these as a serving, and we think the heat level might prevent you from eating more than that in a single sitting. If you eat just six, you’re looking at 270 calories and 1,350 mg of sodium. If you go absolutely wild and scarf down the entire bag at once, you’ll be up to 800 calories and 4,050 mg of sodium. Holy sodium levels, Batman!
The Gardein Ultimate Plant-Based Buffalo Chick’n Wings aren’t going to become our go-to cure for a buffalo craving, but they’re worth checking out if you’re looking to enjoy one of the spiciest offerings in the freezer aisle.
To learn more about the nutrition content, ingredients, or cooking instructions for these vegetarian-friendly faux chicken wings, check out our package scans below.
