Convenience!
While we strongly encourage you to eat whole foods that you prepare at home, we are realistic in that we know that in our busy world, sometimes you might want to reach for a convenience food. With a renewed interest in plant-based foods, this burrito appears to fit the bill. There are a few details about this Tex-Mex offering that you need to know, however.
Preparation
You heat this burrito on high for 1 minute and 15 seconds in your microwave and then flip it over and do it again, anywhere from 1 minute, 15 seconds to 1 minute, 45 seconds and then crisp it on a griddle or in a frying pan. I heated it for 1 minute, 30 seconds on the second side and then sprayed a cast iron skillet with olive oil and crisped it up. It took a few minutes and it was nice and crispy, somewhat convenient and easy to prepare.
Taste and Texture
If you don’t crisp this burrito, it will be very different from this one that I crisped. It had a very nice crunch and then a chewy, satisfying filling of pinto beans, brown rice, salsa with green onions, red bell peppers and jalapeno peppers along with “daiya Cutting Board Cheddar Style Shreds”. It is Dairy Free, Gluten Free and Soy Free and NON GMO Verified. While it has a nice heat, just a touch, it is a bit bland otherwise. It does fill that craving for a burrito, if you get those, but it could use an extra bit of seasoning for my liking. I also had my 26 year old son try this burrito and he also said that it “really didn’t taste like anything.” If it were not for the heat, I might not have finished it. I did eat the whole thing because I was hungry and the satiety factor of the burrito is actually pretty good, while you’re eating it. It gives you the illusion that it will fill you up.
Nutrition
Ah, now here’s where I parted company with the burrito. It contains 410 calories, only 8 grams of protein, 12 grams of fat and a whopping 62 Net Grams of Carbohydrates (67 grams -5 grams of fiber). Oh, my goodness! I normally get my carbs from oats and sweet or white potatoes, or apples. Oats, apples and potatoes are good whole foods that nourish and fuel my body for a long time. This burrito is a processed food that actually left me a bit hungry and I had just “spent” 62 Net Grams of Carbs. I will never buy this again. For 480 calories and only 23 Net Grams of Carbs and a nourishing 46 grams of protein, I could have a half pound, lean ground beef steak and a 5 ounce baked potato and be satisfied and prepped for a good workout. Processed foods are almost never a good nutritional bargain and this one is no exception.
Price
I bought this at Publix grocery store for $3.59. Again, for that price I could have fixed a hamburger steak dinner at home in a flash. There’s nothing much quicker than searing a hamburger steak and popping a potato in the microwave. Since I had to crisp this burrito for it to be palatable, the prep time would be about the same. We think that a “convenience” food is always quicker to prepare but that is sometimes an illusion. The price is acceptable until you consider the extra prep time of crisping and the glaring lack of protein. If I can buy 46 grams of protein for about the same price, I always will. When you consider that you probably won’t be satisfied after eating this thing, then the price goes up again as you plunder around, looking for some real food.
Overall
While this burrito is palatable, it’s not really good. It requires extra prep time to even be palatable. The lack of adequate protein and exorbitantly high carbs are a real problem for some of us and is not a good idea for almost anyone. You may like this Tex-Mex offering, I don’t. If you choose to eat it, you might want to add an additional protein source, especially if you are athletic. If you dressed it up with some extra salsa, it might help the taste, but for a review, I tried it as it comes, plain and lacking in the nutrition that I need on a daily basis. I can’t recommend this to anyone.