My eldest daughter loves hamburgers. I really like hamburgers. Hardly a week goes by that we don’t “go down” on some hamburger, with fries on the side. All my attempts to prepare an identical dish for her at home failed. Even when I specially bought hamburger buns and invested in all the accompanying toppings. there’s nothing to do. It’s not the same meat, not the same degree of grilling, if the dish doesn’t include an exact lettuce leaf, a slice of tomato, and a pickle – it’s not really a hamburger. From whom did she inherit this perfectionism? interesting. Her little sister, on the other hand, is showing signs of a vegetarian in the making, not even ready to taste the meatball, and she is much more interested in the fries.
When the Captain Burger chain, owned by restaurateur Yaki Kabir, announced the launch of the new vegan dish that joins the chain’s extensive menu, I knew they were going to be the culinary judges of this thing. This is an exclusive collaboration of the chain with the foodtech company “Redefine Meat” which produces “new meat” without animal components using advanced technologies. After many months of preparation, the new hamburger dish was born, which receives the same treatment and preparation process that distinguishes the chain, the “smash” – or the “Spachtel” hamburger – the patty is crushed on a plancha, grilled for a short time on each side and goes into the bun, with uniform doneness.
So we went to one of the chain’s branches to check the matter, and I ordered one regular hamburger and one redfine hamburger, without saying which was which. For the little one, who doesn’t eat meat and it took me a while to understand that instead of trying to convince her every time that it’s delicious, just eat schnitzel in a bun, I ordered the crispy chicken – chicken breast fried in spicy tempura. Along with the dish, to the chain’s credit, you can choose from a selection of toppings: thick or thin fries, sweet potato fries, onion rings, and coleslaw salad.
Almost like the real thing
The great interest in Redifine Meat’s work began as early as its establishment in 2018 when the two founders (Ashhar Ben-Shetrit and Adam Lahav) decided, unlike the many meat substitute companies on the market, to focus on the full meat experience, while achieving the same texture, taste and juiciness as animal meat, using technology and raw materials Only plants and no need for animals. The unique approach focused on the “love of meat” led the company to develop a complete product portfolio, working closely with experts and heavy meat consumers, and to focus on innovative types of meat and dishes, alongside the production of whole cuts using unique technologies (including 3D printing).
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The eldest happily devoured the usual hamburger she received. When she took a bite of the second dish she said it was delicious, but preferred to focus on the regular dish until the end. She did not feel a significant difference between the dishes, and the truth is that this hamburger substitute is really very similar to the real thing, looks and smells like regular meat. What is the difference anyway? If a normal hamburger “explodes” you, after Redfine Meat you will feel that there is room for another portion of fun. The patty weighs 120 grams, and the network recommends, and rightly so, to take more than one patty in a bun. This is also significant in my eyes, because the hamburger itself is very light compared to a regular meat hamburger, and the bite is almost imperceptible. A double dose here is called for.
The really successful experience was actually in the side dishes and crispy chicken section. The “Captain Burger” chain, compared to hamburgers where the raw materials come frozen from a central factory, advocates the use of fresh meat without preservatives. The chicken tenders and crispy chicken dishes are also made from fresh chicken without preservatives, and this is very noticeable. Instead of a ground chicken patty with a boring protein substitute, which we are used to getting elsewhere, here we got a juicy piece of real chicken, fried in a great crispy batter. pleasure. The fries were also excellent, and how fun it is that you can choose between thick and thin, and between regular potato and sweet potato, and you can also ask for a half-and-half portion, and that the onion rings are made of real onions, something we almost forgot existed at all in restaurants. And how delicious it is.
The new vegan dish: Redifine Captain Burger / Redifine Captain Burger meal – “new” meat hamburger – about 120 grams of patty, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, ketchup and mustard. Price for a redifine meal: NIS 66. In all “Captain Burger” branches