Good replacement for smoked meat sausage
At a time when meat is increasingly making way for vegetarian, a meatless smoked sausage for the stew is in order. There are now various vegetarian and vegan smoked sausages in the supermarket, but how healthy are these meat substitutes really?
What types are there?
First of all, it is important to look at which types of vegetarian smoked sausages are already available. The following vegetarian and vegan smoked sausages can be found in Dutch supermarkets:
- Unox Vegetarian smoked sausage
- Valess Vegetarian smoked sausage
- Garden Gourmet Vegetarian smoked sausage
- Albert Heijn Vegan smoked sausage
- The Vegetarian Butcher Vegan Roockwurst
Vegetarian or vegan
Two of the five smoked sausages mentioned above are vegan, namely the Roockworst from De Vegetarische Slager and the smoked sausage from Albert Heijn. The other smoked sausages contain animal ingredients, such as protein powder from eggs or milk protein.
Is a vegetarian smoked sausage healthier?
The Consumers Association has compared various vegetarian smoked sausages with traditional smoked sausages and came to the conclusion that the meatless version contains a lot less unhealthy saturated fats. Sometimes this is even less than in an extra lean smoked sausage. That’s good, because too much saturated fat is bad for your heart and blood vessels.
Salt content in smoked sausages
The salt content was almost the same, namely about 2 grams per 100 grams of smoked sausage. That is one third of the recommended maximum amount of 6 grams of salt in a day. Too much salt could lead to high blood pressure and a higher risk of cardiovascular disease.
Less protein
In terms of calories, vegetarian smoked sausages are comparable to the lean smoked sausage. However, the Consumers’ Association concluded that vegetarian smoked sausages often contain less protein than smoked sausages made from meat. Because the average Dutch person gets more than enough protein, this should not be a problem, they say.
An adult needs 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. For someone weighing 69 kilos, that equates to just over 55 grams of protein. Plant-based sources of protein include bread, grains, legumes, nuts and mushrooms. Vegetarian protein sources include milk products, cheese and eggs.
Added vitamins and minerals
Because vegetarians and vegans are more likely to be deficient in iron and vitamin B12, it is important that these are added to the meat replacement product. Extra iron has been added to most vegetarian smoked sausages. Vitamin B12 is only added to the Roockworst from De Vegetarische Slager.
Which vegetarian smoked sausage is the best?
Healthnet has tested the two vegan smoked sausages and prefers the one from De Vegetarische Slager. The Consumers’ Association also tested the vegetarian smoked sausages and is particularly enthusiastic about the smoked sausage from Valess, followed by that from Garden Gourmet. The vegetarian smoked sausages from Unox and De Vegetarische Slager were less appreciated by the tasters.
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