What Is the Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger?
The Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger (also labeled the "Ultimate Plant-Based Burger" depending on the region and packaging run) is one of the longest-running plant-based patties on the market, sold frozen in most major grocery chains including Kroger-family stores, Walmart, Amazon, and natural food retailers. It's positioned as a mid-tier competitor to Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods — not trying to "bleed" like Impossible, but aiming for a firmer, more traditional veggie-burger bite while still delivering a meaty protein count.
Gardein has built its whole brand around soy and wheat-based proteins rather than the pea-protein or heme-driven formulas used by some competitors, and the Ultimate Beefless Burger is a good example of that approach: a soy-and-wheat-gluten patty bulked out with ancient grains and seasoned aggressively enough to read as "burger" rather than "veggie patty." It ships frozen in 4- or 6-count bags and is meant to be cooked from frozen on a stovetop, grill, or oven.
Ingredients
Per the current packaging and manufacturer listing, the Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger contains:
Water, soy protein concentrate, canola oil, vital wheat gluten, onions, soy protein isolate, methylcellulose, yeast extract, malt extract (malted barley, water), onion powder, garlic powder, organic ancient grain flour (khorasan wheat, amaranth, millet, quinoa), dried garlic, organic distilled vinegar, natural flavors, cane sugar, potato starch, sea salt, salt, celery seed, organic cane sugar, smoke flavor, spice extractives, spices, pea protein.
A few things stand out. First, this is a soy-and-wheat patty, not a pea-protein patty — pea protein shows up last on the list in a minor supporting role, which matters if you're comparing it to Beyond Meat's pea-based formula. Second, methylcellulose is doing the binding work here (the same plant-derived thickener used in most veggie burgers to hold everything together when it hits heat) rather than the coconut-oil-and-cocoa-butter "marbling" trick Beyond Meat uses. Third, there's no isolated heme compound or soy leghemoglobin — Gardein relies on yeast extract, malt extract, and smoke flavor to build savoriness instead of trying to replicate a "bleeding" burger. If you want to double check any of these against your own dietary restrictions, run the list through the spvegan.com ingredient checker.
Allergen note: this product contains wheat and soy, and is produced in a facility that may also process other allergens — always check the current bag for the manufacturer's latest allergen statement, since co-packing facilities change.
Is the Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger Vegan?
Yes. The Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger is certified vegan and Non-GMO Project Verified, and it's also certified Kosher. There's no dairy, egg, honey, or any other animal-derived ingredient in the formulation — every ingredient on the list above is plant-based, from the soy and wheat proteins down to the seasoning blend. This is one of the more straightforward "yes" answers in the veggie burger aisle; unlike some competitor lines (MorningStar Farms, for example, sells several burger varieties that do contain egg whites alongside others that don't), Gardein's entire "Beefless and Porkless" product family is formulated to be vegan across the board, so you don't need to cross-check individual SKUs the way you would with a mixed vegetarian/vegan brand.
Nutrition Facts: How It Stacks Up
Here's how one Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger patty compares to the two most talked-about plant-based competitors, Beyond Burger and Impossible Burger. Figures are per single patty and pulled from manufacturer and retailer nutrition labels; always confirm against the exact package in your hand, since formulations get tweaked over time.
| Nutrition (per patty) | Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger | Beyond Burger | Impossible Burger |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serving size | ~85g | ~113g | 113g |
| Calories | 130 | 230 | 240 |
| Total fat | 4.5g | 14g | 14g |
| Saturated fat | 0g | 2g | 8g |
| Sodium | ~320–340mg | 310mg | 370mg |
| Total carbs | 8g | 8g | 9g |
| Fiber | 2–3g | 2g | 3g |
| Protein | 14–15g | 21g | 19g |
The headline here is calories and fat: the Gardein patty comes in at roughly half the calories and a third of the fat of either Beyond or Impossible, almost entirely because it isn't trying to replicate beef-fat mouthfeel with added oils. Saturated fat is essentially zero, which is a real differentiator from Impossible's 8g (driven by coconut oil). The trade-off is protein — at 14–15g per patty, it's noticeably behind Beyond's 21g and Impossible's 19g, so if you're eating these specifically to hit a protein target, you'd need close to an extra half-patty to match the others gram for gram.
Taste and Texture
This is where the "Ultimate" branding has to earn its keep, and reviewers are fairly consistent on what they find: a genuinely sturdy, meaty chew with a distinct celery-forward background note that some people love and others find odd in a burger context. It holds together well on a grill grate, which is more than can be said for a lot of veggie patties that fall apart the second you try to flip them.
The bigger issue reviewers flag is cooking sensitivity. Unlike a Beyond or Impossible patty, which stays juicy across a fairly wide cooking window, the Gardein patty is described as unforgiving — overcook it, especially in a microwave, and it turns tough and dry fast. The consistent advice across reviews is to avoid microwaving it as a primary cooking method and instead pan-fry or grill it with close attention, or give it a very short microwave head start (30–45 seconds per side) before finishing in a pan with a bit of sauce or oil to keep moisture in. Handled that way, most reviewers land somewhere between "pleasant surprise" and "solid mid-pack contender" — not as beef-like as Impossible, but with a more traditional veggie-burger identity that a lot of people actually prefer.
Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger vs. the Competition
| Burger | Protein base | Calories/patty | Vegan? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger | Soy + wheat gluten | 130 | Yes | Lower-calorie, lower-fat option with a firm, grillable texture |
| Beyond Burger | Pea protein | 230 | Yes | Soy-free and gluten-free eaters who want a juicier, higher-protein patty |
| Impossible Burger | Soy (soy leghemoglobin) | 240 | Yes | Closest approximation to a "bleeding," beef-like burger experience |
If soy and gluten aren't a concern for you, the choice mostly comes down to what you're optimizing for. Want the lowest-calorie, lowest-fat option that still hits a respectable protein number and holds up on a grill? Gardein. Want the highest protein and don't mind the extra calories and fat that come with a richer mouthfeel? Beyond. Want the closest thing to an actual dripping, seared beef patty and don't mind the higher saturated fat? Impossible.
Who Should Buy This?
The Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger makes the most sense for people who want a burger-shaped protein source without the calorie and fat load of the "juicier" competitors — think weeknight dinners, meal prep, or anyone trying to keep saturated fat low without giving up the burger format entirely. It's also a reasonable pick for households easing into more plant-based meals, since the flavor profile reads as "seasoned veggie burger" rather than an uncanny beef impression, which can actually be an easier sell to skeptics than a product trying too hard to taste like meat.
It's a worse fit if you're avoiding soy or gluten (both are structural ingredients here, not trace amounts), if you're specifically chasing a high-protein macro target, or if you plan on reheating leftovers in a microwave — the texture just doesn't forgive that method well.
Where to Buy It and What It Costs
The Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger is widely distributed — you'll find it in the freezer aisle at most Kroger-family stores (Kroger, Ralphs, Food 4 Less, Smith's, Fred Meyer), Walmart, Amazon, and many regional grocery chains, typically in 4-count (12 oz) or 6-count (18–19 oz) bags. Pricing varies by region and retailer, but a 4-pack generally lands somewhere in the $4–$6 range, which works out to roughly $1–$1.50 per patty — competitive with, or slightly cheaper than, a comparable pack of Beyond or Impossible patties, which more commonly run closer to $1.50–$2.00 per patty depending on sales and location. If you're price-sensitive, it's worth checking your local store's app or a service like Instacart before you go, since frozen plant-based meat pricing swings a lot with promotions.
Tips for Cooking It Right
Because texture is the main complaint in reviews, a little technique goes a long way here. Stovetop or grill, medium heat, is the most consistently recommended method — give it a few minutes per side until it's heated through and lightly browned, and resist the urge to walk away and let it go longer "just to be safe." If you're starting from frozen and want to speed things up, a short microwave defrost (30–45 seconds per side) followed by a quick sear in a pan with a little oil or sauce is the workaround several reviewers landed on to avoid the dry, rubbery texture that comes from microwaving it start to finish. Topping it heavily — cheese, sauce, a toasted bun, the usual burger toppings — also helps mask any dryness if you do slightly overcook it, which is a fine safety net for a weeknight dinner even if it's not the "purist" way to eat it.
Final Verdict
The Gardein Ultimate Beefless Burger is a genuinely solid, fully vegan option that differentiates itself on nutrition rather than trying to out-bleed Impossible or out-juice Beyond. Certified vegan, Non-GMO Project Verified, low in calories and saturated fat, and sturdy enough to survive a grill — the fundamentals are there. It loses points for a below-average protein count relative to its main rivals and for being genuinely finicky about cooking method; get it wrong and you'll end up with a dry, chewy disappointment instead of the "meaty" texture reviewers praise.
Rating: 7.4/10 — a dependable, lower-calorie plant-based burger that rewards a bit of cooking care and loses ground mainly on protein content.
