How to cook Impossible™ burger at home

So, you’re firing up the grill or the skillet and wondering how to cook Impossible™ Burger—and if it’s any different from cooking ground beef from cows. We’ve got good news for you: If you’ve ever cooked with ground beef, you’re ready to cook with Impossible Burger, which is currently available in grocery stores nationwide.

For all you home chefs, we’ve put together a quick guide that explains everything you need to know about handling and cooking Impossible Burger. We’ve also included some inspiring dishes to get you started building your own Impossible™ creations. Bon Appetit!

How to Store and Freeze Impossible Burger

Shelf life, freezing, and defrosting: Impossible Burger is perishable, so you need to keep it either refrigerated or frozen. When defrosting frozen Impossible™ meat, we recommend putting it in your refrigerator 24 hours prior to cooking it. 

You can freeze Impossible meat to use later. To make sure it stays fresh, we recommend it spend no more than three days total thawed once the package has been opened, and that you finish it off before the "best by" date printed on the back of the packaging. You can store thawed Impossible meat in the fridge for a maximum of 10 days unopened or 3 days opened. Check out our blog on How to Store Impossible Burger for more information.

General handling: You should always handle Impossible Burger as you would any other protein and follow the same sanitary guidelines. If you’re going to be working with Impossible Burger (i.e.: making meatballs or mixing in other ingredients and spices), we recommend doing it when the Impossible meat is cold and just out of the refrigerator. Just as with beef from cows, you can cook Impossible Burger to different degrees of doneness, but you should still use the same caution when doing so. Speaking of which…

How to Cook Impossible Burger

If you’ve cooked with ground beef, you’re already an expert at cooking with Impossible Burger—no learning curve necessary. From grilling to sauteing, Impossible Burger is incredibly versatile and is a direct substitute for ground beef in any recipe.  You can cook Impossible Burger on practically any cooking surface, including flame grills, sauté pans, flat-top griddles, and ovens. Impossible Burger can be cooked in patty form, or broken up and crumbled to use as a filling, in sauces, braises, or even roasts.

Here are a few more ideas to get you started:

Grill Impossible Burger: Form your patties and preheat your surface, whether it’s an open-flame grill, flat-top griddle, cast iron pan, or however you like to cook Impossible Burger. Gently place a burger patty on the hot surface and cook for 2-3 minutes per side or until you see a nice sear. Proper searing will ensure the best flavor and texture. Cook to desired doneness.

Check out these recipes: Impossible™ Gyro, Impossible™ Americana Burger and more Burger Recipes.

Sauté Impossible Burger: Crumble up your Impossible meat made from plants, place it inside a preheated pan, and let it cook undisturbed until you see it start to brown. Add your seasonings, gently stir, and cook for a few more minutes until the meat is cooked to your desired doneness. 

Check out these recipes: Impossible™ Italian Meatballs, Impossible™ Taco Salad

Using Impossible Burger in Soups and Sauces: For your favorite soup and sauce recipes, we recommend browning the meat in the pan before adding any liquid, just as you would with ground beef. Because Impossible meat does not release as much water during cooking, there is no need to drain excess liquid after browning. 

Check out these recipes: Impossible™ Chili Cheese Fries, Impossible™ Tortilla Soup

Using Impossible Burger as a Filling: Impossible meat can be used in dishes like ravioli, dumplings, and pastries—exactly as you would use ground beef from cows.

Check out these recipes:  Impossible™ Stuffed Peppers, Impossible™ Dumplings, Impossible™ Samosas

Braising Impossible Burger: Impossible meat can also be braised to infuse your desired flavors. It typically does not take as long to braise as conventional beef. We recommend browning the meat in the pan before adding the liquid.

Baking or Roasting Impossible Burger: You can bake or roast Impossible meat in an oven the same way you would ground beef from cows. We suggest oven temperatures between 350-400° F. 

Check out these recipes: Impossible™ Meatloaf, Impossible™ Thai Lemongrass Skewers

When is Impossible Burger Cooked?

Impossible Burger is fully cooked when the internal temperature reaches 160ºF.  If you don’t have a thermometer at the ready, the time-tested “touch test” works great to assess firmness, and you can also use color to gauge the desired doneness of the meat.

Get Inspired by These Recipes With Impossible Burger

Home chefs and food critics love using Impossible Burger to create delicious, mouthwatering recipes. Check out what they’re building to get some inspiration of your own: 

Genevieve Ko, food writer for The LA Times, created an Impossible™ Burger with Special Sauce

Image Source: latimes.com

Karissa’s Vegan Kitchen serves up Impossible™ Meatloaf

Image Source: Karissasvegankitchen.com

Melissa Clark of The New York Times shared her recipe for Impossible™ Spaghetti and Meatballs in Marinara Sauce

Image source: cooking.nytimes.com

Phillip and Valerie of the blog MarvelousMunch.com created an Impossible™ Meaty Cheese Gordita Crunch

Image Source: marvelousmunch.com

Want even more inspiration? Head over to our recipes page to get started.

Ready to Get Cooking? 

Now you’re ready to start cooking up some amazing creations at home using Impossible Burger in any number of ways. Get Impossible Burger shipped directly to your door or use our locations search to find retailers selling Impossible Burger near you.