Not all veggie burgers are created equal. One thing that bothers me about a lot of popular veggie burgers is that even though they do not contain meat, they do contain ingredients that impair our health. Specifically, many veggie burgers are made with eggs, gluten, canola oil, soy protein concentrate, and natural flavors. In my book, “We Can’t Change What We Don’t Know – How I Started to Think of Food as Medicine,” I discussed the dangers of eggs, gluten, canola oil and natural flavors. Throughout my research, I have found that eggs contain a high level of methionine, which could increase our levels of homocysteine. Having a high homocysteine level is a risk factor for heart disease. Gluten can damage our digestive tract. I also learned that to make canola oil, the seed must be refined, bleached with chemicals, and processed using extremely high heat, which is why it might not be good for us to consume. The natural flavors in products offer our bodies no nutrients and could damage our microbiomes. Last, like canola oil, the way soy protein concentrate is processed could prevent us from being able to absorb nutrients in our food. As you can see, it is important for us to read food labels when buying new products (especially products that we want to serve as a healthy alternative). To save you some time investigating veggie burger labels, I’ve compiled a list of 6 veggie burgers that are gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free for you to try next time you’re in the freezer aisle looking for the perfect patty to pair with your gluten-free bun.
1. Amy’s
- Recommended Burger: Organic Sonoma Veggie Burger
- Why I love it:
- Organic Ingredients
- Gluten-Free
- Dairy-Free
- Egg-free
- Does not contain Canola Oil, Soy Protein Concentrate, or Natural Flavors
- Amount of protein: 5 grams
- Price: $6.95 for a pack of 4 at Whole Foods
- Where you can find it: Safeway, Streets Market, Wegmans Food Market, Whole Foods Market, Yes Organic, and more.
- Notes: They have additional veggie burgers that are either not organic or not gluten-free! Make sure you read the labels if you want to try a different flavor.
2. Dr. Praeger’s
- Recommended Burger: Cauliflower Veggie Burger
- Why I like it:
- Gluten-Free
- Dairy-Free
- Egg-Free
- Does not contain Soy Protein Concentrate or Natural Flavors
- Amount of Protein: 9 grams
- Price: $4.79 for pack of 4 at Whole Foods
- Where you can find it: Central Market, Fresh Market, Giant, Harvest Market, Kroger, Shoprite, Sprouts Farmers Market, Tom Thumb, Walmart, Wegmans Food Market, Whole Foods Market, and more.
- Notes: Based on their website, Dr. Praeger’s does not use organic ingredients and uses Canola Oil in their burgers. Some of their other veggie burgers are not gluten-free and contain soy concentrate. While it is a cheaper gluten-free and vegan option, make sure you read the labels to determine if Dr. Praeger’s is right for you!
3. Good Seed
- Recommended Burger: Curried Sweet Potato, Hempseed Burger
- Why I love it:
- Organic Ingredients
- Gluten-Free
- Dairy-Free
- Egg-free
- Does not contain Canola Oil, Soy Protein Concentrate, or Natural Flavors
- Amount of Protein: 9 grams
- Price: $6.29 for pack of 3 at Whole Foods
- Where you can find it: Central Market, Safeway, ShopRite, Sprouts Farmers Market, Whole Foods Market, and more.
- Notes: I love that they use Ashwagandha in this product, and Dulse in their All-American Burger!
4. Hilary’s Eat Well
- Recommended Burger: Organic World’s Best Veggie Burgers
- Why I like it:
- Organic Ingredients
- Gluten-Free
- Dairy-Free
- Egg-Free
- Does not contain Soy Protein Concentrate or Natural Flavors
- Amount of Protein: 2 grams
- Price: $3.79 for pack of 4 at Sprouts Farmers Market
- Where you can find it: Whole Foods, Safeway, Sprouts Farmers Market, Wegmans, New Seasons Market, Kroger, and more.
- Notes: Their products contain a mix of expeller pressed oils, one of which is Canola Oil.
5. NoBull Burger
- Recommended Burger: NoBull Original
- Why I love it:
- Main ingredients are Organic
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
- Egg-free
- Does not use Canola Oil, Soy Protein Concentrate, or Natural Flavors
- Amount of Protein: 10 grams
- Price: $5.49 for pack of 2 on NoBull Burger’s website
- Where you can find it: Kroger, Mom’s Organic Market, Whole Foods Market, Wegmans, and more.
- Notes: Based on their website, all the ingredients in the burger are not organic, but the main ingredients are! Their burgers are also loaded with protein. Co-owner, Elizabeth Raymond, told me in an interview that the organic lentil and organic brown rice in their burgers make a complete protein for consumers!
6. Sunshine Plant-Based Foods
- Recommended Burger: Organic Garlic Herb
- Why I love it:
- Organic Ingredients
- Gluten-Free
- Dairy-Free
- Egg-free
- Does not contain Canola Oil, Soy Protein Concentrate, or Natural Flavors
- Amount of Protein: 10 grams
- Price: Could not find online!
- Where you can find it: Mom’s Organic Market, Shoprite, Streets Market, Wegmans, Whole Foods Market, Yes! Organic Market, and more.
- Notes: I could not find these burgers at any store near me to determine the price. I would use the website’s Find A Store tab to see if they are sold near you. However, I wanted to keep these burgers on the list because they would be great for anyone with a nut allergy as they are nut-free! The additional Sunshine burgers listed on the website are not organic.
