This page is for the chicken-style pieces of any shape - they can be plain or flavoured, but not breaded or battered.
Richmond: Tenderstrips (Formerly Taste & Glory: Tenderstrips) - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chilled / 165g / approx £2.50
Yet again Taste & Glory are leading the pack. The plant-based chicken strips come in three varieties; plain, BBQ and Tikka.
The pieces are produced to replicate the actual shape of chicken pieces so look quite realistic and have a really good chicken-like texture to them. The chilled versions are ready-to-eat straight out of the pack which is very convenient of course.
When it comes to the flavours, they are all great, but the BBQ ones are my favourite to put in a crusty roll for lunch. The plain ones, of course, give greater flexibility when it comes to any other flavours you wish to add, whether it be in a sandwich or to use as part of a meal like a curry.
Please note: Taste & Glory no longer exist, but the product has been incorporated into the Richmond brand of vegan foods. Sadly I don't think the tikka and BBQ have survived the change. The plain ones have and they are just as great as they have always been.
Morrisons Plant Revolution: 4 Chinese Style No Chick'n Drumsticks - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chilled / 4pk / £2.50
Made from mushrooms and pea protein with a sweet and spicy ginger and chilli marinade. I really liked these. Good texture with a nice bite to them. Lots of marinade to spread over during cooking with had a nice sweet flavour. Any chilli that's there is very mild. I'll buy these again.
Oumph!: Pulled BBQ Chunks - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
I'm not sure if these are technically trying to be pork or chicken style, but they had the texture / taste of chicken thighs. Quite a chewy bite to them. The BBQ flavour was subtle but nice. Overall really good and I'd buy them again.
Morrisons Plant Revolution: Korean BBQ Style No Chick'n Pieces - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Chilled / £2 (I think)
Made with wheat and pea protein with a Korean BBQ style coating. These are ready to eat and I put these straight in a sandwich with some vegan salad cream. The packaging doesn't mention anything about warming them up, but I'd imagine they'd be nice if you did. The texture was pretty good - tender, decent bite. The coating is nice - not overly sweet or spicy. I would have liked it to be stronger, but maybe Korean BBQ isn't supposed to be stronger. The salad cream probably overpowered them a little. Still, I'd buy them again.
The No Meat Company: No Chick Strips - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Frozen / 320g
These pieces from Iceland are pretty nice - the texture is almost as good as my favourites above. They are only available frozen and must be cooked before eating, so not quite a convenient as some other options if you just want to make a quick sandwich. I've found that when cooking these within a meal (eg a curry) the pieces can firm up and become quite tough. The shapes and texture resembles the meat you'd get from the thighs, legs and wings.
Plant Pioneers: No Chicken Chunks - ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Frozen / 300g /
These are from Sainsbury's own brand range. The pieces work well in dishes that require diced chicken, so curries etc. The texture isn't quite as good as some of the others here.
Quorn: Roasted Sliced Fillets - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (not vegan)
Chilled / 140g / approx £2.50
Quorn has been selling these pieces for years and they do the job really well. They are just tender pieces that are ready-to-eat straight from the fridge. Perfect for putting in a sandwich or salad. They have a nice texture, but sadly are not vegan.
Quorn: Makes Amazing Peri Peri Strips - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Chilled / 175g /
I had these once and I have no real complaints about them as a product. You have to cook them before eating, so you can't just open the pack and chuck them in your sandwich / salad, which is a shame.
Squeaky Bean: Chargrilled Cajun Mini Fillets - ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Chilled /
These were ok. The chargrilled element was cool. If I'm being picky there may be a slight dry powdery-ness to them. Probably the biggest downside was that there didn't seem to be very much in the pack and it was only enough to cover one lunch.
Quorn: Family Roast - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (not vegan)
Frozen / 454g / Approx £3
If you're cooking a roast dinner and are looking for a vegetarian meat to sit alongside your roast potatoes, this is a very good option. It comes in a formed cylinder shape and can be sliced once cooked. It's beautifully moist and has a very good texture and flavour. The leftovers are really nice in a sandwich the following day. The only real fault I can find is that it's not vegan - if it was, this would have five stars.
Quorn: Pieces - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (not vegan)
Frozen / 300g or 500g / approx £2 or £2.60
These are very handy for keeping in the freezer to add to cooking (I mostly use them for curry or jerk chicken). They come in cubes, so are like cubed fillets. They do the job nicey, but are not vegan. They are also available chilled, but I've never bought them that way.
Quorn: Fillets - ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (not vegan)
Frozen /
Essentially these are the same as the Quorn pieces but these are in the shape of a full fillet.
Quorn: Vegan Pieces - ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Frozen / 280g / approx 2.60
These are basically the same as the regular Quorn pieces but vegan. They unfortunately suffer from the same problem as many of Quorn's other vegan options in that they seem a bit a bit dry - which may or may not be hugely noticeable if they are in a sauce. Price-wise they are more expensive than the vegetarian version. So on balance, I had to rate them lower than the frozen vegetarian version.
Quorn: Vegan Fillets - ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Frozen /
The same story here when it comes to Quorn's vegan options. A tad on the dry side.
