I just cracked open my first bottle of Soylent 2.0, the prepackaged, premixed version of Soylent that their website describes as "Delicious Soylent in convenient ready-to-drink 400 kcal. bottles." Well, I don't doubt at all that it's convenient. And it is indeed ready-to-drink. And I fully accept that it is nutritious. But I disagree that it is "delicious."
When I think of "delicious" foods, the things that come to mind are pizza, sushi, ice cream, warm chocolate-chip cookies, and a good steak. After half a bottle of Soylent 2.0, I can safely state that it is not nearly as delicious as any of those.
So what does it taste like? Imagine really, really weak chocolate milk if you made it with unsweetened cocoa powder and skim milk. Now, back off the flavor about 75%. That's pretty close. There's also a very mild oat (?) flavor in the background, but it's tough to notice. It's certainly not "delicious," but it's not yucky, either. It's just kind of blah.
The taste (or lack thereof) isn't the most surprising characteristic of Soylent 2.0, though, it's the texture: There isn't any. The texture is like a very thin paint. There is absolutely nothing to chew or to provide any sort of mouth feel whatsoever. Water wets. Milkshakes have frozen granules and a variety of textures. This is neither. It more coats the mouth, but uniformly and without any sort of foodiness to it. It's a bit off-putting initially, but only because it's odd...not because it's totally unpleasant.
I'm drinking this at room temperature. I've read other people's opinions who enjoy it more when it's chilled. I'll try that next time. Maybe. If I remember to chill it first. And actually, that's the real attraction of Soylent 2.0 for me: zero prep. If I'm crammed at work and just don't have time to go get food, I can break open a bottle and have something akin to a lunch while I'm working. Clean-up consists of tossing the empty bottle into the recycling bin. Nice.
More as I know it...
Soya milk? We use mostly unsweetened Alpro Soya Light instead of regular skimmed milk, but it is nothing special. Just a drink that works. As exiting as skimmed milk.
ReplyDeleteIts people! Soylent (green) is people!
ReplyDeleteSakari Maaranen I've never tried soy milk. I enjoy actual milk so very much that soy has never appealed. Plus, it's way more expensive here.
ReplyDeleteSakari Maaranen No, not soy milk. Soylent is intended as a complete nutritional food replacement product.
ReplyDeletehttp://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/08/soylent-2-0-is-coming-pre-mixed-in-a-bottle/
We drink both Craig Froehle, just mostly soy milk. It's less than double the price but still reasonable. In coffee, I strongly prefer actual milk, but some soy milk products kind of work even with coffee.
ReplyDeleteBachelor Chow: Now with flavor.
ReplyDeleteSakari Maaranen Why do you guys pay more for soy when you can drink regular?
ReplyDeleteJim Douglas Right! Sorry, Sakari Maaranen...I didn't realize what you were asking. Soylent isn't soya milk.
ReplyDeleteJust add a couple of scoops of ice cream and some hot fudge. Blend. Now, it's delicious.
ReplyDeleteMarva Dasef And still totally healthy.
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle the product I mentioned actually tastes good. My stomach seems to work better, if I limit my consumption of regular milk. I may be slightly lactose intolerant. Also, making Finnish oats to this soy milk - only barely bringing it to boil - makes absolutely superb porridge.
ReplyDeleteSakari Maaranen Ah, I see. I'm blessed with a gut that lets me enjoy milk, so I tend to as often as possible. :-)
ReplyDeleteYay, someone got my Futurama reference. I can die in peace now. (Except they'll probably keep my head in a jar.)
ReplyDeleteI got used to the taste pretty quickly. What I didn't get used to was the lack of satisfaction.
ReplyDeleteCould you put it in an icecream maker to make a sort of Soylent Sorbet-ish sort of thing?
ReplyDeleteYou'll like the powder less, chalk and pancake batter. And their package sizing is 2x what it should be.
ReplyDeleteBut it is really convenient way to get your nutrients. I like it.
A friend adds a little chocolate syrup. I sometimes put in a little coffee.
Mmm... Sorblent!
ReplyDeleteTed Kidd add some bacon and you're good. Making pancakes, making bacon pancakes...
ReplyDeleteThis:
ReplyDeletehttps://goo.gl/photos/PhgPo9PpSMd1xwiQ8
should be this:
https://goo.gl/photos/cPVkk1YSq4uqRxez9
I pay $54 a month for WAG -- what's maybe 1/3 of my food?
ReplyDeleteSakari Maaranen is oat milk big in Finland? Havredryck is a big hit back home. I use it a lot. Not expensive, either.
ReplyDeleteJoseph Moosman, I wouldn't say it's "big" but it does enjoy significant popularity. I have explored it with the above mentioned porridge experiment, but I have to say Alpro Soya Light won my comparison.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried the pre-mixed, but in my experience the powdered Soylent is dramatically more appetizing when it's cold.
ReplyDeleteTraveler Farlander It's still not bad...less than $2.50 per 400-cal. serving.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the powdered versions, though I'm strange and liked the 1.4 even better than 1.5, but 1.5 refrigerates better
ReplyDeleteBought some chocolate syrup at Wegmans yesterday.
ReplyDeleteChocolate pancake batter.
Craig Froehle it's been a week. Any updates. Are you going to stick with the Soylent, powdered or pre-mixed?
ReplyDeleteRalph Gauthier I like the bottled 2.0 much better than the powder.
ReplyDeleteRalph,
ReplyDeleteIf you think about it as eating for sustenance rather than eating for pleasure, it changes your perspective.
Soylent saves a ton of time, likely improves your dietary balance, and there's another upside...
Now you can be more selective about what you eat when you eat for pleasure - and you get more pleasure from it. How often do you find yourself preparing/eating mediocre food because you are hungry?
Did I explain that in a way that makes sense?
Ted Kidd I do understand eating for sustenance and yes, very often, I eat because I am hungry and that usually means eating what's available. Right now, I eat a lot of fast food on my work lunch breaks. How is Soylent for knocking out hunger?
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle Is blending the Soylent with a banana, still your preferred way to go? Have you come up with other appealing variations? You can chime in here as well, Ted Kidd.
ReplyDeleteSoilent is great for killing hunger.
ReplyDeleteI have started putting chocolate syrup in the mix. Too lazy to do bananas, but bet that would make a big difference.
Soilent is good for weight management because it's easy to have regular "snacks" which supposedly improves metabolism.
Ted Kidd Anything that requires blending equals extra work and cleanup but I work 3PM to midnight so blending a smoothie before I head out the door isn't really a problem and there is a fridge at work. If 4 hours in the fridge improved the texture, bonus.
ReplyDeleteI drink 2.0 and the convenience is truly awesome. I agree it's not "delicious" by any stretch, but I fix that with a squirt of MiO (http://www.makeitmio.com/)
ReplyDeleteFilippo Salustri do you use a little or do you use a lot? :)
ReplyDeleteFilippo Salustri excellent suggestion, btw.
ReplyDeleteThree 400 kcal "meals" makes for fairly rapid weight loss without feeling super hungry.
ReplyDeleteRalph Gauthier If you've ever tried the stuff, you'd know you want to stay on the "a little" side of things.
ReplyDeleteOne of my sons once decided to try a straight squirt into his mouth. The next day he was still complaining he couldn't get the taste out of his mouth. Put him right off anything berry flavoured for months.
I've tried all kinds of protein drinks, meal replacement drinks, etc. over the years. They seem to be mostly hype, unless you have a problem digesting regular food. The idea that you are so busy that you need to supplement your diet with a fortified drink, seems odd. I know they are popular, pricey, and in my opinion overated. Whole milk if you can tolerate it, works fine and does the same thing. Lactaid works if you can't. These drinks remind me of the vitamin craze ( of which I took part)
ReplyDeleteJohn Bailey Soylent isn't a meal supplement...it's a meal replacement. You drink this instead of eating a meal. It offers complete nutrition for a normal diet, not extra protein or whatever for bodybuilding or anything else. Think of it as a meal in shake form.
ReplyDeleteIt's supposed to be capable of replacing all meals, which is different that merely being able to replace a single meal. I like the powder, because cheaper than heavy premixed stuff.
ReplyDelete