There were so many amazing brands that we discovered when we attended the Natural Expo in Orange County but one vegan brand definitely stayed in our minds: No Evil Foods. As we walked the aisles of the trade show, No Evil Foods booth was booming with excited people trying to get their hands on the samples. The enticing smell of the delicious food being cooked lured around 20 people in front of this booth. This was the first booth we had witnessed with such an incredible vibe and party-like atmosphere. First of all, the packaging of this company is unlike any other I have ever seen within the plant-based community, it is truly eye-catching, unique and obsolete. The unique concept and graphics truly make you appreciate your decision in incorporating a plant-based/vegan lifestyle.
Now, on to the taste: What can I say but delicious! So much so that two months after the expo ended, Opal and I are still talking about those sausages rightfully titled “The Stallion.” There are a few vegan brands whose sausages (no pun intended) I love but none taste like No Evil Foods Italian Sausages. I wanted so badly to try the other samples of their food but the moment a product got cooked and displayed, it was gone in an instant. You could hear people raving about the samples while others were eagerly asking where to buy these products and how long this company has been in business. Everyone wanted a piece of the action just like Opal and I did as well. I immediately grabbed a card so that I can contact this company and get to know more about their products. No Evil Foods has a Comrade Cluck – vegan ‘no chicken’, El Zapatista – chorizo style meat, Pit Boss – pulled pork bbq and The Pardon- a roast for the holidays. I am seriously salivating just looking at the pictures of these products on their website. And talking about their site, wow! Words can’t describe how cool this site and company are. Don’t take my word for it and look for yourself: https://www.noevilfoods.com/
Because I was so impressed with this company, I contacted one of the co-founders of this innovative duo Sadrah Schadel to get a little more perspective on the creation of No Evil Foods. Here are a few questions:
When did you start a vegan diet?
I was raised as a vegetarian and have also been vegan at various point of my life. Most recently I’ve been vegan for a little over 3 years.
How did you know what plant-based ingredients would constitute for such a delicious entree (i.e. chorizo, no chicken, sausage, pull pork?)
When starting out I was just making these recipes for myself and my family, so what I looked for primarily was; does it taste great? Does it perform great in my recipes? As I started to get more serious about nailing the flavors and textures of our products to more closely replicate the experience of eating traditional proteins I relied heavily on the feedback of people who were eating those proteins on a more frequent basis. They had the memory bank of flavors and textures stored up and would come back to me with suggestions to make our varieties more ‘meat-like’. I also spent a lot of time studying artisan meat making methods and seasonings, because ultimately what we’re doing is not that different – only we choose to work with plant proteins vs. ones that come from animals.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a market nearby to purchase No Evil Foods, how do you guarantee freshness in the delivery process directly from your site? (since it is perishable)
First of all, that’s a super bummer that we’re not available where you live yet. Fortunately, all of our products can be shipped nationwide via our website! Product freshness is top priority so everything gets sent from our facility to you in two days, by ground or by air depending on your location. Our damn delicious Plant Meats are frozen and shipped with ice packs in insulated boxes so they should arrive thawed and chilled and ready to devour!
10 years from now, what visions do you have for your brand?
Our business has grown so quickly and changes in ways that are hardly conceivable to me on a daily basis. If you told me 4 years ago where we’d be today, I’d never believe you. So, looking 10 years down the road is tough. I think that we’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing, which is to build an exciting brand that cranks out the best damn plant-based meats on the market. We’ll continue to deepen our activism and social responsibility as a business, strengthen our sustainability efforts, and of course build out our product line so there are more varieties of Plant Meats and more occasions to eat them. I’d like to see us increase our relationships with restaurants and chefs nationwide – heck maybe we’ll open up our own restaurant! (OMG – THAT WOULD BE AMAZING!)
Will you be offering any new products in the coming year?
While not entirely new, we will be expanding our production of our holiday centerpiece The Pardon this year. We expect to have it available in retailers across the country as well as through our website. We sell out every year and wanna get that centerpiece on lots more holiday tables this year!
Mark my words readers…this company will be VERY BIG in the near future! I can’t wait until it’s in a grocery store nearby but until then, I will be ordering it directly from their site: https://www.noevilfoods.com/
Clicking on the above link will redirect you to No Evil Foods website.
