Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Nasoya Korean BBQ Plant Based Steak ultra-processed?

7oz Meat analogues Sold in the United States

Pack of Nasoya Korean BBQ Plant Based Steak

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 35 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed meat analogues

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

textured vegetable protein, water, soy protein isolate, rice flour, wheat gluten, cocoa powder, sauce, sugar, water, soy sauce, water, soybeans, wheat, salt, pear puree, onion, garlic, apple puree, sugar syrup, sugar, water, modified corn starch, ginger, green onion, extract, water, green onion, maltodextrin, salt, pectinase, dextrin, black pepper, guar gum, xanthan gum, soybean oil

Additives: E1400 Dextrin , E412 Guar gum , E415 Xanthan gum

As written on the pack

hydrated textured vegetable protein, water, soy protein isolate, rice flour, wheat gluten, cocoa powder, sauce, sugar, water, soy sauce, water, defatted soybeans, wheat, salt, pear puree, onion, garlic, apple puree, caramelized sugar syrup, sugar, water, modified corn starch, ginger, green onion, extract, water, green onion, maltodextrin, salt, pectinase, dextrin, black pepper, guar gum, xanthan gum, soybean oil

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E1400 Dextrin Dextrin is starch partly broken down by heat or acid, used as a thickener, binder and coating.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.
  • Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.

Substances rarely used in home kitchens

Refined or extracted in factories, such as syrups made from starch or isolated proteins. The other hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
5 ingredients that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Sauce A prepared sauce used as an ingredient.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 512 meat analogues

From least to most processed, this one ranks 384th. 80% of the meat analogues here are ultra-processed.

Ranked by NOVA group, then by the number of ultra-processing signs, additives and ingredients. Our ordering, not part of NOVA.

All 512 meat analogues, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0025484007666, last edited 12 September 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.