FredMax

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 2:43 p.m.

Of course they broke some ingredient definition law; a law that probably doesn't even make sense to be applied in their business-space anyways. I agree with hotchocolate; they are cheap, taste good, and actually not all that unhealthy. Unfortunately, the price will be going up now as some lawyers get rich. BTW, based on the posting times above, I suspect some here may have returned from taco bell late last night just prior to posting;)

frozenhotchocolate

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 8:51 a.m.

taco bell is the bomb and when compared to some of the fat filled dishes featured on this website is more healthy. how many calories in a taco? look it up as you will be suprised. go eat some pan fried fancy whatever and feel good you didnt eat taco bell. as for me i will keep eating it because it is good and cheap.

Jay Thomas

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 8:29 a.m.

They call it seasoned beef, but what they don't tell you is that the &quot;seasoning&quot; takes up more volume then the actual beef! This is how they get around it being an outright lie. It is made up mostly of oats which are cooked and cocoa, caramel color and liquid smoke added to them (real cooked beef doesn't need coloring... hint). If you look at it closely after purchase you can see the more uniform sized cooked oats and the more shapely bits of cooked beef. It also includes MSG under a different name and silicon (MMmmm yummy). You can see the ingredient list in this video where the President of Taco Bell does a poor job of defending his company which is now being sued (just listen and look at the ingredients): <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ah05FEWcJWM" rel='nofollow'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ah05FEWcJWM</a> Since when is oats a part of Mexican seasoning? They have been doing this forever to save a few pennies. :|

Jessica Webster

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 2:32 a.m.

@Andy Jacobs: This is not the &quot;beef&quot; you're looking for. I caught that too - interesting phrasing. This post on the Atlantic Monthly site made me laugh: &quot;America Eats Soy, Shudders&quot; <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2011/01/america-eats-soy.html" rel='nofollow'>http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2011/01/america-eats-soy.html</a>

AlphaAlpha

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 1:42 a.m.

&quot; ... and 'other ingredients' ...&quot;

Soothslayer

Sat, Jan 29, 2011 : 12:28 a.m.

Whoa. Hold up. I read the Taco Bell response again and again because something didn't look right. Yep, sure enough they did an old marketing Jedi mind trick (aka Red Herring) on me. I fell for it too so don't feel too bad if you didn't catch it. Here it is again: &quot;Our beef is 100 percent USDA inspected, just like the quality beef you buy in a supermarket and prepare in your home&quot; Of course the beef that they get, from whatever farm it originally came from, was &quot;100 percent USDA inspected&quot;. How could it be 80 percent USDA inspected? Whatever amount of sampling that passes for &quot;100 percent USDA inspection&quot; is happening... probably. But that wasn't the issue. What is claimed , and the statement (very very sneakily I might add) does NOT respond to is that the final product, what is iactually n the taco shells (and other items), isn't 100% BEEF, nor 80, 50 or even a measly 40%. No, its claimed in the lawsuit that it's around 35% which, according to some strange USDA regulation, apparently can't be called &quot;beef&quot; anymore due to too much other contents. THATS the issue, and it wasn't addressed. Sorry USDA, we consumers need clearly defined terms and labels on EVERYTHING so we know what we're putting into our bodies. We need a simple and truthful system that tells us how much of something is in what we are eating. 35% Beef, 50% fat, 15% other sounds like a good label I could understand so how 'bout it?

Soothslayer

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 11:12 p.m.

&quot;It is then slow-cooked and simmered in our unique recipe of ... lard and floor drippings.&quot; Taco Bell's response is just an advertising gimmic. Enjoy with your congestive heart failure and obesity epidemic America, it tastes sooooo good so don't let anyone tell you different!

Sarah Rigg

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 10:06 p.m.

I never ate the meat items on the menu at Taco Bell anyway, so it doesn't make a difference to me. I still love their (vegetarian) 7-layer burritos.

jameslucas

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 9:40 p.m.

The Colbert Report on Taco Bell Defending it's meat: <a href="http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/372475/january-27-2011/gordita-supreme-court" rel='nofollow'>http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/372475/january-27-2011/gordita-supreme-court</a>

dading dont delete me bro

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 9:28 p.m.

the last few times i've eaten at tb, my taco was filled mostly with lettuce and cheese and very little meat. guess i'd call those fillers too. taco bellch...'xcuse me

Jim

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 7:37 p.m.

I am really bummed about Mark Bittman. I love the column and his whole persona (check out the videos on NYT). I just made his Pimenton &amp; bread crumb rub for rack of lamb a week or so ago - it was the typical Minimalist recipe, simple and utterly delicious.

winterblue

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 7:15 p.m.

I agree. Did anyone actually think they were getting quality beef?

FredMax

Fri, Jan 28, 2011 : 7:03 p.m.

Hopefully nobody thought they were getting filet mignon in their 99 cent taco. If you regularly dine at Taco Bell, the only news for you here is that the prices will increase due to this lawsuit.