Panda Express adds plant-based Beyond Meat orange chicken to its menu

Panda Express just revealed that it has added Beyond Meat orange chicken to its menu. This plant-based option will be available in select restaurants in Southern California and New York City.

CNBC noted that Panda Express would be the very first restaurant that features an Asian concept to include Beyond Meat products on its menu. The new dish in the Chinese fast-food chain is called Beyond the Original Orange Chicken.

Beyond Meat in Panda Express

Beyond Meat has already teamed up with other leading fast-food giants such as KFC, Pizza Hut, and many more. The American producer of plant-based meat alternatives has supplied the vegan options for most of the restaurants, and now it has partnered with Panda Express to provide the same food substitute.

Beyond Meat discontinued its original chicken alternative products in 2019, and the company is giving it's chicken business another shot. It launched its vegan chicken tenders last week, and today, it is ready to introduce more chicken items.

The Beyond the Original Orange Chicken at Panda Express is probably the next plant-based chicken that the company is offering. The Chinese restaurant already has some vegan dishes such as the chow mein, vegetable spring rolls, and eggplant tofu, but the orange chicken is the first meat dish.

“We know guests’ tastes and preferences have evolved and they look to us for variety,” Panda Express’ executive director of culinary innovation, Jimmy Wang, said in a statement. “Creating a fresh new take on a classic favorite is a great and accessible way to introduce plant-based proteins to our guests and perhaps even drawing a new audience for Panda.”

Panda’s vegan orange chicken

Meanwhile, Fox Business reported that the new Beyond Original Orange Chicken is a plant-based fried chicken meat that is drenched in Panda Express’ signature orange sauce. This is a good alternative for customers who prefer “meatless” meat.

Panda Express will not be selling the orange chicken with Beyond Meat’s chicken forever. It will only be available in select restaurants until supplies last. The new menu is coming to the outlets on July 26.