Chick-fil-A is testing a plant-based cauliflower sandwich

Chick-fil-A jumps on a plant-based bandwagon.

On Thursday, the Atlanta-based chain said it was testing its first plant-based dish, a breaded cauliflower sandwich, at restaurants in Denver; Charleston, South Carolina; and Greensboro, North Carolina, area. The test starts on Monday.

Chick-fil-A said its culinary team spent four years developing the sandwich after guests told the chain they wanted to add more vegetables to their diet. Chick-fil-A tested mushrooms, chickpeas, and cut vegetables shaped into patties, but kept going back to cauliflower for its bland flavor.

Like the signature Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich, the cauliflower steak is marinated, breaded, pressure-cooked, and then served on a bun with two slices of pickles.

Chick-fil-A arrived relatively late in the plant-based fast food scene. Burger King began selling its Impossible Whopper with a plant-based burger made by Impossible Foods in 2019.

Starbucks launched the Impossible Sausage Sandwich in 2020. McDonald’s introduced its McPlant burger, co-developed with Beyond Meat, to the UK in 2021. And KFC started selling Beyond Meat nuggets last year.