As many of you know, there are several of us who have lauded Better Than Bouillon to the skies.  Alas, I fear that’s over.

Awhile back I opened a new jar of their Roasted Beef flavor. It didn’t look right. The color was off, being an anemic brown instead of the deep black I’m used to. And the consistency was grainy.

Perhaps, I thought, they’d changed the formula, and tried to use it.  My spoon barely entered the paste when it was stopped by something hard.  Scraping away the paste, I encountered a hard, white, plastic-like disc, which was like a cap covering the contents about a quarter inch down.

Turns out, this was a disc of hardened fat, about an eighth of an inch thick.

Not wanting to take a chance, I tossed it.  Friend Wife went to the store to replace it.  The new jar, though lacking the plastic disc, had the same pale color and grainy texture.

I immediately emailed the company, explaining the problem, and asking for an explanation. That was almost four months ago, and, to date, I’ve not heard back from them.

Now, I know the Covid thing has put everyone in the weeds, and can understand delays from customer service people.  But, when we’re talking about a potential problem involving food safety, four months is unconscionable.

I’ve stopped using BTB flavor bases altogether, as a result, and have been searching for a replacement.  One that, after limited use, I've been pleased with is the kitchen Accomplice brand.

These are more liquid-like than the paste type like BTB.  But they seem to be richer.  Stock made from their chicken flavor had more taste, and had the yellow I remember from my Mom’s home-made stuff. 

As a side benefit, it’s somewhat lower in sodium than the BTB.

I haven’t used the Kitchen Accomplice bases enough, yet, to fully endorse them. But, so far, I’m happy with them.