Vegan 1-2-3: What Do Vegans Eat?
posted by: Angel Flinn 29 days ago
This is the first part of a three-part series. For more information, please read: Vegan 1-2-3: Introduction
What do vegans eat? It's a common concern, and a question that has become something of a joke amongst vegans, for the simple reasons that a) we've all heard it at one time or another, and b) the opportunities are endless for delicious, exciting food made of totally vegan (plant-based, cholesterol-free) ingredients.
Vegan cookbooks that now number in the hundreds are readily available online, in bookstores and in health food stores. Vegan cooking sites are all over the internet, and there are even vegan cooking classes online and available on DVD.
Learning how to replace foods you are used to with foods that are new to you might seem to be a challenge initially, but once you are on the other side of the transition, you will find that preparing vegan food is no more difficult than preparing animal-based food.
If you're not used to preparing food, you might find that being vegan requires you to plan ahead a bit more, and to prepare foods yourself. On the other hand, if it suits you, you could eat pre-packaged, pre-prepared foods all day long, and still remain vegan. Having said that, this author recommends a diet based on whole-foods, for both environmental and health reasons.
With a little culinary courage, you will find that it is easy to re-create your favorite foods: cakes, pies, puddings, milkshakes, pasta dishes, cream sauces, omelets, lasagna, pancakes, French Toast… Even traditional meat dishes such as roast beef can be reproduced using a meat substitute called seitan which, when prepared properly, can easily pass for sliced meat or ground beef. (Because it's made from wheat, seitan is not appropriate for those with gluten allergies)
As well as the huge variety of whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, seeds and nuts that provide an important foundation for a vegan diet (and can easily make up the entire diet of those who are particularly concerned about good health, a light ecological footprint or economic ease), there are also readily-available vegan versions of common items such as milk, cheese, yogurt, mayonnaise, cereal, and many other items including (if you so desire) desserts and snacks, such as ice cream, cookies, cakes, pies, candies and puddings. There are also many easily-available, ready-made convenience foods and alternative products that make life a little easier for those who live in cities, have busy lifestyles or find it hard to give up specific foods that are usually animal-based.
Many of these convenience foods are appearing ever more frequently in supermarkets and grocery stores, even in small towns where there is no health food store. In our local supermarket, vegan alternatives appear alongside ready-to-serve dinners and lunches.
In my experience, most people have no problem digesting soy products (as long as they are not too heavily-processed). Tofu (in different forms) is a fantastic, versatile ingredient that can provide fat-free protein in a meal, or create a creamy base for home-made sauces and salad dressings. Unless you are familiar with it, most people require some instruction as to how to prepare tofu properly, as it is basically flavorless, so it absorbs the flavor of the sauces and seasonings that it is prepared with. It also comes in different textures, each of which is ideal for a different use. (For more information on how to use tofu, please see my sharebook, where I have posted some simple recipes).
For those who do have a problem with soy, there is no reason that a soy-free vegan diet can not be perfectly healthful, delicious and varied. In fact, there are vegans who are allergic to soy, nuts, gluten and other common allergens, and it does not prohibit them from eating a healthy, varied diet.
To put it simply, shopping for vegan foods is very much like shopping for non-vegan foods. It just might require you to go to different aisles of the supermarket and maybe make the occasional trip to the health food store. If your town doesn't have a health food store, and the items you are seeking are not available at the supermarket, you can also shop around online. Although there is the additional cost of shipping, sometimes sales will bring these products down to a comparable price.
For those who want further information on how to make the transition toward a vegan diet, I recommend the book 'Incredibly Delicious: Recipes for a New Paradigm', by Gentle World. Not only does it contain over 500 recipes with over 40 color photos, it also has resources for vegan shopping, preparing whole foods such as grains and beans, replacing common ingredients in cooking and baking, sprouting and raw food preparation, composting and growing a vegan garden, nutritional resources, inspirational quotes from great minds throughout history, and lots of other useful information.
For more information about specific food issues, feel free to submit a question using the comments feature, and keep your eyes open for upcoming articles.
Please look out for the other parts to this series:
Health & Nutrition
Being Vegan in a Speciesist World
What do vegans eat? It's a common concern, and a question that has become something of a joke amongst vegans, for the simple reasons that a) we've all heard it at one time or another, and b) the opportunities are endless for delicious, exciting food made of totally vegan (plant-based, cholesterol-free) ingredients.
Vegan cookbooks that now number in the hundreds are readily available online, in bookstores and in health food stores. Vegan cooking sites are all over the internet, and there are even vegan cooking classes online and available on DVD.
Learning how to replace foods you are used to with foods that are new to you might seem to be a challenge initially, but once you are on the other side of the transition, you will find that preparing vegan food is no more difficult than preparing animal-based food.
If you're not used to preparing food, you might find that being vegan requires you to plan ahead a bit more, and to prepare foods yourself. On the other hand, if it suits you, you could eat pre-packaged, pre-prepared foods all day long, and still remain vegan. Having said that, this author recommends a diet based on whole-foods, for both environmental and health reasons.
With a little culinary courage, you will find that it is easy to re-create your favorite foods: cakes, pies, puddings, milkshakes, pasta dishes, cream sauces, omelets, lasagna, pancakes, French Toast… Even traditional meat dishes such as roast beef can be reproduced using a meat substitute called seitan which, when prepared properly, can easily pass for sliced meat or ground beef. (Because it's made from wheat, seitan is not appropriate for those with gluten allergies)
As well as the huge variety of whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, seeds and nuts that provide an important foundation for a vegan diet (and can easily make up the entire diet of those who are particularly concerned about good health, a light ecological footprint or economic ease), there are also readily-available vegan versions of common items such as milk, cheese, yogurt, mayonnaise, cereal, and many other items including (if you so desire) desserts and snacks, such as ice cream, cookies, cakes, pies, candies and puddings. There are also many easily-available, ready-made convenience foods and alternative products that make life a little easier for those who live in cities, have busy lifestyles or find it hard to give up specific foods that are usually animal-based.
Many of these convenience foods are appearing ever more frequently in supermarkets and grocery stores, even in small towns where there is no health food store. In our local supermarket, vegan alternatives appear alongside ready-to-serve dinners and lunches.
In my experience, most people have no problem digesting soy products (as long as they are not too heavily-processed). Tofu (in different forms) is a fantastic, versatile ingredient that can provide fat-free protein in a meal, or create a creamy base for home-made sauces and salad dressings. Unless you are familiar with it, most people require some instruction as to how to prepare tofu properly, as it is basically flavorless, so it absorbs the flavor of the sauces and seasonings that it is prepared with. It also comes in different textures, each of which is ideal for a different use. (For more information on how to use tofu, please see my sharebook, where I have posted some simple recipes).
For those who do have a problem with soy, there is no reason that a soy-free vegan diet can not be perfectly healthful, delicious and varied. In fact, there are vegans who are allergic to soy, nuts, gluten and other common allergens, and it does not prohibit them from eating a healthy, varied diet.
To put it simply, shopping for vegan foods is very much like shopping for non-vegan foods. It just might require you to go to different aisles of the supermarket and maybe make the occasional trip to the health food store. If your town doesn't have a health food store, and the items you are seeking are not available at the supermarket, you can also shop around online. Although there is the additional cost of shipping, sometimes sales will bring these products down to a comparable price.
For those who want further information on how to make the transition toward a vegan diet, I recommend the book 'Incredibly Delicious: Recipes for a New Paradigm', by Gentle World. Not only does it contain over 500 recipes with over 40 color photos, it also has resources for vegan shopping, preparing whole foods such as grains and beans, replacing common ingredients in cooking and baking, sprouting and raw food preparation, composting and growing a vegan garden, nutritional resources, inspirational quotes from great minds throughout history, and lots of other useful information.
For more information about specific food issues, feel free to submit a question using the comments feature, and keep your eyes open for upcoming articles.
Please look out for the other parts to this series:
Health & Nutrition
Being Vegan in a Speciesist World
Read more: food, eating, vegetables, vegan, fruits, vegetarian, soy, tofu, animal welfare, whole foods
comments
I really enjoyed your Vegan 1-2-3 series and found the information enlightening. Thank you!
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Santa Cruz makes a good vegan chocolate syrup.
There is also AhLaska! and Suzanne's Specialties.
Enjoy the brownies!
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I have a question for Angel, or for anyone else who can answer:
PETA e-mailed me a recipe for vegan brownies, and I want to make it for my family when I go home for Christmas. However it calls for chocolate syrup, and the only one I know of that if vegan is Nesquick. However, I am boycotting Nestle, so I'd like to know the names of some other brands of vegan chocolate syrup.
Thanks!
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wow, this pic makes me so hungry ! since I don't eat meat, I feel so better....I done this in the past, twice or 3 times per year, but now, it's permanent ; no more meat for me, never.....and I'm now 63.....
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Great article Angel! There are so many vegan dishes out there that are so delicious it's amazing that anyone would need to continue eating meat (and how exciting are those same dishes day after month after year?)
The best shake we've ever had is vegan:
2C Chocolate Soy Milk (or regular soy milk and 4 heaping tablespoons of chocolate milk mix)
1/2 frozen or cold banana
1C frozen cherries (we buy mixed red fruits with raspberries, strawberries, cherries etc)
Put it all in the blender and you have the thickest, creamiest most delicious shake ever!
We've found more recipes we can use on the internet - just Google vegan recipes etc.
We've really gotten into soups and have never had such delicious ones - all vegan. Here in Spain "cremas" are popular. They are soups that are blended so are smooth and creamy, but do not actually contain cream.
Here's a sweet potato soup/crema just right for this season:
1Tblspn curry paste (we love Jalfrezi paste by Patak, but your favorite will do)
2lbs/1kilo Sweet Potatoes cut into chunks
(4 oz cauliflower opt.)
3C vegetable stock (we use 2 cubes of Knorr vegetable bullion and water)
1Can Coconut Milk
1Jar Garbanzos/Chick Peas
Salt/Pepper to taste (we use 1 tsp salt/1/8 tsp pepper)
Add potato (& cauliflower if used), all the stock, the can of coconut milk and simmer for @ 15 min, or until vegs soft.
Add 1/2 of garbanzos & puree all until smooth then add remaining garbanzos, mix and serve warm. You'll moan with satisfac
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Hi everyone,
I have posted the recipe for the dish pictured above.
http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/1294982
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Sara Smith
Oct 27, 2009 1:21 PM
I must post this in 2 parts, since it exceeds 1500 characters.
PART 1
"I think I have a calcium absorption problem! I...started taking a vitamin D2 supplement...when I began feeling extremely tired and my hands and feet were numb tingly and sore...!"
Do NOT drink coffee or eat chocolate, spinach, sorrel, rhubarb, tomato, potato, eggplant, bell pepper. Brew tea VERY hot & no longer than 40 seconds. Do not squeeze tea bags or re-use them or loose tea.
DO eat seaweed, sesame, tahini, watercress, parsley, kale, turnip-green, GARLIC, dandelion-green, cabbage, chard, celery, broccoli, Chinese broccoli, broccoli rabe.
We can get vitamin D from sun, and from
* sun-dried seaweeds
* shiitake, maitake, morel, chanterelle
* avocado—only in hot, dry weather
* nutritional yeast (but dangerous monosaccharide)
* whole wheat, whole oats (oil of bran)
* sweet potato (if locally in season)
* fish/shellfish/fish-oil (but farmed vertebrate fish is toxic & fish oil is toxic if packaged in plastic or derived from farm-raised vertebrate fish or fish of polluted water)
* fertile egg
* yogurt (but toxic & active-D3-formation-impairing UNLESS home-made with non-plastic implements & non-GMO milk never accumulated, stored, or packaged in plastic or a container lined with plastic)
* aged cheese (but toxic if made from GMO milk or if long-time plastic-wrapped or used other than as light flavoring)
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Sara Smith
Oct 27, 2009 1:21 PM
PART 2
Non-animal sources have only precursor D3—“D2.” Animal sources (see above) supply D3.
The liver converts D2 to 25[OH]D3. Each kidney's endocrine part converts 25[OH]D3 to 1,25[OH]2D3 — active D3. Each kidney's endocrine-part excretes active D3 to help control calcium absorption/distribution/use/retention.
But the liver does not convert all D2 into 25[OH]D3. NON-animal vitamin D sources do not bear vitamin D quantities nearly great as animal sources. So, unless a Vegan or strict vegetarian gets very much sunshine, she risks being D3-deficient.
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Easy, healthy, and delicious:
Black-eyed Peas and Kale Recipe
1 1/2 lbs. kale, washed and drained
1 T. olive or other vegetable oil
1 T. chopped fresh garlic, or more to taste Pinch of dried red pepper
2 C. canned or cooked black-eyed peas
1 T. cider vinegar, or to taste
Pull the kale leaves from the tough stems. Discard the stems and chop the leaves into one-inch pieces. Place about two inches of water in a large pot and heat to boiling. Add the kale, cover and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain. Reserve the water for soup, if desired. In a large non-stick skillet, combine the oil and garlic. Cook the garlic over low heat, stirring, until it begins to sizzle, about two minutes. Add the peas and red pepper and cook until blended, stirring, about three minutes. Add the kale and stir to blend over low heat. Add the cider vinegar just before serving. Serve hot or at room temperature.
Serves 6.
(Recipe is from:
http://famousrecipes.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/black-eyed-peas-with-garlic-and-kale-recipe/ )
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Hey Sara Smith, I'm no doctor, just speaking from personal experience. You might want to ask your Dr. about getting checked for Celiac disease (also called gluten-intolerance). Celiac damages the body's ability to absorb certain nutrients and can cause deficiencies in a number of things - including vitamin D and/or calcium and/or iron. For me Celiac resulted in Vitamin D and Calcium deficiency but not iron. I'm certainly not saying you have Celiac, but it might be good to get tested since statistics say that approximately 1 in 133 people have Celiac.
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