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“When I first started looking into vegetarianism and then veganism, I chose to explore a new type of cooking or a new type of food every week: Indian one week, recipes for this strange grain called ‘quinoa’ the next… Thai, seitan, Middle Eastern, nutritional yeast. Soon, I had a menu that far far exceeded my previous, omnivorous diet, in both diversity and taste.”
Erik
Marcus, author of Meat Market and
Vegan:
The New Ethics of Eating
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Many people believe that eliminating all animal products will greatly narrow their menus. But according to most vegans, quite the opposite happens. Once you start frequenting your local health/natural food stores and co-ops, perusing the dozens of vegan cookbooks, or just following the suggestions in this guide, you will soon become familiar with the wide variety of options that weren’t a part of your previous diet. Over time, you will also discover that it is possible to follow almost any recipe by substituting ingredients.
For those who prefer not to cook, there are a wide variety of packaged foods from which to choose: frozen dinners; canned and dehydrated soups, stews, and chilies; items of all sorts for quick and easy sandwiches like vegan dogs and burgers, deli slices, bacons, sausages, untuna and unchicken salads, and soy and rice cheeses; and delicious desserts including soy yogurts and ice creams. The variety is growing every year; and more and more supermarkets are starting to carry the same products that used to be found only in specialty stores. You may even find that your local health food store has its own deli counter, stocked with prepared foods.
If you do not have many vegan offerings in your area,
you may want to contact Pangea
or the Mail
Order Catalog, a great source for ordering meat
and dairy substitutes like soy products, seitan, TVP,
nutritional yeast, and broth mixes.
Simple Meal Ideas
Here are just a few examples.
Breakfast
Oatmeal or cold cereal with fruit and nondairy milk
Toast, bagel, or English muffin with fruit spread and peanut butter or vegan cream cheese
Fruit smoothie made with nondairy milk or soy yogurt
Pancakes or waffles (many brands of prepared mixes and a variety of Van’s frozen waffles are vegan)
Tofu scramble with hash browns and veggie sausage
Fruit-filled toaster pastry
Lunch
Veggie burger or dog with fries
Faux lunchmeat sandwich with chips
Veggie pizza
Bean burrito
Falafel pita sandwich with hummus
Peanut butter and jelly
Dinner
Pasta with faux meat sauce, faux meatballs, or faux sausage
Veggie chili
Faux meat tacos, burritos, or enchiladas (click here for cooking tips on vegan tacos and chili)
Stir-fry with tofu, tempeh, or faux meat (see tips)
Faux meat with gravy and mashed potatoes
Vegetable tofu lasagna (see tofu ricotta recipe)
Right: Pasta and tomato sauce topped with Tofurky Sweet Italian Sausage.
Snacks or Dessert
Nondairy ice cream or frozen soy yogurt
Vegan cookies, pie, cake, or pudding (see recipes)
Fresh or dried fruit
Nuts or seeds
Trail mix
Pretzels or popcorn
Chips and salsa
Energy bar (vegan Clif Bar)
Right: An assortment of delicious dairy-free desserts. Keep in mind, though, many popular snacks and other convenience foods are also vegansee “I Can’t Believe It’s Vegan!”
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