Jonathan has been a strict vegan for about a year and a half now. Since we still eat together as a family, that means Tim and I are mostly vegetarian, cooking plant based family meals, although Tim and I have been putting dairy milk on cereal and dairy cheese on our sandwiches, and when we eat out we occasionally get a hamburger or fish and chips. But we've also tried many varieties of plant based recipes with Jonathan, so we know which vegan foods we like the best, and work the best, and make the most sense.
For fun, I decided to go completely vegan for a week, to see what it would be like.
Given the first paragraph of this post, it wasn't really life changing. Meh. Not a big deal.
I just put Jonathan's soy milk on my granola in the morning and opted to have pizza without cheese, and vegan butter on my toast rather than regular butter. Otherwise, it was pretty much the same.
Which makes me think that perhaps I should do this more often.
A plant based diet is well-known to be better for health, better for the climate. It also makes a lot of practical sense: plant based foods can be cheaper, last longer in the pantry, and are more filling (oats, grains, seeds, nuts, oils... even the soy milk stores in the cupboard much longer than dairy). At first I found it harder to cook, but not so much anymore with practice. And finally, I usually think the vegetarian option looks better! More colour and flavour.
I like to be flexible. I like to try everything rather than restrict myself. Is there a label for someone who is almost exclusively vegan but will occasionally try a special dish with meat or fish?
Some favourite meals that are easily veganisable: vegetable chili, pasta primavera, stir fries in all their forms. Japanese curry rice. Shanghai noodles. Thai green curry (that is, buy a jar of pre-made Thai green curry sauce, and check carefully that you're getting the version without added fish sauce. Add your own vegan fish sauce and follow their directions for cooking). For breakfast, toast and granola. For lunches, sandwiches with vegetables and avacados. Salads with canned beans for protein. Pancakes, waffles (use flax or chia seeds to replace the eggs -- gives it a delightful texture!).
And many / most? snacks are vegan: Potato chips. Corn chips. Dark chocolate. Many types of cookies and candies. Nuts. Just check that you are avoiding snacks with added butter or cheese -- the cheaper ones will be vegan!
We like to use a plant-based mince to replace ground beef in tacos. Tofu is boring, but we found that the pre-marinated chili tofu is really good, and pretty much replaces most everything that used to be chicken in our meals.
And I've been making my own vegetarian granola for breakfast for nearly two decades, when I found that it made me feel good, and kept me from being hungry before lunch.
I have never really liked cooking, but eating is necessary. So we will continue to plan dinner every single day for the rest of our lives. Now more plant based.
