4 ms·

I'm a meat-eater (have been my whole life), but I've always been partial to this argument. This is why I'm looking forward to lab-grown meat and would pay a bit

I'm a meat-eater (have been my whole life), but I've always been partial to this argument. This is why I'm looking forward to lab-grown meat and would pay a bit of a premium for it.

TaylorAlexander 5y ago
Lab grown meat is promising, for sure. FWIW I am now in year three of veganism and it feels like I have made it past all the "teething" stages to the point where I am absolutely loving my vegan meals. It is rare for me these days to eat a meat or cheese substitute - more like the occasional junk food throwback than a normal meal. Lentils, tofu, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, brown rice, peanut sauce, lettuce, zucchini, and just some of the foods that bring me joy to eat. Hopefully you're already learning to make vegan meals but if anyone out there is on the fence I highly encourage you to learn how to make delicious vegan food. It's so tasty and you won't feel the guilt of eating meat.
- inreverse 5y ago
  Are there any chefs who unify veganism with traditional cuisines that use lots of animal products, e.g. french or chinese? I would love to be vegetarian but I'm lucky in that my partner makes fantastic traditional food and I don't want to give it up. Vegan modifications along the lines of 'substitute the meat in your burger for mushroom' seem depressing, like they're unengaged with the balance of flavours in the dish.
  - SamoyedFurFluff 5y ago
    Specifically with Chinese you rarely actually need to prepare a dish with meat in it. The savory/fat elements can be brought in via other means, and that often leaves just the sauce that’s very flexible to be used on any number of veggies and great tofu variety. Remember the vast majority of China was extremely poor until just recently. No ones affording meat. The most traditional cuisines can function entirely without meat.
  - adrianN 5y ago
    I've been to a great vegan Chinese restaurant. I think most countries where Buddhism is present have traditional meat-free cuisine.
  - TaylorAlexander 5y ago
    In general yes. Depending on where you are this can be harder to find. In San Francisco there is an absolutely amazing vegan japanese restaurant. https://www.yelp.com/biz/cha-ya-san-francisco-san-francisco-2 https://www.yelp.com/biz/cha-ya-san-francisco-san-francisco-... I googled for "french vegan food" and found this: https://veggievagabonds.com/best-traditional-french-vegan-recipes/ https://veggievagabonds.com/best-traditional-french-vegan-re... For chinese food I would imagine there is a lot of traditional vegan food. Tofu for example originated in China. For lots of chinese dishes with meat, something like Tempeh or Seitan make great traditional foods that can substitute meat. I googled "chinese vegan food" and found this: https://thewoksoflife.com/traditional-chinese-vegan-dishes/ https://thewoksoflife.com/traditional-chinese-vegan-dishes/ The thing to keep in mind is that veganism is very common in parts of the world where the right crops grow well. So indian food is full of vegan and vegetarian options like dal (lentils). One of the things you can do is just get to know the traditional plant proteins like lentils, tempeh, seitan, and tofu. Go find some tempeh at the store, unmarinated. Slice it in to long thin fries, and pan fry them in some olive oil. Brown them on all sides, then add salt. Some super tasty fries that will make you want more. Now next time you cook tempeh do the same thing but cut it in to small cubes. You can add that on top of anything in place of meat and it will be very satisfying. Then learn to cook tofu and seitan. Eventually you will become familiar enough with them to plan dishes with them. And for me I found that adding peanut sauce is an easy way to make things tastier. So experiment with that!

I'm a meat-eater (have been my whole life), but I've always been partial to this argument. This is why I'm looking forward to lab-grown meat and would pay a bit of a premium for it.

TaylorAlexander 5y ago

Lab grown meat is promising, for sure. FWIW I am now in year three of veganism and it feels like I have made it past all the "teething" stages to the point where I am absolutely loving my vegan meals. It is rare for me these days to eat a meat or cheese substitute - more like the occasional junk food throwback than a normal meal. Lentils, tofu, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, brown rice, peanut sauce, lettuce, zucchini, and just some of the foods that bring me joy to eat. Hopefully you're already learning to make vegan meals but if anyone out there is on the fence I highly encourage you to learn how to make delicious vegan food. It's so tasty and you won't feel the guilt of eating meat.

inreverse 5y ago
Are there any chefs who unify veganism with traditional cuisines that use lots of animal products, e.g. french or chinese? I would love to be vegetarian but I'm lucky in that my partner makes fantastic traditional food and I don't want to give it up. Vegan modifications along the lines of 'substitute the meat in your burger for mushroom' seem depressing, like they're unengaged with the balance of flavours in the dish.
- SamoyedFurFluff 5y ago
  Specifically with Chinese you rarely actually need to prepare a dish with meat in it. The savory/fat elements can be brought in via other means, and that often leaves just the sauce that’s very flexible to be used on any number of veggies and great tofu variety. Remember the vast majority of China was extremely poor until just recently. No ones affording meat. The most traditional cuisines can function entirely without meat.
- adrianN 5y ago
  I've been to a great vegan Chinese restaurant. I think most countries where Buddhism is present have traditional meat-free cuisine.
- TaylorAlexander 5y ago
  In general yes. Depending on where you are this can be harder to find. In San Francisco there is an absolutely amazing vegan japanese restaurant. https://www.yelp.com/biz/cha-ya-san-francisco-san-francisco-2 https://www.yelp.com/biz/cha-ya-san-francisco-san-francisco-... I googled for "french vegan food" and found this: https://veggievagabonds.com/best-traditional-french-vegan-recipes/ https://veggievagabonds.com/best-traditional-french-vegan-re... For chinese food I would imagine there is a lot of traditional vegan food. Tofu for example originated in China. For lots of chinese dishes with meat, something like Tempeh or Seitan make great traditional foods that can substitute meat. I googled "chinese vegan food" and found this: https://thewoksoflife.com/traditional-chinese-vegan-dishes/ https://thewoksoflife.com/traditional-chinese-vegan-dishes/ The thing to keep in mind is that veganism is very common in parts of the world where the right crops grow well. So indian food is full of vegan and vegetarian options like dal (lentils). One of the things you can do is just get to know the traditional plant proteins like lentils, tempeh, seitan, and tofu. Go find some tempeh at the store, unmarinated. Slice it in to long thin fries, and pan fry them in some olive oil. Brown them on all sides, then add salt. Some super tasty fries that will make you want more. Now next time you cook tempeh do the same thing but cut it in to small cubes. You can add that on top of anything in place of meat and it will be very satisfying. Then learn to cook tofu and seitan. Eventually you will become familiar enough with them to plan dishes with them. And for me I found that adding peanut sauce is an easy way to make things tastier. So experiment with that!