spazchicken
Member
Thanks, I'll try them out. If they taste close enough or even good in general even if they taste different, I don't mind going that route for the majority of my meals.
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Vegan community thread - Give Peas a Chance
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- Start date
If you cook your own food...
1) Minced meat can be replaced with soy granules. They work pretty much like minced meat, sucking up the taste from spices really well. Basically, sautee some chopped onions in rapeseed oil or something, throw some spices (& vegetable stock in the right amount either in cube or powder form) into the mix and let them also cook for a brief while with the onions, pour some soy granules on the pan and mix them in the onion & spice mix for a little while. Then pour some water (or veggie creams/milks once you know what you like) slowly until the soy granules have sucked in enough liquids so that the granules aren't hard anymore. Voila, you've got minced meat like stuff you can use in various ways exactly like minced meat that most people wouldn't distinguish from minced meat (probably would if they taste the granules alone but not among dishes). Use in lasagne, pasta sauce, on top of pizza or make soy steaks by adding certain (whole weat, psyllium and/or other) flours and bread crumbs.
2) Soy also comes in other dried forms that need more or less similar preparation that have been made to resemble little bits of chicken, chicken filees and pork bits. I don't think these are as good as seitan (more of that below), but occasionally they can be worth considering because seitan requires a longer preparation time.
3) Seitan is very versatile. You can make it in various forms that can replace chicken, ham, sausages and even things like kebab. Just need to adjust flour & liquid ratios, spices/marinades, form and cooking methods
4) there are more special recipes that even allow you to replicate other meat products yourself that you wouldn't even think possible. Want bacon? Get some rice paper (the edible kind
), make some marinade with soy sauce, liquid smoke, oil and some spices and dip cut rice paper pieces in that and fry them on the pan like you would real bacon. Same can be done with similar marinade and soy flakes if you want smaller bacon pieces to throw into a portion of vegan scrambled "eggs".
Hell, there's even this traditional Northern European fish food (kylmäsavulohi in Finnish, direct translation = cold smokey salmon) that someone recently (last Christmas) invented a way to replicate with CARROTS and it's almost like the real deal. Basically, you make thin strips out of (cooked, iirc) carrots, use lots of large granule sea salt & some other stuff and let it be for a couple of days in the fridge and you've got yourself carrot strips that are deceptively like this particular fish dish.
The thing to remember is that
A) a lot of vegan meat alternatives you make yourself are best when done in advance and let really suck in the flavor for at least a few hours if not a day/overnight in the fridge. Can be good immediately (and I largely do eat stuff immediately now that I know what the fuck I'm doing) but often shit is the best a day after (at least the meat alternative, doesn't necessarily have to be the whole dish)
And B) you are new to this and you aren't necessarily a master vegan food cook in a day. Even if you are a good cook, you aren't necessarily going to make the best shit right away. You need to learn the best ways for your tastes. Stuff like seitan can be made in so many ways with so many ingredients (in addition to the main one, gluten flour) and it's kinda easy to fuck seitan up even by little things like holding a seitan ham 5-10 minutes too little in the oven (which leaves it raw and kind of soft and gummy which is diiiiiiisgustiiiiiiing). So don't be driven away from seitan or shit even if the first time leaves you all "ewwww what is this taste/texture." People like seitan for a reason. With the right ratios, spices and methods it's really nearly indistinguishible from real meat. Not 100% the same thing but 99,9999.
Edit:
Ps. I do also recommend testing non-meaty stuff like falafels and other pea/bean patties/steaks.
1) Minced meat can be replaced with soy granules. They work pretty much like minced meat, sucking up the taste from spices really well. Basically, sautee some chopped onions in rapeseed oil or something, throw some spices (& vegetable stock in the right amount either in cube or powder form) into the mix and let them also cook for a brief while with the onions, pour some soy granules on the pan and mix them in the onion & spice mix for a little while. Then pour some water (or veggie creams/milks once you know what you like) slowly until the soy granules have sucked in enough liquids so that the granules aren't hard anymore. Voila, you've got minced meat like stuff you can use in various ways exactly like minced meat that most people wouldn't distinguish from minced meat (probably would if they taste the granules alone but not among dishes). Use in lasagne, pasta sauce, on top of pizza or make soy steaks by adding certain (whole weat, psyllium and/or other) flours and bread crumbs.
2) Soy also comes in other dried forms that need more or less similar preparation that have been made to resemble little bits of chicken, chicken filees and pork bits. I don't think these are as good as seitan (more of that below), but occasionally they can be worth considering because seitan requires a longer preparation time.
3) Seitan is very versatile. You can make it in various forms that can replace chicken, ham, sausages and even things like kebab. Just need to adjust flour & liquid ratios, spices/marinades, form and cooking methods
4) there are more special recipes that even allow you to replicate other meat products yourself that you wouldn't even think possible. Want bacon? Get some rice paper (the edible kind
), make some marinade with soy sauce, liquid smoke, oil and some spices and dip cut rice paper pieces in that and fry them on the pan like you would real bacon. Same can be done with similar marinade and soy flakes if you want smaller bacon pieces to throw into a portion of vegan scrambled "eggs". Hell, there's even this traditional Northern European fish food (kylmäsavulohi in Finnish, direct translation = cold smokey salmon) that someone recently (last Christmas) invented a way to replicate with CARROTS and it's almost like the real deal. Basically, you make thin strips out of (cooked, iirc) carrots, use lots of large granule sea salt & some other stuff and let it be for a couple of days in the fridge and you've got yourself carrot strips that are deceptively like this particular fish dish.
The thing to remember is that
A) a lot of vegan meat alternatives you make yourself are best when done in advance and let really suck in the flavor for at least a few hours if not a day/overnight in the fridge. Can be good immediately (and I largely do eat stuff immediately now that I know what the fuck I'm doing) but often shit is the best a day after (at least the meat alternative, doesn't necessarily have to be the whole dish)
And B) you are new to this and you aren't necessarily a master vegan food cook in a day. Even if you are a good cook, you aren't necessarily going to make the best shit right away. You need to learn the best ways for your tastes. Stuff like seitan can be made in so many ways with so many ingredients (in addition to the main one, gluten flour) and it's kinda easy to fuck seitan up even by little things like holding a seitan ham 5-10 minutes too little in the oven (which leaves it raw and kind of soft and gummy which is diiiiiiisgustiiiiiiing). So don't be driven away from seitan or shit even if the first time leaves you all "ewwww what is this taste/texture." People like seitan for a reason. With the right ratios, spices and methods it's really nearly indistinguishible from real meat. Not 100% the same thing but 99,9999.
Edit:
Ps. I do also recommend testing non-meaty stuff like falafels and other pea/bean patties/steaks.
Garcia el Gringo
Member
Vegan Verdict™ in what way specifically? All current formulas are vegan - they did away with the fish oil a while ago. If you're asking about taste, it's mild and pleasant (like "cheerio" soy milk). A serving is filling. The bottles are incredibly convenient. Coffiest is the best flavored product. The powder version is very economical and versatile in smoothies, though it tastes different than the bottles - an acquired taste maybe, but I quickly grew to love it.
If you're vegetarian/vegan, a decent amount of B12 per serving is consistent among all revisions of Soylent. Are you curious about the details of its nutritional profile? Either way, here's the Soylent OT
CornBurrito
Member
Black bean burgers are amazing.
Any really good recipes you guys know for them?
Also I figured out I really dislike mushrooms. Except for Shitake (which are fucking AMAZING in almost any dish, but they are also pricey), and possibly a Portabello when used as a burger substitute.
Any really good recipes you guys know for them?
Also I figured out I really dislike mushrooms. Except for Shitake (which are fucking AMAZING in almost any dish, but they are also pricey), and possibly a Portabello when used as a burger substitute.
Poor GRIMES
Banned
http://olivesfordinner.com/2016/04/watermelon-tuna-poke-bowl.html
Used this recipe and made a vegan poke bowl with hearts of palm kani salad, tomato spicy tuna, it was fantastic and scary close to the real thing
Used this recipe and made a vegan poke bowl with hearts of palm kani salad, tomato spicy tuna, it was fantastic and scary close to the real thing
outunderthestars
Banned
I'm making a go at a vegan diet after a rather bleak check up at the doctor. I'm going to focus on eating a nutrient dense, close to raw styled diet for the next few months to try and kickstart some positive changes in my body. I was vegan over a decade ago, but got lazy and eventually just started eating garbage tier foods.
Two weeks in and I have lost 8 pounds, am getting longer periods of deeper sleep, and have found my creativity and sex drive increasing.
I would like to try and avoid alot of the processed meat replacements, but find that I have some intense cravings for burgers and steak. I had an amazing beet steak at a local restaurant, but have not been able to replicate it.
What do you all cook for that style of meal?
Two weeks in and I have lost 8 pounds, am getting longer periods of deeper sleep, and have found my creativity and sex drive increasing.
I would like to try and avoid alot of the processed meat replacements, but find that I have some intense cravings for burgers and steak. I had an amazing beet steak at a local restaurant, but have not been able to replicate it.
What do you all cook for that style of meal?
I have seen it and while it's good information I have my fair amount of criticism about it. Some stuff feels just too convenient and the magically two-week healing of people was a bit too much. Cowspiracy is better I think and felt more honest.
outunderthestars
Banned
Yeah, I had to turn it off after the magic healing interviews.
I think the claims they were trying to make were a bit far fetched..
Seitan comes in many forms. It can act as chicken, ham, kebab, sausages, pulled meat-ish thing & such, depending on how you make them. Like, if you make a clump of a seitan dough, you can either cut it in steak-like pieces and cook them for 30 minutes in spiced & vegetable stocked up water, then cook them on the frying pan as is for a seitan burger. Or slice those into smaller slices and throw them in some sauce with veggies and have yourself a chicken-veggie-sauce + rice/couscous/potatoes meal. Or you could not slice the original bigger clump of seitan dough at all. Instead mix some delicious marinade, pour it on the seitan clump, wrap it in foil and cook it in the oven for 1,5 hours and have yourself a ham-like thing.
Nowadays there are also plenty of commercial products that are perfectly good choices for sources of protein & stuff. I honestly, wouldn't put too much weight on the "processed food = badz" crap. Some heat & eat microwave oven meals are perhaps a bit suspect (at least if eaten daily) and if you've got problems with health, I'd probably check some salt & other levels in the more processed alternatives (at least if I ate them with any kind of regularity), but otherwise there's really nothing wrong with processed alternatives in principle. Soy granules are a healthy source of protein & micronutrients.
CornBurrito
Member
Ok. What other mushrooms taste like shiitake mushrooms? Or is that a unique flavor in the mushroom world?
CornBurrito
Member
Any good recipes for curried lentils?
I'm super in the mood for curried lentils,and I trust you guys.
I'm super in the mood for curried lentils,and I trust you guys.
I think Porcini would be the closest but they aren't as meaty apparently. http://www.erinnudi.com/2014/12/10/difference-shiitake-mushrooms-porcini-mushrooms/
Also good to see Papa Johns advertising Vegan pizzas on their Facebook wall; they don't have Vegan cheese but still I sometimes prefer shedloads of veg to take cheese; This only leaves Dominos in the UK ignoring the market I think? (The comments are sadly a shitshow however :/)
I Stalk Alone
Member
How do vegan farmers deal with growing grains or vegetables and not killing the animals insects parasites that eat thm besides using GM crops?
I know you are looking for a Veg-Gaf suggestion but Yummly curated several you might be interested in.
Garcia el Gringo
Member
I was pretty impressed to see this as an ad targeted at me on social media sites, but there's no vegan presence/preset on their site and menu in the US. Kinda puzzles me if it's just to build awareness that you can customize their pizzas to come without cheese (like, of course, you can do that nearly everywhere) vs adding a vegan preset on the menu.
Is there a vegan pizza on their menu in the UK?
I def don't turn my nose to chain pizza, but I'm fortunate to live in an area with some vegan pizza options. Blackbird Pizza in Philly is all vegan and amazing.
Sadly not, you have to go and customise the pizza. It's talked about fairly often though on Social Media and they've never messed up (can get some decent Vegan pizza here too, 3 of the bigger chains do Vegan cheese, my local Italian place know of Vegans and make an amazing Vegan spicy tomato bread with oil instead of butter).
There is something like a stodgy Papa John's though and I think with loads of other chains offering options, them advertising at Vegans and the way the market seems to be going it can't be too far off.
Now to do my bit and order two pizzas (because it's stupidly cheaper...).
There is something like a stodgy Papa John's though and I think with loads of other chains offering options, them advertising at Vegans and the way the market seems to be going it can't be too far off.
Now to do my bit and order two pizzas (because it's stupidly cheaper...).
Veganism is harm reduction, not being perfect (As far as practicable and possible being in the definition). Unfortunately mass crop production leads to some harm however nowhere near on the scale of the alternative (also we're fine with protecting against parasites generally).
Just like Forks Over Knifes it's terrible, perhaps even worse. One example is when they compare egg consumption with smoking. Another is when they basically say sugar isn't bad for you, at all.
Yeah, love a good cheeseless pizza. Papa John's are confirmed milkless here (and milk in pizza bases; I know it makes it cheaper but it doesn't really say much about the quality!).
The Papa John threads pretty toxic; a low (or high?) point was someone trying to use tennis as an argument against Veganism (when there are a few well known Vegan players and synthetic strings.... and tennis, it's my new favourite argument
).Garcia el Gringo
Member
Absolutely. While I'd prefer visible preset options on the site/menu itself for a number of reasons, it's cool that vegan options are something they're attempting to communicate through ads.
Speak of the devil, Domino's Adds New Vegan Cheese to 55 Locations
Yeah, I mean, if an animal wants to hurt you it's fair game.
CornBurrito
Member
Thanks.
Also going to be making pickled onions/cucumbers/radishes. I love picked veggies.
outunderthestars
Banned
C
Contica
Unconfirmed Member
The problem is they just don't back up anything. It's just statement after statement with no hard science behind it.
The thing that annoyed me the most about it though, was the interviewer who went around in shorts, slippers, t-shirt and a cap in every single interview. Is it just me or is that very disrespectful to your subject? Especially keeping the hat on? It just felt extremely unprofessional to me. Maybe it's nothing, but it annoyed me.
Clauss
Member
As a fan of the film, I was also peeved by his attire during some of the interviews lol.
Speaking to the science though, have you checked out the facts page on their site? I thought it was pretty well researched. Even though some of the claims they draw can, at times, seem dramatic, I didn't feel like much of anything that was said was surprising or "news" to me as someone who's been living in the vegan bubble for a handful of years now. I think they intentionally dramatize, without skewing, the facts to increase the theatrical impact that some of the information might have on someone who's hearing these claims for the first time.
Just my two cents on the validity and the hosts attire
C
Contica
Unconfirmed Member
As a fan of the film, I was also peeved by his attire during some of the interviews lol.
Speaking to the science though, have you checked out the facts page on their site? I thought it was pretty well researched. Even though some of the claims they draw can, at times, seem dramatic, I didn't feel like much of anything that was said was surprising or "news" to me as someone who's been living in the vegan bubble for a handful of years now. I think they intentionally dramatize, without skewing, the facts to increase the theatrical impact that some of the information might have on someone who's hearing these claims for the first time.
Just my two cents on the validity and the hosts attire
Oh, I didn't even know about that page, lol. I've just found over the years, that even if I know and have faith in the things brought, a lot of people will not. Every statement needs to be backed up by solid facts, or people will think you're talking shit.
FLUXCapacitor
Member
Food Choices on Netflix is a much better documentary than What the Health imo.
Clauss
Member
Agreed. It's rare that anyone debating veganism, (or most controversial topics for that matter) even when faced with facts, will concede in the heat of the discussion. As long as your science is solid and your logic is sound, there's not much else you can do to convince someone who decided that they were right no matter what before the discussion even started lol.
I haven't seen the documentary/whatever in question, but really, there is a lot of hyperbolic hysteria towards sugar nowadays. Excess sugar is bad, yes, but people nowadays are basically saying all carbs are the devil & toxins & incredibly bad for everyone, which goes overboard. A small slice of a pie or piece of cake or a couple of small cookies with your daily coffee at some point during the day is not going to kill anyone, at least if they live a somewhat active lifestyle and don't just sit on their asses all day (which, admittedly, too many people do and many of those kind of people should really re-think even that one slice...).
That's true, people really do paint all carbs the same, which is them being ignorant. All plant based societies in the world are the healthiest ones in this day and age. What they said in the documentary was regarding refined table sugar and how they don't think it's harmful at all. That's what really surprised me
Fast Forward
Member
Just a Veggie here (about 2-3 months now), but it's kind of disgusting how many foods secretly not veggie/vegan friendly you think would be. Everything from McDs french fries to non-organic bananas, and a helluva lot inbetween.
The carb scare is ridiculous. If you get your health info from general GAF, all carbs are the same and you should eat almost none.
But considering there are threads seemingly every few hours about the hottest new soda or shitty fast food meal, I seriously doubt it's the best place to look for nutritional advice.
outunderthestars
Banned
Ditto. That said, I have lost 24 pounds three months now eating a vegan diet that has a good amount of carbs.
R10Neymarfan
Member
But even organic produce is done through natural fertilizers I.e. animal manure.
Veganic farming isn't exactly a mainstream thing and how would anyone know which company does it anyway. It all depends on how far you're willing to go.
Chance Hale
Member
Beyond meat is so good, my god. With fixings I'm really happy.
I'm pretty far into planning my own vegan fast food grill/place and I just thought of asking for you fellow vegan peeps for (more) ideas for the offerings.
Currently my basic hamburger gives the choice between falafel, soy steak, seitan and possibly some kind of tofu alternative as well, and a few different mayonnaise (garlic-nutritional yeast, paprika-pickle, sriracha) + the basics (salad, vegan cheese, tomato and pickles if the customer wants some, will probably offer the option of also including ketchup and non-mayo sriracha sauce).
But I'm not sure if I should offer a kind of "build your own hamburger" thing which has more different kinds of more special fillings (pineapple slices, a kind of spiced mushroom-onion mix, marinaded red onions, cabbage slices in a sweet marinade etc.) or if I should offer a kind of McDonald's like menu that has some set options in it. I'm kind of leaning on having a set menu (of couse customers could make changes if they want), but then we run into all the millions of possibilities and I'm not sure what kind of different hamburgers I should offer in addition to the basic one.
Sooo... .the question is, what kind of good, slightly more special vegan burger recipes do you guys have? Preferably something that doesn't add some lengthy 3 hour preparations. Maybe it's just a good combination of basic ingredients that's a bit more special from the typical salad + tomato + pickles fillings (in addition to the steak & mayo choices). Maybe it has something a bit more special like the mushroom-onion mix I mentioned, which does take some extra effort (but not too much). I think some kind of falafel + hummus hamburger could work, but could I do something else special with it in addition to the hummus that could make for a separate hamburger alternative instead of maybe just replacing one of the mayos with hummus? I mean, one somewhat crazy idea I have is to have a beetroot-soy steak, spicy salsa, pineapple + salad & cheese. Sounds weird but I actually tested that kind of mix out once and, at least to me, it worked.
They'd still be limited to the same steak options - falafel, soy steak, seitan & tofu.
I might occasionally offer more special options for a limited time, like for example by spicing seitan in a bit more special way, like adding red curry paste into the dough, or by using some different base ingredients (black bean steaks, portobellos etc.), but those would have to be limited time offerings (since I plan to keep the thing somewhat small scale & manageable and always having 20 different steak options is impractical & too time consuming).
Currently my basic hamburger gives the choice between falafel, soy steak, seitan and possibly some kind of tofu alternative as well, and a few different mayonnaise (garlic-nutritional yeast, paprika-pickle, sriracha) + the basics (salad, vegan cheese, tomato and pickles if the customer wants some, will probably offer the option of also including ketchup and non-mayo sriracha sauce).
But I'm not sure if I should offer a kind of "build your own hamburger" thing which has more different kinds of more special fillings (pineapple slices, a kind of spiced mushroom-onion mix, marinaded red onions, cabbage slices in a sweet marinade etc.) or if I should offer a kind of McDonald's like menu that has some set options in it. I'm kind of leaning on having a set menu (of couse customers could make changes if they want), but then we run into all the millions of possibilities and I'm not sure what kind of different hamburgers I should offer in addition to the basic one.
Sooo... .the question is, what kind of good, slightly more special vegan burger recipes do you guys have? Preferably something that doesn't add some lengthy 3 hour preparations. Maybe it's just a good combination of basic ingredients that's a bit more special from the typical salad + tomato + pickles fillings (in addition to the steak & mayo choices). Maybe it has something a bit more special like the mushroom-onion mix I mentioned, which does take some extra effort (but not too much). I think some kind of falafel + hummus hamburger could work, but could I do something else special with it in addition to the hummus that could make for a separate hamburger alternative instead of maybe just replacing one of the mayos with hummus? I mean, one somewhat crazy idea I have is to have a beetroot-soy steak, spicy salsa, pineapple + salad & cheese. Sounds weird but I actually tested that kind of mix out once and, at least to me, it worked.
They'd still be limited to the same steak options - falafel, soy steak, seitan & tofu.
I might occasionally offer more special options for a limited time, like for example by spicing seitan in a bit more special way, like adding red curry paste into the dough, or by using some different base ingredients (black bean steaks, portobellos etc.), but those would have to be limited time offerings (since I plan to keep the thing somewhat small scale & manageable and always having 20 different steak options is impractical & too time consuming).
User Name Here
Member
You guys should check out the HappyCow app/site if you haven't already. I found a few Vegan restaurants in my area that I swear I didn't know exisited until today.
Also, Subway has good soy "meat" subs. Although i'm not sure if their bread is vegan.
Also, Subway has good soy "meat" subs. Although i'm not sure if their bread is vegan.
I'm pretty far into planning my own vegan fast food grill/place and I just thought of asking for you fellow vegan peeps for (more) ideas for the offerings.
Currently my basic hamburger gives the choice between falafel, soy steak, seitan and possibly some kind of tofu alternative as well, and a few different mayonnaise (garlic-nutritional yeast, paprika-pickle, sriracha) + the basics (salad, vegan cheese, tomato and pickles if the customer wants some, will probably offer the option of also including ketchup and non-mayo sriracha sauce).
But I'm not sure if I should offer a kind of "build your own hamburger" thing which has more different kinds of more special fillings (pineapple slices, a kind of spiced mushroom-onion mix, marinaded red onions, cabbage slices in a sweet marinade etc.) or if I should offer a kind of McDonald's like menu that has some set options in it. I'm kind of leaning on having a set menu (of couse customers could make changes if they want), but then we run into all the millions of possibilities and I'm not sure what kind of different hamburgers I should offer in addition to the basic one.
Sooo... .the question is, what kind of good, slightly more special vegan burger recipes do you guys have? Preferably something that doesn't add some lengthy 3 hour preparations. Maybe it's just a good combination of basic ingredients that's a bit more special from the typical salad + tomato + pickles fillings (in addition to the steak & mayo choices). Maybe it has something a bit more special like the mushroom-onion mix I mentioned, which does take some extra effort (but not too much). I think some kind of falafel + hummus hamburger could work, but could I do something else special with it in addition to the hummus that could make for a separate hamburger alternative instead of maybe just replacing one of the mayos with hummus? I mean, one somewhat crazy idea I have is to have a beetroot-soy steak, spicy salsa, pineapple + salad & cheese. Sounds weird but I actually tested that kind of mix out once and, at least to me, it worked.
They'd still be limited to the same steak options - falafel, soy steak, seitan & tofu.
I might occasionally offer more special options for a limited time, like for example by spicing seitan in a bit more special way, like adding red curry paste into the dough, or by using some different base ingredients (black bean steaks, portobellos etc.), but those would have to be limited time offerings (since I plan to keep the thing somewhat small scale & manageable and always having 20 different steak options is impractical & too time consuming).
I really dig veggie burgers, like a fried celery or eggplant patty. They work really well with zaziki sauce. Falafel burgers are tasty but always a hassle to eat, heh. Also one time I ate a kebab burger, which I did not thought it would work for the same reason but it totally did. But I can see you already have grat ideas
No plans for hot-dogs? I will raid every place that offer vegan hot-dogs! In the positive sense outunderthestars
Banned
+1 for the "HappyCow is awesome" support.
Finally got to try the Impossible Burger at Saxon & Parole in NYC. It was really, really damn good. Hope they expand to more locations soon!
I'm pretty far into planning my own vegan fast food grill/place and I just thought of asking for you fellow vegan peeps for (more) ideas for the offerings.
Currently my basic hamburger gives the choice between falafel, soy steak, seitan and possibly some kind of tofu alternative as well, and a few different mayonnaise (garlic-nutritional yeast, paprika-pickle, sriracha) + the basics (salad, vegan cheese, tomato and pickles if the customer wants some, will probably offer the option of also including ketchup and non-mayo sriracha sauce).
But I'm not sure if I should offer a kind of "build your own hamburger" thing which has more different kinds of more special fillings (pineapple slices, a kind of spiced mushroom-onion mix, marinaded red onions, cabbage slices in a sweet marinade etc.) or if I should offer a kind of McDonald's like menu that has some set options in it. I'm kind of leaning on having a set menu (of couse customers could make changes if they want), but then we run into all the millions of possibilities and I'm not sure what kind of different hamburgers I should offer in addition to the basic one.
Sooo... .the question is, what kind of good, slightly more special vegan burger recipes do you guys have? Preferably something that doesn't add some lengthy 3 hour preparations. Maybe it's just a good combination of basic ingredients that's a bit more special from the typical salad + tomato + pickles fillings (in addition to the steak & mayo choices). Maybe it has something a bit more special like the mushroom-onion mix I mentioned, which does take some extra effort (but not too much). I think some kind of falafel + hummus hamburger could work, but could I do something else special with it in addition to the hummus that could make for a separate hamburger alternative instead of maybe just replacing one of the mayos with hummus? I mean, one somewhat crazy idea I have is to have a beetroot-soy steak, spicy salsa, pineapple + salad & cheese. Sounds weird but I actually tested that kind of mix out once and, at least to me, it worked.
They'd still be limited to the same steak options - falafel, soy steak, seitan & tofu.
I might occasionally offer more special options for a limited time, like for example by spicing seitan in a bit more special way, like adding red curry paste into the dough, or by using some different base ingredients (black bean steaks, portobellos etc.), but those would have to be limited time offerings (since I plan to keep the thing somewhat small scale & manageable and always having 20 different steak options is impractical & too time consuming).
I would go the original route. 4 patty options is still a lot of choice man. Model your business after fast casual. Your primary customers will be the vegans and vegan curious, which mostly means people 15-30. You wanna make it easy for people to buy, pay, eat and run since we have no attention span
I never thought it would happen to me. I decided to go vegan (I'll turn 45 this year and so have a lifetime behind me of eating meat) and started on Monday. It's been pretty interesting. I think my biggest concern taking the plunge is I adore breakfast with eggs and a meat and that's probably the biggest thing I had to give up. Got some B12 supplements as I had read this was a concern.
I love veggies anyway, so not like cutting out meat and relying only on them is a big negative or anything. I had some awesome cauliflower tacos things last night.
Oh, one thing I have a concern about is keeping sodium in check. A lot of these fake meat things seem pretty high in sodium so I am trying to not rely on them very much. Any other pitfalls I should watch out for? I know to look for alternative words for milk on the packaging.
I love veggies anyway, so not like cutting out meat and relying only on them is a big negative or anything. I had some awesome cauliflower tacos things last night.
Oh, one thing I have a concern about is keeping sodium in check. A lot of these fake meat things seem pretty high in sodium so I am trying to not rely on them very much. Any other pitfalls I should watch out for? I know to look for alternative words for milk on the packaging.
Scrambled tofu can be a great breakfast option, just don't expect it to be that similar to scrambled eggs. You can add some kala namak salt (sometimes called black salt, but there are multiple salts with that name) to give it more of a sulfur/egg-like flavor.
If you aren't overdoing it on the processed foods, you'll typically be eating significantly less sodium on a vegan diet. Other things to consider: DHA-EPA omega-3's supplements based on algal oil might be beneficial. You can convert enough ALA to DHA and EPA with a few tablespoons of ground flaxseed, or some walnuts, but it might just be easier to supplement. If you don't use iodized salt, you'll probably want to take an iodine supplement as well.
Not really vegan specific, but when eating iron rich greens, it's best to pair them with some vitamin C to greatly boost absorption.
There are a lot of hidden animal products, and it's pretty much impossible to completely eliminate everything. Cane sugar is frequently processed with bone char; raw sugar and organic are always vegan. L-cysteine, often used in breads, is typically made with enzymes from duck feathers. Cereal fortified with D3 are often from an animal source. But these are very low-impact things, and I most rational people wouldn't consider someone who ate them to not be vegan. There's a fuzzy line around the definition of "practicable".
Barnivore is also a great resource for checking the vegan status of alcohol. It's very incomplete when it comes to wine, unfortunately.
outunderthestars
Banned
I am losing 3 pounds a week now through diet and exercise. I can't get over how much better I am feeling these days. Also dropped a pant size!
Wow, congrats! Gotta get back on that train soon myself. What's your diet like?I am losing 3 pounds a week now through diet and exercise. I can't get over how much better I am feeling these days. Also dropped a pant size!
outunderthestars
Banned
Cut out all meat and dairy, then worked on making my diet as vegetable based as possible. Very minimal oils, fruit, refined carbs or sugar.
It was rough for two weeks, then i began to really like it.