Vegetarian / Vegan Foods Thread

[oohdoiloveyou]

Dude, I'm in the process of going vegan, pretty much the only thing I really have to give up yet is cheese, but what I have been doing lately is getting the vegetable pizza from papa johns with no cheese...that shit is amazing... I recommend giving it a shot. 

 

Only about 5 more weeks and I'm 100% straight veg...can't wait

 

PAPA JOHN'S??? WHATTTT. Just, no.

We have quite a few vegan pizza places over here, but sometimes I just miss the taste of real cheese even if it makes me feel like shit.

 

Good for you, though!

[Green Tea Papi]

Best place for vegetarian pizza is Papa Murphy's Gourmet Vegetarian pizza. It contains:

 

Creamy Garlic Sauce

Spinach

Zucchini

Mushrooms

Artichoke Hearts

Tomatoes

Mixed Onions

Herb & Cheese Blend

 

The best part is for you vegans you can have them take off the cheese blend because they make it right before your eyes, then you take it home and bake it.

[suchashorttime]

listen you guys.  i know the pain of missing real pizza, and it SUCKS.

 

i occasionally eat vegan pizza from whole foods, because that's the best north jersey has to offer.

 

burritos, though.  all day, e'eryday.

[SeeMoreGlass]

Why do you people need so long to make the change? Seems like something you just wake up one day and do. I'm not attacking, just genuinely curious.

 

Well, like a fucking idiot I decided to make the change my last semester of college as I was starting my student teaching...so I am constantly broke and have zero time to work with new recipes...I think that is the main reason it is taking me so long

 

Also I live in the middle of bum fuck nowhere ohio so I don't have access to any kind of vegan stores...everyone around here is pro meat and pro guns so it is super difficult to get any kind of support as well...Everyone's response after "why would you want to do that" is "you know you don't get any protein that way"...as if I just decided to jump into this thing without doing any research or having any idea what I was getting myself into...

 

Also, what is wrong with Papa Johns...

[BuzzersonKillwell]

Vegan pizza is not the same. Not even close. The only thing I really miss in terms of dairy is pizza. Pizza with our cheese is tasty, but more like bread with shit on it.

You will miss it. I'm sorry. You will.

[thebiglebowski]

I won't! I just pop in here to read about vegans.

 

I might get a hot and ready tomorrow, wait for it to cool down a little, and just pick the cheese off the bread and eat a giant ball of greasy cheese.

[oohdoiloveyou]

Well, like a fucking idiot I decided to make the change my last semester of college as I was starting my student teaching...so I am constantly broke and have zero time to work with new recipes...I think that is the main reason it is taking me so long

 

Also I live in the middle of bum fuck nowhere ohio so I don't have access to any kind of vegan stores...everyone around here is pro meat and pro guns so it is super difficult to get any kind of support as well...Everyone's response after "why would you want to do that" is "you know you don't get any protein that way"...as if I just decided to jump into this thing without doing any research or having any idea what I was getting myself into...

 

Also, what is wrong with Papa Johns...

 

What isn't wrong with Papa John's?! I'm from NY, what kind of answer did you expect.

 

I won't! I just pop in here to read about vegans.

 

I might get a hot and ready tomorrow, wait for it to cool down a little, and just pick the cheese off the bread and eat a giant ball of greasy cheese.

 

That actually sounds all kinds of awful. Like a really bad fart fest waiting to happen.

[Team Avatar]

super long post.  yay!!!!

 

I cut everything out cold turkey 4 and a half years ago and have felt very few temptations.  The biggest temptations come when I'm super hungry, but they are going away over time as well.

 

Prior I was an avid meat eater and broke Kosher whenever I could [ cause it was kept at home... ] to get like shrimp and bacon and shit.

 

On September 2008, after jokingly picking up two cheeseburgers and shouting “THESE WILL BE THE LAST TWO CHEESEBURGERS I WILL EVER EAT!”, I went vegan.

 

 

I lost close to 15 pounds the first week or so that I transitioned.  It was because I wasn't eating a lot because I didn't know what to eat.  As I realized that almost everything was vkosher, I gained it all back.  Watch out for pasta!

 

At first, I did it to try it out.  It was a test of self worth, pride, and curiousity  .  From there, I did research on animal cruelty and that sold me completely and stuck.   Currently, I'm vegan for the animals.  Believe it or not, I would love me a nice piece of steak, but unless the cow tells me I can eat it, I won't be.

 

living the cruelty-free life style

 

cool vegan things

• Oreos
• Starbucks : any coffee with soymilk, excluding caramel and chocolate flavours.  IE: toffee nut soy latte [ delicious iced ], or vanilla soy latte [ delicious hot ].  those are my two fav drinks there.
• Sour Patch, Airheads, Twizzlers, Five Gum (I'm not sure about orbit).
• Purple Doritos (spicy and sweet), plain lays, barbecue lays.
• FROM TACO BELL - fresco bean burrito + guacamole, crunchwrap supreme - substitute beans, remove the cheese and sour cream, add guac
• some pre-made apple pies / strudels ( just check for eggs).
• ramen noodles without the seasoning, which is disgusting anyways
• french fries, IF fried separate from chicken.  You can ask // see for yourself.  At BK and Wendy's they should be fine, but mcdonalds uses milk in their fries recipe.  don't ask.
• SOME popsicles - some have gelatin, so watch out
• ALL SORBET.  Sorbet, by definition, cleanses your palate, so it can't have dairy in it.
• Some bagels.  Usually I go ahead and eat it anyways, but DD bagels are made with duck hair.  yuck.
• Earth Balance margarine is vegan.  However, I would recommend against it because it is oily and can cause break outs ( at least for me and my 21 year old puberty ), and is also made with Palm oil, which is a whole nother can of worms ).

BK veggie burger is NOT vegan, and neither is Subway's veggie patty.  At Subway, breads that ARE vegan are Italian & Hearty Italian.  NONE of the wheat breads are vegan.  Until I decided that Subway was disgusting, I used to get the ft long hearty Italian with all veggies, plus salt and pepper, spicy mustard and sweet onion dressing.

 

At the super market, most real white bread is vegan.  If you're at whole foods, most breads are safe, but cheap brands like Wonder use egg and or honey in all of them.  ALWAYS check your wheat bread for honey.

 

Sherbet is not vegan, and neither are donuts, croissant rolls, some english muffins, honey nut cheerios, waffles, pancakes ( but the homemade batter is ), brownies, cookies, 99% of all chips - MOST contain A milk ingredient and most other sweets.  but banana substitutes are easy anyways.

 

CASEIN, WHEY, and LACTATE are NOT vegan.  Sometimes this doesn't show in the allergen spot.

 

White sugar is not vegan.  I personally struggle with this one, but it is a long time goal.

 

REMEMBER, you don't have to be the "perfect" vegan.  Just try your very best and don't give up when it gets difficult, like when you're with family and or at restaurants.

 

Regarding pizza - lots of sauces are made with cheese.  Especially at restaurants.  The dough is usually vegan however, and if they take the cheese off its not bad.  However, you're still paying a lot of money for bread, sauce and some veggies.  It's not worth it.  If you want your own vegan pizza, buy daiya cheese and make it yourself.

 

You're going to find yourself spending a long time looking at ingredients until you get good at it.

 

Easy checks:

If it has cholesterol in it, it's not vegan.

At the bottom, by law, food is required to display allergens.  These include all fish, dairy, and eggs.  However, honey, chicken, beef, or pork, does not display, so make sure you look anyways.

 

Depending on how far you go, your coat probably isn't vegan, nor your feather pillow, leather shoes, hand soap, body wash, shampoo, etc.

 

I personally will NOT buy anything leather or feathered or what not, but if I already owned it, I'm not going to get rid of it.   I currently do own all vegan shoes, dress shoes, belts, coats, and use vegan body wash ( and dont use shampoo, cause it kills yer hair).  Vegan toms are my favorite.

 

 

Do yourself a favour and keep your mouth shut.  NO one gives a fuck that you're vegan, and if you bring it up, you're asking for trouble.  You will be asked why you can't eat chicken nuggets.  If you're at a dinner party, tell them you're lactose intolerant and meat upsets your stomach.  no one questions lactose intolerance.

 

If you were stranded on an island with a chicken, would you eat it?  The answer is yes.  Why the fuck wouldn't you?

 

When I transitioned in high school, I got made fun of a ton, and I think it's because I opened my mouth and told everyone.  I now do not tell anybody unless it comes up in serious conversation.  I cannot stand when people sit with me at a restaurant and tell me what I can get.  " Oh, can you get the brie and avocado sandwich?  Oh, what about this pizza? Wait, why can't you have dairy?  'because it comes from an animal'.  But the animal isn't hurt.  'It's not natural.' blah blah blah.  Unless the person is genuinely interested, save yourself the trouble!

 

Some other common questions with answers:

-  Is cum vegan?  Yes - because the other person gave consent.

-  Whenever someone asks why you can't eat something, explain that you choose not to, and that you choose not to eat animals.  I use this explanation with honey all of the time, because people will not believe that the bees are hurt. 

-  Humans are natural omnivores.  This is soooooo correct.  We have to use tools to kill animals, fires to cook our animals, and refrigerators to preserve it, so obviously it's natural.  We cannot possible kill a cow with just are hands and mouth, it would take forever. Our canine teeth are sharp for fruit, not for tearing apart the skin of an animal.  This is a tough argument to keep with people, so I'd advise ignoring it.

-  Why can't you eat eggs?  Because they come from an animal.  If you really want to gross people out, tell them that chicken eggs are the equivalent of a female period. 

-  Is cheese vegan?  Why do people ask this question?  REALLY, someone, why?

-  Where do you get your protein? Nuts, spinach, beans, rice, soy, etc.  Protein is in almost everything.  You can explain, if you want, how protein need is hyped up in the US, and how people consume tons more than they need to.

-  Where do you get your other vitamins?  Daily supplement just in case. 

 

B12 is the only vitamin that you cannot find in your food, so find a gelatin free substitute pill or gummy.  I personally use these - http://heronutritionals.com/vitamins.jsp?productid=40.  They are gummy, delicious, vegan, and I can barely eat just two of them.  I actually signed up for an Amazon subscription so they get mailed to me once a month.

 

Fake meat / cheese / milk

 

Almond milk is the best.  Hands down, no competition.  I do not drink glasses of milk anymore.  I use vanilla almond milk for pancakes and for coffee creamer.  I use soymilk only for cooking / baking something that needs to have no flavour.  I do not recommend soy or rice, as they are not nearly as healthy or tasty as almond milk.  Blue Diamond is my favorite brand.

 

Fake meat - chicken is always the closest to most accurate.  Most are made out of soy.  I try hard to avoid it, but I splurge whenever I crave something or am out to eat at a fancy vegan restaurant.  The best chicken from the store is Boca brand chicken patties and chicken strips from either trader joes or gardein.

 

MANY veggie burgers are not vegan.  Same goes for portabello burgers. CHECK TWICE!  Usually, morningstar or boca will label it.  It took me three years of eating the cardboard crap to realize just how gross soy burgers were.

 

Seitan, pronounced satan ( just kidding, that's just how I pronounce it ), is made from wheat gluten, and is much healthier than the processed soy counterpart.  It's also, usually, yummier. 

 

I am not a fan of tempeh, but some people claim to love it.

 

TOFURKEY brand tofurkey is pretty freakin good.  Add some mustard and lettuce on a roll and you've got yourself a very good sandwich.  Their roast beef / ham isn't close to as good as the turkey.  Same goes for Thanksgiving - the tofurkey roles are pretty darn good.

Fake bacon and pepperoni aren't very good, but can be fun to fool around with.  Fake sausage is quite accurate and protein packed but it tastes very fake at the same time.

 

Regarding cheese, brand Daiya ( pronounced Day-uh ), is pretty darn accurate.  It makes me gassy.  I feel sick if I eat too much fake soy or cheese, so I only ever eat it now when I am treating my self.

 

All cheeses need to be melted in order to taste better.

 

Cream cheese by tofutti is very good.  Their sour cream is mediocre. 

Vegan yogurts - made from soy, are also good, but make sure the cultures are actually from plants and not animals.

 

SILK HAZELNUT CREAMER IS DISGUSTING and tastes like paint please do not buy.

 

In summary, going vegan was the greatest thing I've ever done.  It defines me as a person.  I feel better than I used to, LOVE LOVE LOVE cooking, love talking to other people about being vegan ( i've converted like 5 people, easily, who are still vegan today ), and wholly endorse it.  It can be difficult, especially due to peer pressure, but it's worth it. it's so worth it.  fuck everyone else.

 

 

TLDR, go read it.

 

if you did read it all, well, thanks for reading and I hope I helped.

[SeeMoreGlass]

Thanks Jacobraccuia

 

I copied and pasted your message to a word document so I can use it as a guide...thanks for the great tips

[mitch.]

Unsure if Australians already know about this, but tonight in the Gluten-Free frozen section of my local Woolworths I stumbled across the brand Syndian, which for the most part were vegan products. http://www.syndian.com.au/

[Guest]

Vegan pizza is not the same. Not even close. The only thing I really miss in terms of dairy is pizza. Pizza with our cheese is tasty, but more like bread with shit on it.

You will miss it. I'm sorry. You will.

 

Yup, pizza is the only thing i crave that isn't vegan. Vegan "pizza" is good, but nothing like the real thing, baby.

[BuzzersonKillwell]

If your into Diaya then maybe, but I hate that list.

That is a thorough list Jacob. I tell restaurants I can't have dairy, they always understand an allergy. Otherwise people get confused about what vegan is. It doesn't help you when you are out but all Florida Crystals sugar is vegan, we keep that at home. If you didn't know, there you go.

Also watch out for Thai and some Asian food. Generally there is no dairy but fish sauce everywhere. Barnivore will tell you if your beer is vegan, some use animal additives.

[hideyourheart]

PAPA JOHN'S??? WHATTTT. Just, no.

We have quite a few vegan pizza places over here, but sometimes I just miss the taste of real cheese even if it makes me feel like shit.

 

Good for you, though!

 

 

mmm you have Vinnie's.

[hideyourheart]

on the pizza note:  if anyone is ever around Albany, NY - Go to Little Anthony's and get a vegan Sicilian pie.  It is THE best pizza I have ever had.  They have a bunch of other vegan offerings... but damn, that Sicilian.  My mouth is watering.  

[dreamover]

some awesome tips here!

[deafening]

burritos, though.  all day, e'eryday.

 

This. so much this.

 

I've only been vegan for three months, but was on-off pescetarian since September.

[Team Avatar]

bowl > burrito

[thebiglebowski]

I personally will NOT buy anything leather or feathered or what not, but if I already owned it, I'm not going to get rid of it.   I currently do own all vegan shoes, dress shoes, belts, coats, and use vegan body wash ( and dont use shampoo, cause it kills yer hair).  Vegan toms are my favorite.

 

 

 

I'm not vegan but I see this as a slippery slope. I'm sure you don't support the ivory trade but if people just said "well I don't support the ivory trade but I already have this ivory piano that is beautiful" then it inadvertently creates demand for it.  I remember seeing an episode of Storage Wars (I believe) where the dude found thousands of dollars worth of ivory in a locker, took it out to the ocean, and threw it in the water. Probably staged, but thought it was awesome.

 

I don't have a problem with leather but the day that I did, I would never wear it again.

 

Not saying you are so cool that if people see you in leather they are going to buy a leather coat. The analogy is a pretty different situation (an endangered animal where the rarity creates some of the demand vs. one that is commonly farmed). But I think the general principle is the same.

[rochambo]

18 years of vegetarianism. Can't give up the cheese, because I was raised in Wisconsin. Just not happening.

[jerseydave77]

I still miss the morningstar product Tuno - who remembers this stuff? 

[BuzzersonKillwell]

I have a pretty bangin' "tuna" recipe if anyone is interested. At least I think it is good.

I hear you Lebowski. It's a slippery one. Is buying one good pair of leather boots better than cheap things that may exploit workers? What about things like ivory, as you mentioned? What about by-products that end up in sugar? People are going to continue to rationalize their choices in a way that makes sense and feels good to them. I'm not sure there is a correct answer.

For instance, I eat some meat but no dairy. I find dairy to be less ethical than meat and weirder. But maybe I just do that because I like meat more? Hard to say I guess. I feel like it is a choice that jives with my morals, but maybe I am kidding myself.

At the end of the day I'm not trying to tell people what they can and can't do. I'm just wanting people to think first.

[thebiglebowski]

Yeah, judgement free zone. I was just surprised that Jake was so hardlined in his opinions when we talked about whether it was theoretically possible (but not realistic) to farm animal products in a way that would make it 100% ethical treatment of animals by the standards of vegans, but he wasn't hardlined about wearing animal products that he had already purchased. Not right or wrong, just unexpected.

[jerseydave77]

Why do you people need so long to make the change? Seems like something you just wake up one day and do. I'm not attacking, just genuinely curious.

 

I woke up one day and did it. July 3 marks the day I will have been Veg longer than not and I'm actually getting kind of excited. I thought about a BBQ but the truth is most of my boys I came of age with gave up on vegetarianism years ago. I'll figure something out but it's a landmark in my life 18 years in the making and I'm proud of it. 

 

To the debate on 2nd hand leather etc I came to the conclusion years ago that it's best not to perpetuate the acceptance of an animals hide for fashion when there are acceptable alternatives. The only exception I allow is if it is required by uniform. For me, NFPA standards adopted by my region dictate that my fire turnouts need leather boots over rubbers. I want to serve in my volunteer department so I obliged. I wasn't happy but the greater good of my service justifies it to me and I feel there is dignity in the use for public safety and functionality in IDLH environments (Immediate Danger to Life and Health) over a simple fashion statement. Then again this could go into the rationalizing statement above but my town was shorthanded. I'm the only Veg in the department but I'm in better shape than 95% of the guys so no matter how much they joke about my vegetarian diet I can still call them all fat asses and heart attacks waiting to happen. 

 

I'm off on a tangent. That's Stevetangent's thing. 

[BuzzersonKillwell]

My wife is pretty serious about her veganism but does wear animal products. She hasn't bought a new one in years, the idea is to phase them out and replace them. While it was easy to convert to veganism for her, it was harder to throw out and replace like 3k-5k worth of shit. So we are still catching up there. That bit takes time.

Congrats on your milestone Dave!

[nicole]

next month will mark 5 years that I've been a vegetarian (except for about 4 months ago when i had a meltdown and ate 1 bite of a chicken sandwich and immediately burst into tears.)  anyways, i went cold turkey- no meat, no poultry, no fish or seafood, no wearing anything from an animal and no using any products tested on animals.  I got into it for all the right reasons but have always been a notoriously picky eater and i can tell for sure that my body is taking a toll at this point.  within the last year i've started craving meat items that i never even liked to begin with.  I'm constantly tired and cant remember the last time i didn't have bags under my eyes.  i'm quite pale most of the time.  it's not that eating a healthy balanced veg diet isn't possible, but with how fussy i am, i miss out on many of the healthy veg items.  for example, i hate chickpeas, lentils, eggs, and most nuts.  my diet consists mostly of pasta and pizza and mexican fast food.  i'm sure i'm lacking several things in my body but havent had blood work done since i was 14 so who really knows.  

to be honest, i think i've lost all desire to be a vegetarian.  while i still love animals, i no longer feel the way i did probably because i'm imbalanced and tired and miserable and its a vicious cycle.  but after 5 years, it just seems weird and unnatural for me to try to eat meat.  i'm in a fucked up situation.