The Vegan Thread

anecdotally, I see quite a lot of the opposite – only veggie options, and veganising it just means paying the same for less stuff and getting a substandard meal

And there are still loads of veggie but not vegan things in most places, any pizza place for a start.

Well first of all it makes my head hurt if people go on smart assed rants about first world problems like that, as if there's nothing else to worry about.

And having worked in catering myself I can tell you it's just not feasible to cater to every snowflake's needs, of course most eateries will go for common denominators*, they kinda have to.

Giving people a cheese option is fair enough, but c'mon it's really not hard to do tasty vegan buns, they just need to buy the right ones, count yourself lucky they're not gluten free as well, haha.

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Srsly tho, it is a fucking stupid, clickbaity article written by a fucking stupid person and I feel fucking stupider for having read a few paragraphs of it.

Clickbait yes. Valid point (IMO) yes.

Nah, it also misses the point that it's easier to eat vegan now than it was to easy veggie when I stopped eating meat about 25 years ago. Sure you might have to ask for cow cheese on your meal, but you can do that on loads more options from most places rather than the salad and chips you'd have been offered back then that was probably made in a contaminated fryer. Just the food labelling and kitchen cross contamination improvements make veggie easier.

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I organise events at my workplace and we go vegan instead of veggie as it covers off both easily and also works for people with lactose/dairy issues. Just cheaper than having to cater for both.

Any recommendations for somewhere around the V&A on a Sunday morning/early afternoon? Dont mind a bit of a walk.

Edit: we went to Elixis, it wasn't great

My girlfriend's meat happy friends cooked up all this for us last night, it was very fucking tasty and I'm quite hungover. He likes a bit of cooking and enjoyed trying to make things vegan.

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Fancy as fuck. I need to get some friends who are good at cooking.

Was thinking the same thing. Great looking menu.

Where's good near the Barbican for something quick and easy? Ideally somewhere with vegan and non vegan options.

Did you find any other options than Stem and Glory?

I honestly can't remember where I ended up, haha. Can't have been spectacular!

I've made this recipe twice in the past week, it is absolutely banging and could not be easier to make.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2024/ja­n/13/oven-baked-tofu-chilli-vegan-recipe­-meera-sodha

Belatedly just done this, definitely a winner. I think freezing Tofu (and then defrosting, obviously) helps to get a lot of the water out so it soaks up all the other flavours.

Didn't bother with food processor, just diced things, and it didn't take too long.

Tried Oatly Creme Fraiche, was okay but not massively impressed, anyone got a good recommendation?

Oatly Creme Fraiche

Yeah it’s basically like a vegan mayonnaise (looking at ingredients). Sometimes a more sour yoghurt type thing is better but I haven’t found a perfect alt personally

Is the Creme Fraiche super sweet? I find most vegan creamy stuff is shit to cook with because it's too sweet for savoury stuff.
That tofu looks great as well, will have to give it a go!
Whilst we're on the topic, this stuff is the best tofu I've ever had I think. I buy it from Tian Tian Market in Canning Town. It's a bit more expensive than Cauldron etc but it's way better. They do a super firm version as well that's great in a stir fry type thing.

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I’ve never put cinnamon in a chilli before

Longdan stocks it as well, it's what I use, and cut it into 12ths, then stick 2 lots of 4 into the freezer (when cooking for 2).

It wasn't bad in terms of sweetness, just that as someone who isn't actually vegan I'd probably just get the real thing 😬

We pretty much use Tofoo as it’s in the local Sainos. Usually dice it without rinsing/pressing, and leave in a tub with soy, oil, Tabasco, ginger, chillies and garlic for a while. Then pick it out to fry, and hold back the marinade to add into the sauce.
In a chilli I just use vegemince, never tofu, because I want it to be like the chilli con carne I ate as a child.

I'm not a big fan of Tofoo, it's a bit tough and rubbery I find! It beats Sainsbury's own brand though. That used to be decent but now it's just too floppy, like panna cotta or something .
I'm in the same boat as you. If I'm making chilli con carne or bolognese, I don't want something brilliant, I want something comforting and familiar so go for mince as well.

Snap, made this tonight too! Pretty impressed flavour wise, very simple to make, but a bit on the soft side overall, maybe will add some lentils to give it a bit more texture next time.

I boshed a load of mushrooms in last time I made it (again blitzed up). Normally not a fan at all of mushrooms in chilli but it added a fair bit of umami and because they're so chopped up there's no change to the texture👌🏼

I did mushrooms in a Mexican style chilli this evening for burritos, forgot the tempeh but it was pretty good, as pretty much always there was some cinnamon in there as you always need a little sweet spice to round things out, nutmeg and allspice work well too.

I think if you can be bothered, dicing things rather than food processing them will help with the texture a lot