Hello and welcome to Eight Years In. If you’re a returning reader, welcome back! Today I’m going to talk a little bit about my vegan story and how it intersects with me learning to cook!
I like to say that veganism taught me how to cook. And that’s both true and untrue. Obviously I could have learned to cook without going vegan and being vegan didn’t automatically teach me about cooking. That being said, they worked together in the most interesting of ways, and I thought it was something worth telling all of you about. So here we are.
Story time!
Let me set the scene. It’s 2013, and I’m back in my freshman year of high school. All my growing up years, my mom was the household cook. She was a decent cook, and always tried her best to make food that we liked, even though we didn’t always have the money to make things special.
We had just had a very long conversation, her and I. I told her that I was going vegan now. I knew that when I was younger, she wasn’t very much in favor of me going vegetarian, and that stopped me from doing it. She told me that she wouldn’t know how to feed me, especially on holidays.
It didn’t matter this time, none of it did. I was doing this, and she couldn’t convince me otherwise. I explained to her about what the animals go through. I reminded her about how she was once a vegetarian for environmental reasons and mentioned how eggs and dairy also have a strong environmental footprint as well. She understood. I told her that if she were to make food for me that wasn’t vegan, I simply would not be eating it. There was no discussion to be had, I just wouldn’t do it.
She looked at me, worry in her eyes. “Well…I guess I just won’t cook for you anymore.” There it was again. This…food scarcity approach. At the time, I could only see it as manipulation, and it angered me. Now, with some distance I can see that there was a true concern that she did not know how to make vegan food. I didn’t either.
None of it mattered. My anger at my mom, her concerns about vegan cooking, my fear about what I might be able to eat now. I just knew I had to do this.
A paltry start
I’m going to be honest when I say that my veganism started out pretty rough. Since I didn’t know how to cook (or really even what foods I could eat) my diet started off very simple and boring. And not to mention, not particularly healthy. I ate plain white rice with whatever fruits I could get my hands on. Sometimes, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or a bowl of cereal with soymilk to spice things up.
No, I didn’t know about protein or fat or variety or herbs and spices. Or vegetables, come to think of it. And I’m embarrassed to say it, but I ate that way for a long time. Probably about two or three years.
A pantry start
My first foray into real nutritional thinking was beans. I started thinking that maybe protein was more necessary than I had been told by certain people online. But more than that, I think I was really craving something more filling. The truth was, eating this way gave me a ton of energy…well, in short spurts anyway. I found myself getting energy spike and then having trouble focusing later. And I could eat so much! I used to think that would be a good thing, but I didn’t like having to eat so much volume to feel satisfied.
My solution was beans. When I would have white rice, if I thought of it, I would add a can of beans. That was it. That was the move. You know, it wasn’t fancy. It didn’t taste a ton better. But it was a start.
Disclaimer
I’m not saying you should do what I did. I really don’t recommend that anyone eats just plain white rice for lunch for one day, let alone as a habit. The one thing I was glad I had the foresight to be diligent about was supplementing with Vitamin B12.
I wasn’t really prepared to go vegan when I first did. I didn’t know hardly anything about food, and I didn’t have access to vegan ready meals like I do today if I do choose.
And looking back on it all, my rocky start is part of the reason why I want to help vegans along their journey today. I know that everyone in the community likes to say how easy it is to go and be vegan. And it is, when you know what to do and how. But don’t get discouraged, dear reader, because this is the part of the story where things start turning around for me.
The proper motivation
To be honest, I was interested in nutrition and I would look into it from time to time. But I never really put it into practice back then. For the most part, I felt fine. And my family hardly ever had fresh produce, so that never occurred to me either. The first time I really decided to vary my diet from white rice, fruit and the occasional can of beans was upon the influence of my boyfriend. He made the comment that my food was really boring, chronically.
At the time, I was a little offended. How could he call my food boring? But he was right. And I wanted to make food that he would like too. And so, I set about learning how to cook. I had never really been interested in bettering my cooking before. I didn’t mind cooking shows but found cooking itself to be a laborious task and boring to boot. Now, however, with the proper motivation, I decided to step up and learn. And I have to say, I’m proud that I did.
I had cooked, a little bit
When I say I had no food experience, that wasn’t exactly true. I had made scrambled eggs before. And I had grilled chicken breasts on the grill. I made chocolate chip cookies a couple times. Oh, and I made a broccoli lasagna. And none of that turned out to be all that applicable.
What I mean is, making a “quesadilla” with some cheddar and a store-bought tortilla wouldn’t really help me with any useful skills (except for how to turn on the range top). And surprisingly, you can’t just sprinkle tofu with seasoning salt and throw it in the oven and expect it to taste like chicken. (I know. Super surprising for those of you who haven’t tried it and comical for those of you who have.)
The fact is, vegan cooking makes you get a little more creative. You have to learn how certain flavors interplay on a more intimate level, and be more precise with your processes and ingredients. Because let’s be honest, it kind of doesn’t matter what you do with a hunk of chicken breast, it’ll probably be fine as long as it’s not completely burned and dry or undercooked to make you sick. But plant ingredients tend to be a bit more finicky.
Vegan cooking, what I learned
In a nutshell, vegan cooking is nuanced. You need to be more aware how your ingredients are going to respond frozen or fried or baked. Which oil you use for what will make more of a difference because the flavors they have and the different smoke points may be a feature in your dish. And the spices you use change your dish way more than you would otherwise notice if you’re focusing on the meat on your plate. It isn’t that you don’t taste different flavors on an animal-based meal. You definitely do. But the focus is different and the ingredients tend to be more straightforward. So a pinch of salt or pepper here of there doesn’t make much of a difference.
It’s for this reason that vegan cooking can seem intimidating for some (other than the tendency to start using ingredients you were formerly unfamiliar with). There’s a certain familiarity of the hunk of meat. You know how it’s going to respond and basically no matter what you do to it, it’s not going to change very much.
But in my opinion, that’s what makes vegan cooking so cool! You can turn chickpeas into omelets, wheat into bread or seitan (or both, and make a sandwich). Soybeans can become milk, cheese, tofu of tempeh, or you can leave them plain. You can use bananas or applesauce instead of eggs and make all sorts of baked goods. Vegan cooking diverts expectations in a nuanced and beautiful way. And when you learn certain things, you truly can have all your old favorite foods without the cruelty. How cool is that?
What I learned
So I’m sure you’re thinking right now, “Well that’s great, but how is this monologue supposed to help me? What can I do to also learn to cook vegan?” And believe me when I say that you’re going to have your own journey with it. You’re going to make mistakes and develop your own eye for what makes a good recipe or not. It’s also true that if you’re already a good cook, it’s going to be easier for you.
But if you’re starting off with pretty much no experience, like I was, you don’t have to worry. You can do it! And I am here for you. I want to share a couple things that I’ve learned with you about vegan cooking that might save you some time. As I’ve heard it said before, “don’t make the same mistakes I did-make your own mistakes!” I want to give you a few key tips for making vegan food that I learned towards the beginning of my journey to help you on your way.
- Onions and garlic do go in everything!
Okay, not everything. I realize that garlic especially can be an overwhelming flavor that not everyone likes and it probably doesn’t belong in literally everything.
That being said, my first realization about flavor and seasoning is that after salt, garlic and onion build a great base to build so many savory flavors off of. Basically, if you like onion and garlic, start putting them in more stuff. Use them generously, and on the daily.
- One new produce item at a time
Like I said, many use veganism as a time to start trying new fruits and vegetables. It’s a wonderful time to try new produce and here I am, nine years later, still trying new things.
That being said, don’t let yourself drown in all the new possibilities. In my experience, one at a time is best. Take one new fruit or vegetable and get to know it. Try a couple of different recipes using it, really try to learn how it behaves under different processes. Roasted zucchini, for instance, is a very different thing from raw zucchini. Start to see the different nuances in flavors and textures that you can bring out of the same ingredient before you move onto a new one.
- Learn your spices
If there’s one talking point you’ll hear among vegans about food it’s this: you don’t miss meat, you miss flavors. Now perhaps that point of view is a little old fashioned with all of the impressive meat substitutes we have today, but I have found that in many cases, it rings true for me.
And luckily, there’s a pretty easy fix for this! What I mean is, the vast majority of flavors, you can mimic with the right herbs and spices. I’ve found that I am just as happy having tacos made out of beans and/or tofu when I use the same spices I would use for regular meat tacos.
Not to mention, with a handle on spices, you can learn the flavors of anywhere in the world, even if you haven’t been there. Herbs and spices are both vegan and the key to cuisine.
- Tofu can sub for ricotta but not on its own
This is a very simple point, but it’s a very personal one. I remember hearing secondhand how you can make a tofu lasagna and use tofu for the ricotta cheese, and this is true! In fact, tofu lasagna is one of my favorites now. But it definitely isn’t a one-for-one swap. (Again, if you know a thing or two about tofu, reading this probably makes you chuckle.)
The first time I tried to make tofu lasagna, I just crumbled tofu into lasagna noodles, rolled them up and poured some marinara sauce over it. Don’t do that. I mean, you can if you want to, I’m certainly not stopping you. But it won’t be very good.
No, to make a tofu ricotta you’ll want at least three things—some salt, some fat and some acidity. Because ricotta cheese and tofu are not the same thing. To get it up to cheesiness your need at least the fattiness (I like to use olive oil personally), the saltiness (salt works just fine here), and some sort of acidity (I like to use lemon juice). You can get fancy and add nutritional yeast, onion, garlic, parsley, whatever floats your boat. But seriously, it’s not going to be good just plain. (Psst! If you want more tofu tips, check out this post.)
- Making buttermilk is simple!
Just recently I began really working on vegan baking and I thought that any recipe with buttermilk would be a nightmare to veganize. But I was wrong.
Making vegan buttermilk substitute is as simple as taking a cup of plant based milk and adding in a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar. Mix it and wait a few minutes to let it curdle. And there you go! You’ve got buttermilk for pancakes or cakes, whatever you recipe you need it for. Easy as that!
- Don’t pigeonhole yourself
My last tip for vegan cooking is more of a lifestyle tip, but it does have to do with food, so hear me out. Don’t limit yourself to being a certain “kind” of vegan. You’ll hear about raw vegans and junk food vegans, whole food vegans and low fat vegans. But don’t put yourself in one box or another, at least not for a good reason and not right away.
The reason I say this is because there are so many different kinds of produce to try and the same goes with vegan replacement products. If you don’t want to eat a bunch of vegan replacements for your health or wallet, I can totally understand that. But that doesn’t mean you need to cut them out completely.
Keeping variety in your vegan food is one of my best tips for keeping things interesting and sustainable. If you want a vegan doughnut, eat a vegan doughnut! I’ve found that little treats here and there can be the difference between a deprived vegan and a thriving one, and I really recommend that people take a more wholistic view of their diet and lifestyle in general. Listen, being healthy is important. You need to take care of yourself. But also, your emotions are important too!
Be willing to stretch your skills and experiences with vegan food. Try new things and experiment! See what you like and what works for you and don’t put yourself in a box if you can help it.
Conclusion
Thanks for reading my thoughts. To be honest, the more I think about it, the more I realize that the extra limiting factor of my veganism has been the catalyst to me truly learning (and learning how to love) cooking. Having a limit on what food I will and will not eat has shown me the value of getting creative and trying new things—and isn’t that what cooking and eating is all about?
If I learned to cook and eat as a vegan, you probably can too. I’ve learned that vegan food doesn’t have to be boring or weird or gross. And that vegan cooking has a lot to teach us about creativity, as well as the food science aspect of replacement products. I’ve learned that food tastes better and nourishes your body when you add vegetables. And I’ve learned that you can eat pretty well if you’re vegan.
If you’re interested in more vegan content about the why and how of going and staying vegan, as well as the social and emotional journey of it all, subscribe to the blog to get notified when a new post goes live! We’d love for you to join the Eight Years In community so we can learn from each other. And as usual, have a fantastic day!