Are you Vegan?

Is there anyone else here that eats a Vegan diet? If so I'd love to talk about Vegan alternatives, recipes, nutrition and health benefits. Also, if you are Vegan, what made you switch? how long have you been Vegan? What are your physical and mental results?

Thanks!

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

I find it quite intriguing that there is some much different food in local supermarkets for vegans - and so much of it pretending to be meat, sausage, ham, and so on. Shouldn't there be much more diversity?

The only other preprocessed foods to be put on bread for vegans I found (not being a vegan myself, but trying to loose some meat in my meals) were parfaits.

Where is the creativity? Where are the meals which do not look like the thing you so desperately don't want to eat?

Why does it have to look like sausage if it definitely does not want to be a sausage? Why could it not look like.. a slice of lettuce or something else beyond meal-shape?

a reply to: Scorpiogurl in'm not always a vegan, but like the food... sometimes you just can't say no to food offered even if it has animal or bee sources.
I like garlic aioli that is vegan...
I mix in a little soy sauce, extra garlic powder(sometimes) to the aioli and dress raw cabbage
With some spinach
And sunflower seeds
Called cabbage salad...like Cole slaw but not sweet

Can't recall if I put canned peas in it..think I do

Though I currently eat almost anything, I did spend a lot of my life as a vegetarian (16 years), and good portion of that time as a vegan (5 years). I would rarely eat tofu or anything that was trying to emulate meat, though veggie dogs and burgers were godsends for camping. Soy was modified to be resistant to pesticides, so it was hosed down in that crap. It was hard to find soy that wasn't pretty much poison when I was looking, maybe it's easier now.

These were some of my favorite food stuffs in that time

Tempeh took a little getting used to (it has a bit of a sharp taste), but it made me feel really good. It is a soy product, but it's fermented not processed so it's a little better. I would cut it into slices, marinade them, cover them in coconut flakes and then bake or fry them (mmmm).

Seitan is amazing (and not just because it's pronounced "satan"). It's wheat gluten, so it's abso-freakin-lutely delicious, but if you're sensitive to that gluten stuff then you're out of luck, gluten sensitivities tend to make a vegetarian/vegan diet a little tricky, but not impossible by any means.

Coconut flour, almond flour, amaranth flour and a thousand other alternatives to wheat flour are your friends, they can add a lot of textures and flavors to your baking if used correctly.

Gourds, bake them, stuff them, roast up the seeds. Acorn squash was always my favorite, sweet.

This will sound gross, but I thought of it as my vegan version of Kraft Dinner through college, make a pasta sauce out of peanut butter and hoisin sauce... try it.

and I'm sure you already know that thai restaurants are pretty much the best thing ever.


Good luck!

We shouldn't be discriminating against these beings. redglitterx.wordpress.com... Just because they are aliens doesn't mean they don't have equal rights.

a reply to: ManFromEurope

The soy and vegetable proteins that are marketed as meat substitutes, like veggie sausage, burgers, crumbles are meant to replace meat in the 'American' food diet... sometimes you just want to grill a burger outside on a hot night, now non-meat eaters can do that too. They're also meant to replace meat in recipes.

People worry too much about the why's of other people. If you don't want to eat it, don't.

My whole family has a philosophy of don't yuck other peoples yums. It's a pretty good attitude to adopt beyond food too.

a reply to: Kali74

I am a vego-cannibal. Very similar to grass fed beef but somewhat more challenging to catch.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

A human fed vegetable?

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

I have just recently become vegan. Initially, I was drawn to it for the health benefits but then I watched the documentaries (Cowspiracy, Earthlings, etc) and realized this lifestyle is about so much more.

So far things have gone really well. My goal is to limit the soy, salt and oil. For now I still consider myself "in transition" so I'm not cutting those things yet. It takes some time to adjust but I really like how I feel so far.

I've noticed especially with cutting dairy I no longer have digestive problems. A couple weeks in I accidentally ate something with dairy and I was miserable the rest of the evening.

I've been finding a lot of good recipes on an app called Yummly. You can search for pretty much anything on there and you can create your own database of recipes organized they way that makes sense to you.

Edit to add: if you are going to eat processed vegan products that contain soy, research the brand to see if they're using hexane extracted soy and stay away from it. I try to only eat organic soy but like I said, eventually I plan to not eat it much at all.

a reply to: Kali74

Come over and find out.

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

I know ribeye, tenderloin, T-bone. . . what cut is a vegan?

Is it good with bacon?



I can't say that I agree with a vegan diet, but if it's something someone wants to do, then they should do it.

a reply to: wheresthebody

Thanks for the wealth of information! I have tried many of the things you have mentioned and am in love with almost all the items on your list. I use nutritional yeast for making cheese sauce and it's yummy! I don't have any food sensitivities or allergies but I mainly stick to whole, and in a lot of cases raw, veggies. I am not a fan of the Vegan replacements! I have yet to try Seitan but I've been dying too. I hear a lot of good things about it. I LOVE Thai food restaurants and believe it or not there is on of those Brazilian steak houses around me that's like a Vegans dream come true! Their buffet is amazing... almost 100% plant based dishes!

a reply to: SilverStarGazer

Good for you! and good luck with your transition.

Milk is for baby cows, not humans!

I had a hard time initially because I jumped into it too fast! I became lacking in certain nutrients and went back to eating egg whites and Greek yogurt. I kept my diet at least 90% plant based. After a few weeks of that I slowly eliminated the animal and soy products. I feel amazing. It certainly isn't for everyone but I believe it's the best thing for lowest calorie with optimal nutrition. I follow a CRON nutrition plan (calorie restrict optimal nutrition), and exercise daily and am very happy with the results!

Another great website for ideas is Forks over Knives (not all Vegan) but great ideas.

I couldn't watch Earthlings. I can't watch those aspca commercials either.

I judge humans on how they treat their vets, their animals and their elderly and so far our race is failing big time!

a reply to: Kali74

I am not a fan of the replacements but I think they're a great idea for the person who wants meat but wants the health benefits of consuming more veggies.

Although... Vegan doesn't necessarily mean healthy either. Most of that stuff is over-processed!

Read your labels! I can't it enough!

I love that saying

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Said the spider to the fly...

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

You do have to be careful, a lot of people think vegan or vegetarian is automatically healthy and good for you. Not so by a long shot lol.

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

I forgot about nutritional yeast!!!

a reply to: Kali74

Exactly! I know plenty of super unhealthy Vegans!
Nutrition is nutrition and the body needs a variety to thrive!
When it comes to weight loss it's calories in / calories out. End of story.

a reply to: Scorpiogurl

I've been vegan for over 2 years now, high carb vegan to be exact, LOTS of ripe sweet fruit (bananas/dates/etc), fruit juices (red grape juice is my fave), potatoes, sweet potatoes, pasta, rice, curries, there's an unbelievable amount of vegan food out there now that tastes amazing, i enjoy the occasional burger and fries washed down with some icecream, you can be as decadent as you want with a vegan diet. I went vegan for health initially, stayed vegan because of how much better i feel and ethical reasons. I also love to eat and because i don't have much fat/saturated fat in my diet i can eat as much as i want without putting on any weight, much more fun than the tiny portions that people who eat animal products have.

After 2 years my health and fitness has soared, iv'e achieved things fitness wise that i never thought i would be able to do and it just keeps getting better and better, i have so much energy, i feel so much more positive and my mood is always great, sometimes i even feel ecstatic for no reason.

There is one downside though to going vegan.....i just wish i'd done it sooner.

GO VEGAN!

a reply to: McSwifty

YES! I love reading this. It's exactly how I feel!

I have to admit that I don't do well on high carbs and I don't do well with a lot of fruit. I stick to the general berries and limit my grains. I have no problem doing that and my athleticism doesn't suffer as a result. My body performs best when it's very lean (low fat - low carb - hi protein). I exercise daily, I do cross-fit, HIIT, MMA as well as traditional boxing (not dancy cardio kickboxing either), I lift heavy three times per week (Strong Lifts 5x5) and as you said it just keeps getting better!

Also, and this will sound corny, since being Vegan I actually feel much closer to nature. I see the natural world around me much clearer. It's very hard to explain the feeling but I am sure I don't have too