Help! I have to cook for vegans!

It may seem a bit daunting the first time you are confronted with cooking for vegans because they don't eat any animal products - including meat, fish, milk, eggs, honey and their derivatives (see Seven Reasons to be Vegan and About Veganism). But it doesn't have to be complicated or difficult... one of the simplest meals commonly made is beans on toast - which is basically vegan !

The trick is to get away from the meat and two veg mentality. There are very few dishes which cannot be adapted, and most cultures have at least a few vegan or virtually vegan dishes - asian and middle eastern cultures are particularly rich sources of vegan culinary inspiration - tabouleh, falafal, samosas, curries... The best thing to do is to have a look at some vegan recipes and find one that sounds interesting to you.

If, however the thought of dealing with a wok is something that fills you with dread, then you might want to have a look at the If all else fails part below.

Buying Vegan Things - or what to look out for on labels

The best things to get for vegans are fresh veg, because then you know there's nothing hidden away inside them. Other than that, a good bet is your local Health/Whole Food Store, who should be able to advise you if you're stuck. Most supermarkets have a list of vegan products that they stock (although most of them don't realize this and have to go and dig it out), and will stock a range of goods which are marked as suitable for vegans.

Here's a short list of things to watch out for on labels. It looks a bit daunting, but you don't come across these things too often in health food stores, and in supermarkets if one brand contains e.g. whey, have a look at another one. If you are interested in this kind of thing then check out the excellent Animal Ingredients A to Z and the Vegan Society website.

Ingredients to avoid
albumen/albumin (egg white)
aspic
beeswax
butter
casein
caseinate
cheese
cochineal (a red dye)
gelatine
lactate
Lactic acid (E270)
lactose
lanolin (wool fat)
lard
milk
suet
tallow
whey
yoghurt

Notes
Make sure pastries, sauces and gravies do not contain animal fats or margarines containing milk products.
Ensure non-vegan foods are not fried in the same oil as vegan food
Quorn contains egg
Agar Agar and some jelly mixes from health food stores can be used instead of gelatine to make jellies.
Don't use the same utensils for serving non-vegan and vegan food.

Vegan Recipes

There are a silly amount of vegan recipes on the internet. Do a search for vegan recipes with your favourite search engine - or you can start with these:

   Vegan Village Recipe Book 50 of our favourite vegan recipes. They are all quick and easy to make, and taste delicious!
  Veganfood Collection of all the best recipes from the alt.food.vegan newsgroup. (Some of the recipes use 'cup' measurements. There are links to conversion tables on the site - a cup is approx half a pint.)
   Parsley Soup - Cherry's Vegan Recipes Good selection of vegan recipes.
   Kate's (Vegan) Cookery Site One of the longest established vegan recipe websites.
   Uncaged's Vegan Recipes Includes how to make vegan cheese, yoghurt and paté, plus the "best ever ginger cake".
  Animal Aid's Veggie Collection Animal Aid's Veggie Month recipe collection is all vegan and includes "recipes from the stars" and tasty Christmas dishes.
  Animal Ingredients A to Z Comprehensive online guide to animal-derived ingredients.

Here's some ideas to start the ball rolling:

• Starter - Melon, stuffed vegetables, Tofu or veg. pate, soup (beware of stock containing milk derivatives like lactose or whey), dips, salad (no mayonnaise etc!).
• Main Course - Most dishes can be made vegan - Spaghetti Bolognese with TVP, Pizza with Nutritional Yeast Flakes, Curry, Shepherd's pie, burgers, pies, risotto, flans, quiches...
  Soya Milk, Soya yoghurt, tofu and seitan can be used instead of yoghurt, milk, cheese and milk etc.
  
• Snacks - Fruit (dried or fresh), nuts, oatcakes, crackers, sandwiches, samosas, spring rolls, bombay mix

If All Else Fails

So you've got to the stage and you still don't feel up to adventuring into the exotic world of culinary delight - here's some more ideas:

• There are amore and more 'convenience meals' that are vegan in Wholefood stores and even supermarkets - look for the words 'suitable for vegans' or the Vegan Society mark (a sunflower with the leaves making a 'V').
• You could just start with Baked Beans on Toast...
  remember to read the tin - some baked beans have dried skimmed milk or whey (a milk extract) in them, and get a vegan marg - most supermarkets and all health food stores will have at least one brand of margarine with a vegan sign on the carton
• If you have a little more time to spare, a curry is usually a good bet. If you haven't a clue how to make a curry, then Patak's make various curry pastes which make life a lot easier. Again, read the jars - some have lactic acid in (which may be derived from milk). Wash and cut up some fresh veg, including an onion. Fry the finely chopped onion for two minutes in a pan, then add the harder vegetables (potatoes, carrots, cauliflower), and fry a little longer, stirring all the time. Add the rest of the veg and the Patak's sauce, cover and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked. Serve hot on a bed of rice.