For the longest time I’ve made the error myself and when trying to explain people back in the day what Quorn was I tended to answer the obvious, vegetarian meat. The easy way.
Maybe I knew less back in those day, or maybe the world of vegetarian and also plant-based cuisine wasn’t as expanded yet. Most definitely the supermarket aisles weren’t yet as stocked with alternative food options as they are now.
And yet, when looking at the options, or at menus in restaurants - even specialized restaurants - I don’t see anything new. It’s all the same.
Here was me thinking that those years of vegetarian or pescatarian diets had improved my creativity in the kitchen.
Maybe those months of browsing and learning from [online vegan groups] would have improved it but nada.
Noppes. Nada. Zilch.
Zero.
When looking at what I’m eating or looking forward to try or prepare, I see no difference. No difference except for one small detail. One word more.
Vegan.
Just one word because other than that, it’s all still the same.
#AnythingYouEatIEatVegan
Above photo is a post from a local seller in the largest vegan group in the country on Crackbook. When we have a closer look at the list of items, we see: shrimps, sausages, bacon, duck, chicken, beef.
Now I understand that it is tempting to just call things vegan and refer to the flavor, but let’s be honest here for a second: flavors should be made to be delicious and not to be merely a meat-free and animal loving alternative.
Trying to attempt to recreate Adobo or Menudo without using meat is honorable but are they really the best uses of the ingredients.
Is that beet burger, which is absolutely gorgeous btw, as succulent and tender as a lovely beef burger is and makes you think of?
Is the English language not beautiful enough for the creation of new names?
Things get even worse when we try to live a life without animal cruelty and yet we can not restrain from naming items after animals.
Vegan Shrimps
Tofurkey
Magic Meat
Magic Meat, a vegan meat alternative (usually made from mushrooms) which couldn’t named differently than... meat. :barf:
I am loving the new recipes I’m discovering. Beet(root) and mushrooms are awesome as an ersatz for meat. Soy is a long time staple of my food already and the rediscovery of lentils, and thus also Ethiopian and Maroccan kitchen, is absolutely enjoyable.
Whenever I see everyone trying to do their darnest best to make sure nothing changes in naming convention I think the psychology of those groups, and activists, needs some more challenging and correcting.
Why Does It Matter?
The human mind is highly comple, beautifully complex and has this amazing skills to make connotations. Whenever we hear words we tend to associate them, especially when it comes to food.
Food makes us think about specific flavors, textures, and at times can even make humans pine for a specific meal or drool even.
Some years ago, as startup junkie, I was watching the BBC’s Dragons’ Den and dragon Deborah Meaden ranted during a vegan sausages pitch. Ranted because she felt that the pitch, the product was misleading because of the name.
Don’t call it a sausage if there’s no meat in.
Not one to often agree with Meaden, she did have a point and to be honest I would be disappointed as well if I were sold a steak with beetroot rather than made from beef. But that was in the days I still ate meat. A not too distant but gone past.
When it comes to dairy varieties things get even worse as often the name of a cheese is specific to a region or specific method. Gouda refers traditionally more to a method of making cheese with curdled milk than to the city of Gouda, although historically the cheese was mostly traded in Gouda.
Without milk it isn’t Gouda. Which can be quite a problem when it comes to naming your vegan pizza cheese... Gouda.
Vegans should not want to try to name everything after animal products. It goes against the ethos of veganism.
If despite this rant you are curious to try out meat alternatives made from vegetables, check out this excellent post.