Introduction
Over the years, my recipes have developed a definite theme: veganizing favourite, familiar foods. Since I became vegan, I have been introduced to more new foods than I could list, and I love that my palate has evolved so much. Still, I often crave the foods I used to eat. Of course, I miss the tastes of all my old favourites, but there are also foods I associate with people, places, and experiences. These foods are a part of my life’s history. This leaves me with three choices:
- I can give in to those cravings and eat those foods.
- I can forego those foods and feel deprived or cut off from a huge part of my past.
- I can figure out how to veganizing those dishes to satisfy my cravings but stay true to my values.
For me, only one of these choices makes any sense.
Why veganizing Your Favorite Foods?
That’s why I learned how to make vegan versions of almost every dish I ever loved. I get to re-experience the feelings and memories of childhood favourites, dishes my mother made, and the foods I loved to order in restaurants. It’s easy to learn how to veganizing any dish you love and have it still be delicious and satisfying. If you can have the foods you grew up with, the foods you always loved, and the foods you crave more healthily and compassionately, why wouldn’t you?
Steps to Veganizing Any Dish
1. Read Recipes Through a Vegan Lens and start veganizing
I am constantly reading recipes and cookbooks, even though they are mostly not vegan. I must start with the original recipe to develop a vegan version of a favourite food. Choose a recipe for the dish you want to recreate and read through it with a red pen. Every time you see an animal product, circle it. The recipe includes any meat, fish, eggs, milk, cheese, butter, honey, and gelatin. These are the ingredients that need to be replaced with plant-based versions.
2. Know Your Substitutions
Once you have a list of the animal ingredients that need to be replaced, think about what plant-based foods can be used in the dish. Write down a plant-based substitution for each of the ingredients you circled. For instance, if the recipe uses chicken, pork, or beef, cross that out and write down “tofu”, “seitan”, or “jackfruit.” Replace any milk or butter with non-dairy milk, vegan butter, or coconut oil. You can easily live without cheese when you have delicious vegan cheese versions. Does the recipe say you need eggs? Guess what, you don’t. There is a vegan way to substitute almost every food.
3. Think About Texture and Flavor
Now that you know what you want and what ingredients you will use, how do you make it taste like the original recipe? It’s all about texture and flavour. Think about it: when anyone describes an amazing meal, they talk about the food being spicy, tender, juicy, crispy, etc. You won’t miss the meat once you learn to cook plant-based food with the flavour and texture you desire.
4. Buy It or veganizing It
At the time, being vegan meant eating a lot of stir-fries and brown rice. Today, vegans have so many choices when it comes to food. When it comes to store-bought products, there is a vegan substitute for almost everything. If you would rather not buy prepared products, you can learn to make vegan versions of your favourite ingredients yourself. Recipes are everywhere, in books and on the web, that will teach you how to make your non-dairy milk, your cheese, your seitan or tofu, your vegan butter, your sausages and burgers, your own “fish” fillets and scallops, and even your gluten-free, vegan meats.
Let’s Veganizing a Recipe
One of the most popular recipes on my blog is my vegan and gluten-free version of The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond’s Chicken-Fried Steak with White Gravy and Creamy Mashed Potatoes. The original recipes contain 3 lbs. of meat, 5 1/2 cups of whole milk, 2 eggs, 1 cup of heavy cream, 8 oz. of cream cheese, 17 Tbs. of butter, and 1/4 cup of grease leftover from cooking the steaks. that’s how veganizing a recipe .
Veganizing Creamy Mashed Potatoes
We can make an equally delicious side dish but lighter and plant-based. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut 2 -3 lbs—Yukon gold potatoes into even chunks. Put them into a large saucepan, fill with cold water, and add kosher salt. Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Uncover, lower the heat, and let it cook until the potatoes are fork-tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes into a colander and return them to the hot pot. Mash the potatoes over low heat and then turn off the heat.
Add 2 Tbs. Vegan cream cheese, 1/2 cup non-dairy milk or cream, ½ tsp. Garlic powder, ½ tsp. Dried dill, 1 tsp. Kosher salt, ½ tsp. Black pepper and 3 chopped scallions are mixed well. Transfer the potatoes to an oiled baking dish. Bake until golden brown, 20-30 minutes. that’s how veganizing Creamy Mashed Potatoes.
Veganizing Chicken-Fried Tofu Steak
To make “Chicken-Fried” Tofu Steak cut a block of extra-firm tofu that has been pressed and drained into slices. Sprinkle each piece of tofu with salt and pepper. In the original recipe, the steak is chicken-fried, which means it is dredged and battered in a milk/egg dip and seasoned flour before being fried. We will substitute the milk with non-dairy milk and the eggs by making a flax gel. Mix 1/3 cup warm water with 2 Tbs—ground flaxseed in a cup or small bowl.
Let sit for 10 minutes until it thickens. Put 1 cup of non-dairy milk into a shallow bowl. Add the thickened flaxseed to the milk and stir. Combine 2 cups chickpea flour with 1 tsp in another shallow bowl or dish. Garlic powder, 1 tsp. Dried oregano, 1 tsp. Ground cumin, 1 tsp. Paprika, 1 tsp. Onion powder, 1 tsp. Kosher salt and ½ tsp. Black pepper.
Working with one slice of tofu at a time, dip it into the flour mixture. Turn to coat. Shake off excess flour and dip the tofu into the milk/flaxseed mixture. Turn to coat. Finally, dip it back into the flour again and turn to coat. Place the breaded slice of tofu onto the clean plate.
Repeat with the rest of the tofu. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees—heat 2 Tbs. oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the tofu until it turns golden brown for about 4 minutes. Carefully flip the tofu steaks and cook the other side. Transfer the tofu steaks to a baking sheet and put them in the oven to keep warm while you prepare the meal.
Veganizing White Gravy
Instead of the 4 cups of whole milk used in the original recipe, we will use 3 cups of non-dairy milk and one cup of broth. Heat 2 Tbs. oil or vegan butter over medium-high heat in the same skillet where you fried the tofu steaks. Add 1/3 cup chickpea flour and whisk for about a minute or two. Pour 3 cups of non-dairy milk into the pan slowly while whisking constantly. Whisk in 1 cup of low-sodium vegetable broth next. Add salt and pepper to taste. Continue whisking until the gravy is smooth and thick, about 5 minutes. If it gets too thick, add more milk or broth—taste for seasoning.
Serve the tofu steaks next to a side of mashed potatoes. Top both with the gravy. Have it with some salad on the side. My “Chicken-Fried” Tofu Steaks and Creamy Mashed Potatoes with White Gravy uses 4 1/2 cups of non-dairy milk, no eggs, no cream, 2 Tbs. of non-dairy cream cheese, and 2 Tbs. of vegan butter (which is optional). So it’s a little lighter but does not miss any flavour. Best of all, no animals were harmed while making this meal.
Conclusion
A positive attitude is the best ingredient. Don’t think of a vegan version of a dish as somehow “less than” the non-vegan version. Avoid terms like “meatless,” “faux,” “fake,” or “alternative.” These terms all have a negative connotation that says the food is missing something or isn’t real.
veganizing food is real food. Embrace the vegginess of it. Be confident that your vegan versions of your favourite foods will be delicious, satisfying, and wow your friends and family. The best thing you can serve with your meal is a smile. With these guidelines and some creative effort, you will no longer have to miss any of your favourite foods. As I often do, you may even find that you prefer the veganizing versions to the originals.
this is one of favorites restaurant
