links for 2007-03-31

Answer me this

Why am I seeing so many trolls on the site these days? The anti-veg crowd really seems to love visiting (and commenting on) this site. I just can’t understand the mindset where you’d waste time getting purposely riled up with people you apparently hate. I mean, I don’t subscribe to a single anti-veg or pro-meat feed and lord knows I’ve never wasting my time commenting at one of their sites.

I dig alternative viewpoints, but some of these folks seem to have flown in from way out in left right field.

Tips for New Vegans: Dealing With Ex-Vegans

(Sorry for the haphazard posting this week… it turned out to be a busier one than I expected. I’ll continue the series through the weekend.)

Veg Blog reader Charles sent this question:

I’m a fairly new vegan. I’m sure other new vegetarians or vegans are likely to encounter long time vegetarians who went back to eating meat “for health reasons.” They realize, sometimes after 10 or more years, that they are not getting enough protein or iron or whatever.

As a new vegan, I have no response to them because I figure they’ve been a vegetarian (for many years). Who am I – a new vegan – to question their conclusion?

How do new vegans handle ex-vegans who think the vegan diet is unhealthy?

This is an interesting question and I’m curious what other readers have to say about it. Here’s my take on it.

Whenever I hear from an ex-vegan or vegetarian, my gut reaction is probably a bit judgemental. After all, maybe there are some legitimate health reasons that certain people need to go back to meat, fish, dairy, or eggs. I’m not a nutritionist, so how would I know for sure?

But here’s the thing: most of the ex’s I’ve encountered that stopped being veg for health reasons were told to do so by their primary care physician. We all know that doctors don’t receive adequate nutrition educaton* (I’ve gotten the “how do you get your protein?” question from doctors a few too many times, myself), so I don’t know that I’d necessarily take their advice without consulting a knowledgeable nutritionist first.

If you’re comfortable enough in the situation, probe the ex-veg for more information. If they say they had to start eating meat again for the protein, ask them how much protein they need to eat in a day (the average man only needs 55-60 grams a day). I’m willing to bet that most don’t know. Then point out that it’s really easy to get enough protein if you’re eating a diet with varied beans, nuts whole grains, etc. When my wife was pregnant, she regularly got 80-90 grams of protein a day.

If iron is their thing, ask them about supplementing, fortified foods, or whether they tried eating iron rich foods with vitamin C (while avoiding tea and coffee) to increase absorption.

The point is, in most cases it’s not a lack of meat that’s the problem, but a lack of nutrients or a poorly planned diet. Look at Donald Watson. Dude was a vegan before there was even the word “vegan.” (Literally. He invented it.) Watson died in 2005 at 95 years old. If you can find some interviews he did in the last few years, you’ll be amazed at how sharp and insightful he was, right up until the end. In the last decade of his life, he “climbed many of the major peaks of the Lake District” in northwest England. If someone can be vegan for over 60 years, most of it during a time when there were no vegan convenience foods and less was known about vegan nutrition, I find it very hard to believe that a vegan diet can rationally be considered “unhealthy.”

Of course, this only handles the reasons behind health-related switches back to the dark side. How to handle this in a socially acceptible manner is a whole ‘nother problem. As with any time you’re trying to make a point that may be taken as a criticism, it’s all in the tone of your voice and how you present yourself. Gently try and get them to open up about not only why they started eating meat again, but whether it bothers them that they had to do so. Ask them whether they would give up meat/dairy/eggs again if they could do so without risking their health. Perhaps they’ll say yes, particularly if they were veg for ethical reasons. At this point, let it go.

Give it a few hours or a day and do a little research online. Then, drop them an e-mail saying, “I was thinking about our conversation earlier and came across a few articles that you might want to check out…” Enlist the help of the PCRM or a vegan forum. Get the idea in their head that, hey, maybe being veg again is possible.

Who I find really difficult to deal with are militant ex-vegans. They are far worse than any so called “militant vegans” I’ve ever met. These are the people who feel they have the experience and, therefore, the right to disparage veganism or vegetarianism because they “used to be one of those.” I don’t know about you, but I can never imagine giving up veganism and I can’t imagine any truly committed vegan ever going back to animal products and disparaging their former lifestyle at the same time. These militant ex-vegans with a chip on their shoulder may not be worth engaging in an argument. Let them blow off their steam and, in turn, look like blowhards to everyone else. Lead by example and just leave them with a simple phrase like, “Huh. That’s weird. I’ve always thought it’s pretty easy/healthy/fun being vegan.” There aren’t many ways they can come back against that without sounding like a fool.

To summarize… for those that are regretfully ex-veg: discuss, question, research, inform. For antagonistic ex-vegans: don’t get dragged into arguments. They’re not worth the trouble.

* Did I really just link to an article by the California Table Grape Commission as a source? Yikes. How about this one instead.

links for 2007-03-30

links for 2007-03-29

Tips for New Vegans: Restaurants

Welcome to “Tips for New Vegans” week. For the remainder of the week, I’m going to feature tips on being vegan for the new convert. After the week is done, I’ll continue with occasional postings, as driven by your questions. Just submit ‘em over here.

One of the trickiest things for new vegans is eating at restaurants. This isn’t particularly true when you’re the one choosing the restaurant, but it gets more difficult when, say, you’re out for lunch with co-workers at Sweetwater Tavern, where a friend once told me “the only thing vegan there is the napkins.” So, here are a few tips on dealing with these outings:

  • E-mail or call ahead: Even after being veggie for over six years, I still don’t like to pepper the waiter with questions before ordering, particularly when I’m with a group of people who may not be sympathetic. If you have enough warning, visit the restaurant’s web site. See if they have a list of ingredients, mention preparation techniques, or even list specifically what’s vegan. If not, drop them an e-mail or give them a call. You’re pretty anonymous this way, so it’s even a good way for introverts to deal with it. Before my company’s holiday party this past year, I e-mailed the catering company and asked about obtaining a strict vegetarian meal since none were offered. The head chef got back to me and let me know I was covered. What resulted was, by far, the best catered meal I’ve ever had. The downside with this technique, particuarly with e-mailing, is that it’s really hit-or-miss with the restuarants. I’ve found that a lot don’t even bother replying, which is frustrating. But at least you’re no further behind than if you didn’t try.
  • Go with the safe bet: If you find yourself at a restaurant and are feeling the pressure, you can almost always ask for a salad with no cheese and oil and vinegar dressing. Sure, it’s kind of lame, but it’ll hold you over and you can always grab something a little later. The main thing here is to keep a good attitude about it. If you make yourself feel like you’re sacrificing something, you’re probably forgetting why you went vegan in the first place. Veganism’s not about sacrifice, it’s about doing what you know is right.
  • Ask the chef to prepare you something: This is one that’s always recommended in “going vegan”-type books. “The chef will like the challenge!” the books promise. Honestly, I have a feeling this isn’t so true. While it may be true in certain types of restaurants, I suspect it generally leaves chefs grumbling under their breath. However, as long as you’re not asking them for the world, most are perfectly fine with making minor alterations to existing dishes.
  • Know what to watch for. This kind of goes with the last one, so you know what to ask them to leave out. For instance, in Thai restaurants, you always want to be sure to specify “no fish sauce” since curries and even the dishes labeled “vegetarian” will often use it. In Indian restaurants, ask if they can make your meal using oil instead of ghee. And if you’re in a Hungarian restaurant… um, just run. Everything’s probably made with lard.
  • Eat ahead: Jenna over at Vegan Freak Radio has mentioned this a few times on their show. It’s interesting, because I never really thought about this option much. But, yeah, if you eat ahead (and no one needs to know), you can order something light and not walk away hungry or feeling deprived. While I haven’t tried this option often when eating out, I often do it when there are catered lunches in the office. I’ll eat ahead and then just hang out with everyone else afterwards while having a drink. No one ever seems to pay any attention to the fact I don’t have food.
  • Bring a hibachi and cook up some tofu while everyone else orders. Just kidding. Bring tempeh instead.

Initially, eating at restaurants can feel like a hassle, wondering if that really is non-dairy margarine on your bread or if it’s butter. Or worrying that they’ve cooked your pasta-that-might-have-been-made-with-eggs in chicken broth instead of water or veggie broth. But I promise you that with time, it gets much, much easier. These days, it’s almost never an issue. I either make sure not to put myself in uncomfortable situations to begin with or take responsibility for myself and make sure I have something to eat if things don’t work out.

links for 2007-03-28

Resources and recipe correction

Last week, I quietly re-launched the resources section of the site. I’ve cleared out some old links, added a bunch of new ones, and slightly reorganized it.

Also, I’m slowly trying to re-launch the recipes section of the site, this time as a regular part of the blog. Of course, I went and made quite a stupid mistake on my first new recipe post for Terribly Tasty Teff Pancakes. I called for ground coriander when I meant ground cardamom. Coriander in pancakes would probably be pretty foul.

Sorry if any of you tried them as listed. My bad.

links for 2007-03-22

Terribly Tasty Teff Pancakes

This recipe is one of those happy accidents brought about by my own inattention to detail.  See, I started with a good, simple recipe for buckwheat pancakes from the Chicago Diner cookbook.  I was prepacking the dry ingredients to bring with me on a trip with the intention of just adding the liquid ingredients the next morning.  But after I mixed the dry ingredients, I realized I had grabbed teff flour from the fridge instead.  Fortunately, both flours say you can substitute it for up to a 1/4th of white flour in any recipe, so I decided to leave it in there and see how it came out.

Lo and behold, it tasted better than the buckwheat!  I tweaked the recipe a little bit more and that’s what we have below.  We’ve gotten quite addicted to it over the last few weeks.  Teff flour is a nutrient-dense whole grain.  In fact, it’s the smallest grain in the world.  It’s high in protein and fiber and is gluten-free.  Fans of Ethiopian cuisine will note that teff is used to make Injira.  Of course, if you don’t have teff on hand, go ahead and use buckwheat flour instead.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unbleached white flour
  • 1/4 cup teff flour (or buckwheat flour)
  • 2 Tbsp. sugar (preferably turbinado)
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 1/8 tsp. each of ground cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg

 

  • 1 1/4 cups vanilla soy milk (or regular soy milk with a splash of vanilla extract; vanilla soy milk tends to be a little thicker and thus results in fluffier pancakes)
  • 2-3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Directions

  1. Mix all dry ingredients together.
  2. Whisk in wet ingredients until relatively smooth.  A few lumps are OK.  Don’t overmix, as this can make the pancakes a little tough.
  3. Brush some oil onto a pan and heat over medium heat for about 30 seconds.
  4. Drop the batter onto the pan.  How big do you like your pancakes?  When the top starts to bubble just slightly, flip it and heat for a short while longer until both sides are light brown.  Brush the pan with oil before each new set of pancakes and note that cooking time will get progressively shorter as the pan heats up.
  5. Serve adorned with fresh fruit and good quality maple syrup.  Throw some veggie sausage on the side and some fair trade coffee or tea and you’ve got yourself a breakfast.
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
 Loading ... Loading ...