Obviously some of the more terminally online attempts to guilt trip people do not work. I wonder is there even a point to encourage others? Most people won’t change their mind without making their own decision. I think I try to live by example, and being there when people have questions. Being there when people want to slowly eat less meat I think is very helpful. Some online vegans especially on lemmy act like it’s all or nothing, well then these people will never even try eating less animal products.
Thoughts?
I mean, veganism is essentially a religion. Go ahead and pop some popcorn on that one ;)
That being said, I think the key lies in not being dogmatic at all. Leave that to vegans. Just talk about it when it’s appropriate, in a personal and real way.
My favorite example is my vegan chili. I’m not vegan. Not even vegetarian. But when chili gets talked about, I bring it up as part of the conversation because it’s faster than meat based chili, the flavor is amazing, and it’s relatively inexpensive. I’ve won chili cookoffs with my beef chili, and I actually have more people request the recipe for my vegan version after they try it the first time.
People start talking about burgers? I bring up my favorite alternative patties. I don’t call them burgers though, because they aren’t burgers in the way that matters. But I’ve had kelp “burgers” that were ridiculously good, and I love a good black bean patty sandwich. The key, again, is to talk about it as just another aspect of how to have great food that’s less expensive and/or health friendly (at my age, when burgers come up, it’s usually because a doctor has told someone to cut back lol).
I don’t beat a pulpit because that’s a dick move. I offer alternatives that are topical, zero pressure, and offer to share recipes or otherwise help anyone interested to give things a try. I’ll also do that even if they aren’t interested in the plant based side of things, and just want to adjust their meat intake for economics or lower fat or whatever. And you’d be amazed how that gives people the freedom to try the other stuff too. Then, maybe, maybe they cut back on meat a little, or switch to a better source for meat.
My thing? I look at plant based cooking as an environmental necessity long term, an economic benefit both long and short term, and a way to improve the way we handle livestock. I’m fine with meat, and if we could sustain a human population with it the way it’s currently being done, my objection to industrial farming would be just that, rather than about meat. But we can’t.
The best way to teach anyone is to lead by example. When I can show someone an amazing meal with no meat, or meat as a side ingredient, and show them how little it can cost when you’re not stuck in a city food desert, it gets the job done better than trying to convince them of anything at all. But it has to be food centric, and you have to be genuine, you can’t be pandering to them as an excuse to try and change them. If they ask, be honest and talk about the other reasons you choose to minimize or eliminate meat from your diet, and be clear that it’s your choice, that isn’t an obligation for them.
There’s this whole thing online vs in person. Online, people are assholes because they don’t see another person, they see lines on a screen.
In person? Me, my vegan cousin, my dairy farmer cousin, and my jackass vegetarian friend can all sit around eating my vegan chili and talk about it all, with hugs at the end.
If we, as people, treat each other online more like people than lines on a screen, with respect and dignity until there’s a reason to do otherwise, that’s how people can share things like a plant based or plant centered diet. Nobody is perfect, mind you, but that’s how you reach out.
Reckon I could get a link to that vegan chili mate? I’m working on lowering my eaten animal diet and chicken chili is one of my meal preps. I did a first aid course the other day with a guy who made chicken feed, six weeks from chick to slaughter for these modern breeds of meat chook, it just made me sad.
https://www.publix.com/recipe/vegetarian-chili-in-bread-bowls
That’s where the original came from. It’s listed as vegetarian, but has no animal products involved at any point.
I make mine from fresh ingredients, and do my own spices though, where it makes sense to do so. I still use the frozen squash if it’s available, and canned tomatoes are almost always going to be better than trying to use what you can buy in a store. Beans, it depends on if I’m making the same batch size as the original recipe. If I am, a can is just more efficient. But if I’m making enough to send home with people, I do my own beans.
I use one large onion, maybe 3 celery stalks, and a mix of peppers, red orange and yellow.
You’d need to add the onion first, sweat them well, then add the celery and peppers for a few minutes before moving on.
If I’m using a fresh butternut squash, I roast it first, then cube it, and it goes in at the end with canned tomatoes.
I also add in an eggplant usually, and I’ll pan roast that in slices until just browned lightly, then chop into chunks. It isn’t necessary, but it adds an extra texture that I think is great.
My spice blend is 2 units chili powder, 1/4 to 1/2 unit of cumin, 1 unit black pepper, 1 unit oregano (usually mexican), 1/2 unit garlic powder (though you can go crazy with it up to a point), 1/2 unit paprika, usually smoked.
Obviously, you can bump up the smoked paprika if you want, but I find the veggies get lost once you go more than a full unit.
Now, the base unit is a tablespoon, but the recipe scales very well, and it really doesn’t matter what units you use, so long as they’re roughly in line with that total amount of total spices per 4 quarts.
Once everything is in the pot, you just set it to simmer for twentyish minutes. The zucchini will just be getting tender at that point, so you taste and salt to your preferences.
My version from fresh, with my spice blend, takes longer and has a much more spice forward taste. Like much more spice forward than the publix version. So feel free to cut back on any or all of it, because I adjusted my version to fit the preferences of my family member that’s full vegan. He tends to prefer his food very intensely spiced. Not necessarily spicy, as in hot, but where you get these pops of the veggies through the spice mix rather than it being a veggie soup with some spices thrown in. Same with why we do fresh veggies where applicable; better textures and the tastes are more distinct in each bite.
We’ve piddled around over the years, and most of the chicken substitutes will work okay as an addition. Tofu, you need to add at the end. Seitan can go in at any point (and it’s likely to be a better choice imo, I love tofu, but not in this).
But, the actual publix version with all the frozen ingredients is still a damn good dish. Good enough that the first three or four times we did it, we didn’t mess around any.
Both versions are prep friendly, too. Make a batch, freeze up portions, and pull out as needed.
If it isn’t obvious, this is also a super easy to alter recipe. You can add to it, delete from it, and still have good food. Don’t like kidney beans? Use black, or navy, or whatever. Add in corn, or okra, or whatever. It may start veering from a chili eventually, but it’s still going to be yummy. Just use a bigger pot if you keep adding. It’s really the combination of the spices and the texture of the squash that makes the dish at its core