Lifestyle
What do vegetarians eat?
For all those who are looking for vegetarian food options, here is a list of variety of food available in the vegetarian diet
After moving to Canada, I met many people who used to raise an eyebrow when I expressed that I am a vegetarian. They often wonder where do vegetarians get their protein from? What do they eat everyday and what options do they have in vegetarian food? One of my colleagues even expressed her concern that her daughter is changing her lifestyle to become vegetarian, and she is struggling to find recipes which she can cook for her. So here is a blog for everyone trying to figure out what do vegetarians eat?
Now there are multiple types of vegetarian diets. Vegetarian is basically someone who eats primarily plant based food. However depending on certain additions and exclusions to the plant based meals we can see 4 types of vegetarian diet. Source
Lacto-vegetarian: Include dairy products like milk, butter, yogurt, cheese but exclude meat, poultry, fish and eggs.
Ovo-vegetarian: Include eggs. Exclude meat, poultry, fish and dairy products.
Lacto-ovo-vegetarian: Include dairy products and eggs but exclude meat, poultry and fish.
Pescatarian Vegetarian: Allow fish but exclude meat, poultry, dairy and eggs.
Vegan: Exclude food containing meat, poultry, fish, dairy and eggs.
Today I will be talking about the Lacto-vegetarian diet followed by majority of Indians which includes dairy products but excludes meat, poultry, fish and eggs. One blog is not enough to share the recipes, so I will be talking about the main ingredients and types of dishes possible with those ingredients. . If you would like me to share recipes, do let me know in the comments and I will be happy to post recipes and photos of my cooking skills.
Being brought up in an Indian vegetarian family with amazing chefs in form of my mother, grandmother and aunts, I totally believe that cooking runs in my blood. I am extremely good at it and I am an experimental cook. I never learnt it or took any classes, I just observed and tried my hand at cooking and it turned out simply delicious. I have embraced food from different countries in my diet. I love pasta, Thai curries, Korean dishes and also certain Chinese dishes which I modify to fit my vegetarian diet.
India has highest number of vegetarians in the world, where 40% Indian population follows vegetarian diet, which is approximately 574 million. Source
Coming back to vegetarian food, we all are aware that more and more people globally are moving towards vegetarian and vegan lifestyle due to health, environmental, or ethical reasons.
6% US consumers are vegan. Over 9.7 million Americans are vegan. A study in 2020 found that there are more than 1,474 plant based restaurants in the US. In 2021, plant based food sales grew 2.5X faster than 2018–2020. Source
So let’s get acquainted with staples of vegetarian meals.
Carbohydrates
Rice and wheat form the two main sources of carbs. Plain rice combined with vegetables forms 1 type of meal. Wheat is consumed in form of rotis, chapatis, naans etc. All purpose flour is used to make Naans and Rotis too. Roti is Indian flat bread.
Roti, Chapati, Naan are types of Indian bread, all made with same ingredient but the style of making it is different, so it tastes different. Texture, thickness and flavour is different.
Rice is available in plenty of varieties. Jasmine rice is often found in Thai and Japanese cuisines or even Chinese I suppose. Jasmine rice when cooked has sticky texture and is soft. So it is often used for making sushi, or eaten with Thai curry.
However Indian Basmati rice which is world famous is known for its long grains and aroma. India has plenty of different varieties of rice, each is used for different purposes. Basmati is used for making Biryani and Pilaf (Pulao). Basmati is long grain rice and when cooked, the grains are distinctly visible and spread apart. It doesn’t get sticky or lumpy. Surati kolam, Indrayani, Ambemohar, Sona masoori are some varieties in rice used in daily everyday cooking which are easy to digest and affordable.
One pot meal of rice:
Biryani: A dish made using rice, chopped vegetables and a specific Biryani Masala (Masala available in stores). The rice is full of aroma and flavorful due to the variety of spices found in the masala. Biryani gives fiber through vegetables and carbs through rice. Paneer or Tofu is added to get the protein part. Paneer biryani, Biryani with soya chunks are some of the vegetarian options. Chicken biryani and mutton biryani are most famous dishes amongst Indians. Biryani is cooked in layers, one layer of rice with layer of marinated protein (chicken / paneer) then another layer of rice and so on.
Pilaf / Pulao: Rice cooked with peas and carrots and spices. Pilaf is a simple version of biryani with less spices and limited vegetables. Some people add paneer to include protein. Pilaf is mostly accompanied with some protein in form of gravy or curry or with simple curd salad.
Plain rice and vegetable gravy: Plain rice can be eaten with variety of vegetables available in India. India has plenty of vegetables which are cooked in form of gravies which go well with rice. Legumes, pulses are cooked in form of curries to be eaten with rice.
Protein:
Legumes: Variety of beans are available in India. Some of them are available in Canada too. French beans, fresh peas, peanuts etc. There are multiple ways of cooking these using different spices and recipes.
Pulses: Dried beans and seeds are called pulses. Once again we are blessed to have a ton of variety in this category too. They are also called lentils. Red kidney beans, dry peas, chick peas, pigeon peas, whole moong etc. These are soaked in water overnight, next day the water is taken out and these are left to rest on a strainer to sprout.Sprouting increases the protein content. Once you see nice sprouts shooting out of the pulses, they are cooked into delicious gravies or curries using traditional grandmother recipes infused with wholesome spices. Each of the pulses are cooked using different set of recipes and spice mix which gives each dish a distinct flavour. These curries are served with rice or chapati.
Lentils / Dals: If you go to Indian restaurant you will often see Dal Fry on the menu. Dal is protein rich dish. Dal is like lentil soup. We have variety of dals. Toor dal, moong dal, masoor dal, udid daal, chana dal etc. Each dal has a different flavour, taste and texture. Each dal takes slightly different time to pressure cook. Dals are always pressure cooked either in Indian classic pressure cooker or Instant pot. Dal can also be cooked in multiple ways meaning plain dal with turmeric and asafoetida is the simplest version of dal. Dal cooked with tempering and spices is more flavorful and if you add chillies or chili powder it can get spicy too. A nice tadka (heat oil, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, turmeric, chopped chillies) poured over plain dal is also another way to cook dal. Dal-Rice is staple food for Indians and also very simple to cook. It is full of protein and is a wholesome meal. Dal-rice is a go-to meal for students and bachelors who are looking for quick easy-to-cook recipes.
Paneer: The high protein item which Indians eat instead of meat. Paneer is made out of milk. Paneer butter masala is vegetarian dish cooked similarly like Butter Chicken, but chicken is substituted by paneer. Paneer is a versatile item which blends with multiple vegetables. Palak (Spinach) paneer is another common dish available in all Indian restaurants. It’s a spinach gravy with paneer cubes in it. High in protein, Vitamin K, fiber and potassium.
Tofu: It’s preparation is similar to paneer, but it’s made using soy milk. It’s a vegan option for people who want something which tastes like paneer but a non-diary product. Use any paneer recipe and substitute paneer with tofu for vegan dish. Tofu is rich source of protein.
Soya: Honestly I don’t like the taste of soya, but people love it. It can be cooked in multiple ways, mostly added in gravies. Available in market in form of soya chunks.
Fiber, Iron, Calcium
Millets: Jowar, bajra, raagi, horsegram, sorgram etc. are some of the Indian millets. These are protein and fiber rich millets which also contain iron, calcium and other minerals and nutrients. These are consumed in variety of ways. Jowar and bajra flour is used to make flat bread. Raagi is used to make dosas, soups, porridge and other breakfast items.
Fats:
Ghee: Clarified butter with higher boiling point and less cholesterol is used in preparing Indian food and desserts. Ghee is also used for tempering instead of oil to give it a richer flavour.
Butter: Most Indian households make butter and ghee at home. Butter is used to in gravies, added over roti.
Milk: Milk is staple breakfast in every Indian household. We grew up drinking glass full of milk as breakfast. India is an agricultural country and we get fresh cow / buffalo milk. Milk is used in making desserts, also used in few gravy recipes to make it more creamy and sweet. Milk is used to make drinks such as milkshakes, flavored milks and turmeric milk with dry fruits is another Indian way of consuming milk.
Vitamins
Fruits: I have met people who don’t like to eat fruits. I love fruits and I try to eat as much variety of fruits as possible. Eating smoothies is not really my culture so I prefer to eat fruit as a whole and chopped when required. Indian fruits which I miss are jackfruit, custard apple (sugar apple), Chikoo also known as Sapota, Jamun, Figs, Guava, Papaya. I am fond of berries like strawberry, blackberry, mulberry, raspberry and blueberries. I also love to eat Avocado, Kiwi, Peach, Pear and plums. I love grapes and melons be it watermelon, muskmelon. Mango is another fruit I cannot live without. Fruits provide us with anti oxidants, vitamins and certain vital minerals too.
Vegetables: Growing up I used to like only a selected few vegetables however now-a-days I cook and eat all different types of vegetables I can find in the market. Produce section is my favourite section in the grocery store. I am particularly fond of leafy vegetables which we get in India. Spinach, Fenugreek, Red Amaranthus leaves, Colocasia leaves, chakvat (white goosefoot — chenopodium) are some of the amazing vegetables you can find in Indian cooking. Beetroot, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, egg plant, capsicum, mushroom, bell peppers etc. are some of the other vegetables we vegetarians eat. Vegetables can be cooked in multiple ways and You-tube can be your best teacher if you are looking for a particular recipe.
Seeds, Dry fruits and Nuts: Most people fear that following vegetarian diet will reduce their nutrition intake. However eating right amount of seeds and nuts ensures that you are getting the right amount of nutrition. Flax seeds are known to be the rich source for Omega 3 & Omega 6 fatty acids, sunflower seeds are good for Vitamin E and fiber, chia seeds are good source of calcium and Vitamin B1, B3. Dry fruits like almonds rich in calcium and vitamin E, walnuts have folate and vitamin E. Berries — blue berries, bananas, oranges are known for B12 vitamins. Source
In conclusion all I want to say is, vegetarian food has tons of options and multiple ways of cooking a dish can give you a different taste every time. I never get bored of eating vegetarian food and I find vegetarian food to be fresh, healthy and environmentally friendly.
If you would like me to post recipes do mention in the comments and I would be glad to write recipe blogs too. Hope this inspires you to try vegetarian food and cook something new every day.
Copyright © 2022, Tanmaya Rao. All Rights Reserved.
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