Vegetarian Question...

[MrsFruitcake]

Not an AIBU, but more of a was he BU?

Friend of many years came to visit for Sunday lunch. She has been a vegetarian since forever and we obviously know this. She also knows that we all eat meat.

Lunch was lamb with provision made for her in the form of nut cutlet or some such. She then proceeded to pour gravy all over her lunch and then was upset when it was pointed out that it had been made with the meat juice. She is still upset with DH weeks on as she blames him for this.

My Q is this - if you were a vegetarian visiting a family who you know are all meat eaters, would you assume the gravy is meat free?

If you told her before she ate any food I can't understand why she is upset. If she knew that the sauce had gravy in before she ate it, that was her choice?

ConfusedPixie there are about 6 varieties of Best gravy. I've just checked and they have added a caveat that the production line handles wheat flour. My friend has Coeliac disease and definitely has bisto best.

You can get vegetarian, gluten free gravy in [[http://www.ocado.com/webshop/product/Free--Easy-Gluten-Free-Gravy-Sauce-Mix/71577011?sku=71577011&dnr=y Free and Easy make one)

She probably ate it anyway because she didn't want to waste the food. I probably would have done the same.

I'm veggie and would have checked about the gravy and not eaten it if it had meat in it (even if I'd poured it all over my food for some reason!). It would have been nice to provide veggie gravy for her, but it's silly of her to be upset about it weeks later.. SHE ate it!

LottieGarbanzo - Thanks for the vegetarian gravy recipe. It's basically just an onion sauce, isn't it?

I've been wading through 7 pages wondering what on earth vegetarian gravy is and how you would cook it!

Would onion sauce be more of a white sauce, so add milk and less stock and flavourings? Anyway, maybe similar, just flavoured to taste very savoury and whatever thickness you like gravy to be.

When we have veggie guests my hubby usually tries to do something like meatloaf or chilli using Quorn or something, so everyone can eat the same. It makes life a lot simpler!

Goodness...the world is full of marvellous, slaver-worthy vegetarian food. Meals of drooling deliciousness. You don't need to hand someone a lone nut cutlet, or even a Quorn version of meatiness for all.

Buy a sheet of puff pastry and make a garlicky mushroom tart if you can't think of anything else.

I'm thinking onion sauce, but made with Marigold bouillon powder rather than milk. Not that it really matters, but it was driving me mad as to what everyone was talking about.

Ok, well I think most people are talking about gravy granules that you hydrate. So you either choose the packet that says 'beef flavour' or the one that says 'vegetable flavour'.

But gravy is just using something savoury as a base, thickening with flour and adding stock and seasoning, isn't it? So the same process with a vegetable base, if you're making it yourself.

Yes - but I think you need some kind of tasty fat in the base to make the emulsion, and if you're not getting it from the meat juices, the onions in their oil would act as a good substitute, especially as you're going to have some of those sweet / caramel / burnt flavours.

I'm now wondering what on earth they put in gravy granules...

I don't like gravies/sauces that aim to taste meaty, but I do make a rather nice onion and sun-dried tomato 'gravy' that goes with lots of things. You just need to saute a chopped onion (until as caramelised or pale as you like), add a few sun-dried tomatoes (the kind which comes in jars with oil & herbs - Lidl does a good cheap version), add vegetable stock (I use Kallo onion stock cubes, but Marigold bouillon powder or anything else would do), simmer for 10-15 minutes, then whizz up with a stick blender. Very flavourful and thick without using any thickeners etc.

My sister is a veggie so I am used to making sure that the roasties are not done in meat fat and that there is also veggie gravy but this would not occur to a lot of people if you are not used to catering for them. Your hubby did not do it on purpose and she should accept that and she should really have checked before pouring it all over her dinner.

Threads like this remind me why we never have anyone around for a meal.

Oh, I love having people round for a meal. I like cooking. And people. And food.

Ah, the joys of prickly veggies. That's one less welcome mat for her....

It was up to her to check. She's the veggie, she has chosen that diet for whatever reason and most people are not veggie.
Proper gravy is traditionally made from the meat juices so therefore I would always assume gravy to be meaty.
Perhaps it would be nice next time to think ahead and do a small jug of veggie gravy for her but she is BU for being annoyed with you.

I'm veggie. She should have checked.

But you should have provided an alternative.

Was she offered an alternative after her meal was ruined? I'm just wondering if she felt that she had to eat the meal and that is what has upset her.

I do agree she should have checked first, but if you invite guests to dinner they should be catered for properly really.

There's nothing worse as a veggie than being invited for dinner, then getting the "token" veggie meal, and feeling like you're too much hassle to cater for. Either invite and make an effort (as I always do for guests!) or don't bother.

Sorry, that last bit was a general rant, not directed at anyone personally.

I am a veggie and I most certainly would check the gravy. It is always nice when people do provide veggie gravy though but she should have checked.

I agree that she should have checked first, and then not eaten the gravy. I was veggie for years and would always have asked.

But it does seem odd not to have provided any kind of sauce for a nut cutlet as part of a roast dinner. They are atrociously dry, in general. Maybe she's annoyed because she felt the Op's DH sidelined her in his own meat obsession a bit too. The key thing would really just be to ask the friend why she was upset.

Whether I'd've provided a fully veggie meal would probably depend on how many guests I had and how many were vegetarian. If I'd invited a single veggie over, then I'd just do a veggie meal (unless it was Christmas dinner or something else where I'd do a set meal, but I'd come up with an exciting veggie alternative); if I'd invited several people over and there was only one vegetarian, I'd just go the interesting veggie alternative route.