I wish just I'd been honest...

[busy45bee]

Context: I'm a vegetarian. I offer to bring a dish to dinner if I'm invited.

On Sunday we were invited to SIL's house. They are big on their meat dishes and I did my usual of offering to bring something veggie. They said 'no all good!' so we took that as food would be provided.

We arrive and BIL's mum (SIL's MIL) has come along and done some of the cooking. She's made me a salad...with bacon lardons. She said 'I hope that's ok, it's just on top' and instead of saying anything I nodded and thought how the heck am I going to get out of this one.

I had salad wrapped in a napkin in my handbag. I stealthily dropped it in there as I reached to scratch my ankle. I flicked bacon on the floor in the hope that the dog would eat it when no one was looking but that was hard as there were 9 people around the table.

I told my DH that it was amazing and he must try some. He gobbled it up. My MIL realised what was happening and decided to be part of the bacon smuggling. She made a big fuss about how delicious it looked and practically swiped it off my plate which was just too theatrical.

Now we look like weirdos who go crazy for bacon salad. I'm worried it's going to become a staple at family gatherings and I don't know how to get out of a perpetual bacon cycle.

Rennet is added to milk in the manufacturing process of cheese to split the milk and make it set. Usually these days it’s synthetic, but parmesan must be made with animal sourced rennet and so isn’t vegetarian.

Exactly. My 97 year old aunt always managed to remember I'm vegetarian, and provide meat free food. Nothing to do with age, although the OP seems to keep suggesting it is.
I'm still confused by the napkin of salad and flicking bacon at the dog, though. Quite an odd story.

In her defence EVERYONE knows that vegetarians would actually KILL for a bacon sarnie. She was actually HELPING you by removing the guilt.

I think you should be more grateful OP.

😁

Indeed - and I've eaten many vegetarian dishes which are as tasty and appetising as many meat-based meals.

What is it with bacon, more than once I’ve been given salad like that and told “it’s just a little” or “it’s chopped up very small” I wouldn’t have eaten it or pretended. I mean would you do that to someone who’s kosher? I wouldn’t have made a fuss but would have eaten anything else that was veggie even if that was just bread and butter. Now you just come clean and tell them you didn’t eat any and hid it as you didn’t want to seem rude but it was super awkward. Next time do bring something you can eat to be sure.

For the love of God, grow a backbone!

… and the other eight people didn’t notice you putting salad in your handbag etc.?

Sorry, OP, but this is utterly ridiculous! You put salad in your bag? Dropped bacon on the floor for the dog? You have a tongue in your head, can't for the life of me see why you didn't use it to say 'No, actually I can't eat that' and just nodded along like a wet lettuce (sorry for the pun)

Well if this thread doesn’t make the weekly newsletter of hilarious threads, I’ll eat my hat, with or without bacon on. 🤔

I might be missing the point but who invites someone for dinner & only provides a salad for them

I don't suppose there is a remote chance that they were plant-based 'bacon' lardons?

From pigs raised on a vegetarian diet @LogicVoid ?

lol. Lot easier nowadays but it’s easy to get worn down by this stuff.

I was once on a coach trip where they forgot I was vegetarian and the lady running it said can I take the ham out of the sandwich and just eat the bread!

When I first became a vegetarian in early 2000s family used to chase me round the room with meat.

This.

Animal rennet, for those unfamiliar, comes from a calf's stomach.

They must be thick to think bacon is suitable for a veggie. Very thick.
Nanna saying "Can she eat wafer thin ham?" was funny in the Royle Family because it was so silly.

No no, it was a BACON salad. Do try and keep up! 😁

@OpalTree , I'm a vegetarian and have been offered things like ham or chicken salad ('It's not meat, it's ham/chicken') and fish ('Vegetarians eat fish'), and been given food with fish sauce or chicken stock in.

@KirstenBlest at my school formal dance I was given breaded fish, when I said i was veggie they said yes, you eat fish. I didn’t have any hot food as the soup had chicken stock so bread rolls and melon slices for me. The trifle also had gelatine. This was in rural Ireland a very long time ago so am sure things have massively improved. But I do get annoyed at the “I’m vegetarian but I eat fish“ crowd for this reason. Causes too much confusion. I now just have quite low expectations at any mass catered event.

Just specify I suppose.

Or tell them prescetarians don’t eat meat but do eat fish and that you are not a prescatarian. The whole fish thing was a real problem 30/40 or so years ago with pescatarians themselves telling everyone they were vegetarians. Smaller restaurants and pubs regularly had fish as the veggie option because ‘ oh my friend said🤣

Im constantly amazed these days how some find it so confusing, especially if it’s a catered event !

@JackNoMiddleNameReacher , I'm sure you mean well, but I've been a vegetarian for about 40 years.

Over 30 for me. @JackNoMiddleNameReacher sometimes its just a tick box, and was. So you’d assume if it’s their form they know what the words mean. I mean I wouldn’t talk about pescatarians because I’m not one in the way, despite being Irish to don’t give directions by describing where they are not going.

Me too since 1980
But I was responding to @Runssometimes
Think you might have tagged me incorrectly.

Assume if it was a school dance ( ie your example) and you’ve been veggie for over 30years are we talking the 80s here or early 90s. I’m not that surprised that some didn’t know what a vegetarian was in those days.

So many people then would say they were vegetarian but ate chicken or fish or in my flat mates case a bacon butty at the weekend!

I was forever explaining myself back then.
These days most people know, but there’s still a lot that don’t get the gelatine thing or rennet. See upper post re parmesan

Re gelatine
I was in a Jamie Oliver restaurant in about 2015 and on the menu they had panna cotta listed as vegetarian. I asked the waiter if it was really vegetarian as I know it’s usually made with gelatine and even the chef didn’t know as it arrives in powdered form!
We didn’t order it but I emailed the restaurant after and asked for confirmation. They admitted their menu was wrong and it did, indeed, have gelatine in it!!!

Whilst people should know these days, I’m afraid there are still some that just don’t,

@JackNoMiddleNameReacher , I don't think @Runssometimes tagged incorrectly.

I always say I am a vegetarian. I shouldn't need to say I don't eat fish, chicken, etc.

There are many who have no idea what food items and ingredients are, and will be surprised that you don't eat things like lard and gelatine, because they didn't know that they were of animal origin.

I find that sometimes if a host asks 'Is there anything you don't eat?', and you reply 'I'm fine with most things but I really don't like mushrooms, beetroot or blue cheese', they will cook me a mushroom, beetroot and stilton dish.
I'm told that I strongly hinted that I actually like mushrooms, beetroot and blue cheese.
Why do they ask?

😂😂😂😂 this is what my brain is trying to work out as well 🤦🏾‍♀️