To not let my sister bring her own meat on Christmas day!

[FelizNavidadAmiga]

First off, we are a strictly vegan household for moral reasons. I invited my sister for Christmas lunch as she is recently divorced and has nowhere else to go. I usually put on a magnificent spread with roast vegetables, tagine, stuffed peppers, vine leaves, falafel, home made hummus etc. My sister has just sent me a message saying she's going to bring her own chicken to cook. AIBU to say no way! I don't want chicken cooking in my nice clean vegan oven! Plus the smell makes me feel ill 🤢 I don't want to upset her as she's very sensitive at the moment but surely she can do without chicken for 1 day.

I think it's completely mad to bring meat to a vegan household. (Also very odd not to be grateful for being hosted and accept the meal that's being served...) Your menu sounds delicious!

Only if you lack imagination and don't understand how Google works

There are many non animal sources of protein. Even if by some gastronomic miracle OP managed to miss all of them the absence of protein for one day won't matter.

I'd be absolutely gutted if someone expected me to have a vegan Christmas lunch without the traditional foods.

So then you would, understandably, decline the invitation, not rock up with a raw chicken ?

A tagine is also a food dish, and I presume pp weren't referring to eating cooking receptacles.
I can only assume you thought you were being clever....

I'm doing a traditional Christmas dinner but I'd be delighted to be served your meal. Especially having it cooked for me

To be fair lacking in imagination and being unable to use Google isn't that uncommon on MN !

’Tagine’ doesn’t describe one food dish though - there are many forms and many recipes.

Isn't a lot of this just about tradition? If this was any other time of year, would people still be so critical of the OP's menu? I suspect a lot is just deeply rooted in the ingrained tradition of turkey, veg, plum pudding etc. because some comments here give the impression that there is actually fear of deviating from the norm. It's almost superstition. What do people think will happen if they don't eat poultry at Christmas? Why bow to pressure to eat exactly the same as everyone else? Never understood it.
We are not a vegan household, but the OP's Yuletide feast sounds wonderful to us!

Yes, and maybe pp have never enjoyed anything cooked this way?

They are also vegan. Apparently some posters never eat vegan food/ can't stand vegan food, blah blah.

But there is a simple solution. The sister can decline the invitation.

@ueberlin2030 "It depends on what the vegan food is tbh. I refuse to eat something which has clocked up more airlines than me in the last month"

Let's hope you apply the same scrutiny to a traditional Christmas Lunch.

That looks amazing and not 'everyday'

I think posters have misunderstood some of the posts saying that OPs spread is not 'festive' and that its 'everyday food'.

The whole point of celebration food is that its not something you have every day for tea. Most people dont have a turkey roast for tea. A lot of people (Im one of them, having OPs food for tea/lunch most weeks), its everyday standard food, its not that different. No one is saying its not delicious, of course it is otherwise I for example. wouldnt eat it as often as I do. We have some stuff vine leaves in the fridge now for example, I make my own houmous, we have roasted veg and use a tagine often, mainly for chickpea dishes, stuffed peppers are a nice easy simple dish that is good for dinner.

They're just food imho, food that anyone not allergic to potatoes/the cooking oil can eat. TBH where I live a lot of chips are cooking in dripping, so not suitable for a strict veggie/vegan.

But not food they know the host specifically doesn’t want in the house!

Yes. I am lucky to live somewhere with decent local produce and try to eat seasonally. Not always easy though. I aim for Scottish or British, or EU at a push.

Also- some people seem to be completely unaware of the cuisine of the Middle East!

@ueberlin2030 so no mince pies? No cranberry sauce. No carrots, or broccoli. No chocolate. No tea or coffee.

I don’t believe that you don’t understand this.

If I'm cooking for people I prefer to make things I'm familiar with cooking - that's maybe why some non-vegans are less confident with a new recipe for a vegan suitable main? Not everyone can afford to buy all the ingredients to practice in advance. Luckily I cook a lot of veggie food so could adapt to be vegan but some folk just don't. A vegan at my house would enjoy all the vegetable and pulse based sides hopefully though.

I don't drink tea or coffee.
Scottish/British chocolate exists, as do carrots. I don't eat broccoli. Mince pies I can take or leave. We have some cranberry sauce, so that's one exception. I do try because it's important to me.

No. A 'tagine' isnt just one dish, what dish do you think it is then?

I'd love falafel in flat-bread with salad & vegetables, but would ask if I could bring some vegan yogurt to mix with a spicy sauce and pickled chillies to go on top.

I wouldn't bring anything non-vegan, just like I wouldn't go to my jewish friend's house to eat and take my own pork chop. I mean, why would you?

Some of us are aware of it but have not enjoyed some of it several times. TBH though, it's quite privileged to judge folk who haven't been exposed to all the foods of the world.