Staple foods for vegans

[Edsheeranalbumparty]

For several reasons I have decided to try and cut down on meat in my diet, and at the same time it just so happens i have been cutting down on animal products generally. I don't think i will ever be able to go fully.vegan, but it's doesn't actually seem that tricky to do it a lot of the time.

I was just wondering what staple foods vegans always go for? Up for trying different milks (apart from coconut definitely don't like that) and have already been eating more different types of beans and pulses, and more nuts. Not that keen on tofu or any sort of 'meat substitute', althought I could give tofu a go. Just don't want to eat so much avocado and hummus that I fall out of love with them!

Any other tips or advice also appreciated

I imagine if I were vegan my staples would be:

baked beans
rice
potatoes
lots of fruit
lots of veg
salsa

Almost Same as now, when I eat meat. Only staple missing for me is cream in tea & cow's cheese.

Mine are:
Chickpeas, adzuki and black beans
Water from chickpeas to use as egg substitute and to make creamy hummus
Chia seeds
Peanut butter
Avocado
Nuts; I use them to make sauces and raw bars
Dates;
Almond milk
Courgette; I'm obsessed with courgette spaghetti
Kale; I put it in smoothies and stews
Nutritional yeast. Best. Thing. Ever!!!😨

Also puy lentils
Some felafal mixes are vegan
As are some frozen vegetable somosas
worth getting flavouring pastes like good curry paste, harissa or chipotle as they cheer up vegetable and pulses quickly
swedish glace icecream

These are what I try to have in...

Booja booja ice cream for a treat

Nutritional yeast (Amazon)

Houmous

Sabra zaalouk dip (auberginey, peppery tomatoey) from ocado or Waitrose

Lentils - puy and red

Coconut milk (both canned for cooking and uht style for coffee)

Tofu - firm, silken and smoked

Tinned beans and pulses - chickpeas, butter beans, black beans, cannellini etc

Tinned tomatoes

Herbs and spices

Cashew nuts (great for soaking, blending and adding creaminess)

Vegan pesto

Tahini

Miso paste

Linda McCartney sausages and sausage rolls to please the kids

Some veg burgers for a quick dinner

Flax seed to grind and use as egg replacement

Chia seeds

How do you use flax seeds as an egg replacement?

Ds has recently become vegan and I'm trying to find recipes so that I can cook him foods that he likes and which are vegan. He likes cakes and biscuits etc but I'm struggling to find recipes that are vegan.

1 tbsp milled flax seed mixed with 2 tbsp and left to thicken for a few minutes can be used as egg replacement where the egg is used as a binding agent. Wouldn't work in an omelette though!

It is far far too easy to bake vegan cakes and biscuits! Loads of recipes out there or you can veganise your usual ones.

Nigella's vegan chocolate cake is delicious (think it's called dark and sumptuous) as are Jamie's vegan brownies. The minimalist baker blog is great for recipes, too. Or Oh She Glows website.

Some are more virtuous than others - oats, spelt, coconut oil, agave syrup etc whereas others are complete refined sugar and white carb fests!

“Try some vegan cheese .plenty of choice in Tesco..it's all yummy”

I disagree. Most of the Tesco vegan “cheese” is coconut based and has a nasty underlying vanilla/coconut aftertaste.

As a cheese lover I would rather go without than eat that stuff. We went to a vegan festival the other weekend and tried some from Tyne Chease and found it to be the most palatable alternative to cheese. It is expensive, but so much nicer than anything else I have tried.

IMO Oatly is the nicest vegan milk, and Swedish Glace is an excellent alternative to ice cream.

Oatley barista milk will make you a very nice coffee.
We eat lots of Buddha bowls in the summer - google for loads of tasty variants.
We also eat for dinners: veg curry, morrocan tagine, tofu and udon noodles, lentil cottage pie.
Lunches are: soups, smoothies, salads, hummus and red pepper wraps, peanut butter and jam sandwiches, beans with nooch on toast.
Snacks: trek bars, nakd bars, carrot sticks and hummus. Lots of fruit and alpro yoghurts too!

I recommend stocking up on a couple of decent cool books - the works often has cheap ones.

*cook

My vegan staples are:
Red peppers
Butternut squash
Avocado
Pearl barley
Coriander
Sweet potato
Pomegranates seeds
Tofu
Tahini
And some very good vegan cook books!

Mine are jarred chilli sauce, jarred pasta sauce, curry paste, tinned tomatoes, chick peas and kidney beans, frozen chopped peppers, sweet corn, peas, broccoli, mushrooms and spinach, jar of lazy garlic, ginger, sweet chilli sauce, soy sauce, dried pasta, noodles, rice, baked potatoes, houmous, pre pack salad, chips, sweet potato chips, veggie burgers, margarine, almond or soya milk, soya cream, bread, fruit, peanut butter, cereal bars (nakd etc), crisps, biscuits and chocolate. I'm a lazy cook.

Quorn make vegan "fish fingers" they are lovely. For lunches I usually have salady stuff, seed sprouts, red cabbage, lettuce, sugar snap peas - that sort of thing. I sprinkle lentils or chick peas over the top and then add some tofu or vegan sausage or vegan cheese. I'm not actually a vegan but I eat that way when I can and it is very easy with lunches.

We're omni but try to have a few vegan meals each week, I always keep dried beans/pulses on hand. I especially am a fan of black beans in Mexican style cooking, and always have plenty of chickpeas in the house. When cooking Asian foods I do love tofu - hard to find good fresh tofu but if you live near a major city there's usually a Chinese supermarket (try Wing Yip or H Mart)

UsedToBeAPaxmanFan

This has great recipes: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06XCZG7X2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1&tag=mumsnetforum-21

I'm not sure you can use flax seed as a 'straight swap' for eggs IYSWIM? Plenty of vegan cake recipes use things like vegan 'buttermilk' (made by souring milk substitutes with cide vinegar) and a raising agent like bicarb, or banana, or even tofu, as an egg substitute for cakes.

Your can buy egg replacer in many health food shops.

I've also had some success using tofu instead of egg to make Yorkshire Puddings....

Basic staples: Chickpeas, black eyed beans, green and red lentils, kidney beans, tinned chopped tomatoes, pasta, brown rice, wholewheat noodles

Veg: Sweet potatoes, courgettes, aubergine, onions, kale, cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, peppers, salad leaves from the garden, tomatoes

For flavour: Miso paste, peanut butter, chilli flakes, ginger, cumin, turmeric, fennel seeds, tahini, almonds, lemons, limes, dulse.

Dulse is my absolute favourite - it's a dried seaweed and apart from being added in smaller quantities to give a fantastic salty savoury flavour, can be fried with mushrooms to make a breakfast sandwich that is actually much nicer than a bacon sandwich ever was!