How to incorporate more plant-based meals into your lifestyle – with minimal fuss!
This World Vegan Month, why don’t you join us in trying to reduce your carbon footprint by opting for more vegan or plant-based options? Don’t get us wrong, we love a heartwarming curry with meat. But with the amount of meat-free options out there at the moment, it’s never been easier to eat more plant-based meals.
So, this World Vegan Month, we challenge you to try and incorporate new and tasty plant-based meals into your lifestyle (even if it’s just one – who’s counting?!)
Ones to watch: meat and dairy substitutes
Instead of opting for meats and cheeses, try choosing some plant-based substitutes instead. The amount of choice out there is seriously impressive – there are new brands emerging all the time. You can get hold of some of the bigger brands in regular supermarkets, but head to health food stores for some up and coming alternatives. We love Tiba Tempeh for punchy tempeh pieces, Violife for remarkably real feta and Meatless Farm for a mince alternative.
Make vegetables the STAR of the show
Despite what you might think, a great meal does not have to be centred around meat. In fact, shifting the belief that it does can open you up to a whole new world of delicious opportunities and inspiration. Forget vegetable side dishes and start creating winning vegetable mains! When it comes to eating meat-free meals – people too often focus on what they can’t have instead of what they can. Vegetable-packed meals are colourful, full of vitamins and minerals and bursting with tastes and textures. Get creative with your veg! Our Beetroot Curry is a great place to start.
It’s a myth that plant-based foods lack protein!
Missing that ‘meaty texture’ of a steak no longer needs to happen in the twenty-first century. Forget medium rare cauliflower and bean burgers which bear no resemblance to the real thing – you can still get the fleshy feel of meat in plenty of protein-packed plant-based products. Take mince for example, it’s a staple in so many recipes. Instead of finely chopping vegetables in the hope they’ll feel somewhat like beef, simply swap for soy mince and don’t compromise on taste or texture!
Don’t be shy when it comes to flavour
Eating meat-free meals doesn’t mean eating bland, flavourless meals. In fact, it can often mean quite the opposite. Just because your meal is lacking in meat, does not mean it should be lacking in taste! Choose rich flavours and strong spices that complement your ingredients. It’s no wonder that plant-based curries are so popular – the combination of deep, aromatic flavours works so well with a myriad of vegetables! You can’t beat a curry with a mixture of rich and perfectly balanced flavours coming together. In fact, we’ve designed our curry spice kits to be so versatile that they work with anything – white meat, red meat, seafood, or, you guessed it…vegetables!
Head to our recipe page for some tasty plant-based inspiration. If you don’t know where to start, our Classic Chickpea and Potato Bangla is always a winner. Or try our Jackfruit Curry if you’re feeling a little more adventurous. Oh, and you can’t go wrong with our Dhaka Dahl. The possibilities are truly endless!