Those who are planning to turn vegan or just implemented the same, have one roadblock in mind, “how to make vegan dishes like professionals”? This dilemma is rising out of so many myths spread around related to a plant-based diet. Cooking vegan food is cumbersome, expensive, time-taking, and things like that.
Well, the truth of the matter is vegan food is simple, easy to obtain, plan, and cost-effective. You can easily find a group of veggies, fruits, readymade quinoa puffs or chips , quality nuts, and much more.
The only thing that matters, is if you love to cook and have decided to follow a vegan diet diligently, then nothing seems difficult for you. Vegan cooking is certainly simple and best planned. You have to be consistent in cooking to learn more and keep better the taste of your food.
Now, the question is how to get started with vegan cooking? Well, the answer lies in starting with the basics before listing the best protein, iron, calcium, or any other source. First, decide, shop, pick, learn, cook, taste, and grow. Be it as your morning heavy breakfast, protein-packed lunch, or making healthy snacks, follow the same cooking pattern.
If you aim to turn a quality vegan follower, take your grocery shopping seriously. Nutritious and healthy plant-based meals depend on the quality and type of ingredients you utilize. Even professional chefs do their grocery shopping on their own to pick favorable items and ensure delectable delight.
Decide your list of ingredients, additional spices, and other food items be included in the grocery list. The best way to decide on items is based on your eating habits and taste buds to write your own few vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, seeds, and other items. Based on the list hit the grocery store online or offline as per your choice to buy things. If concerned about going out of budget, refer to 5 helpful ways to stay vegan cost-effectively and seamlessly.
A vegan diet is impossible to follow without leaving healthy vegetables behind. Although all the veggies must be there in your meals and low-calorie snacks. Still, few vegetables are synonymous with a successful vegan diet.
* Cabbage, Broccoli, Cauliflower
All three are part of the cruciferous vegetable family and healthy to consume daily. These veggies are for stir-fries to include in a crunchy assortment of vegan snacks anytime. You can even boil, mix with lentils, and sprinkle spices to experience a wholesome meal.
The consumption of these cruciferous veggies reduces the risk of cancer and other health-related issues. Peel the outer part of the broccoli and cauliflower before including them in a favorable choice of dishes.
* Leafy Greens
Leafy greens are the most nutritious among all in terms of providing plant-based protein, iron, healthy fats, and several minerals inside. Select rich dark leafy green vegetables to acquire the best nutrition in your meals. For example, kale and boy choy are rich sources of calcium compared to spinach or collards.
Follow a smooth vegan diet by including must-green leafy greens and increase the consumption to almost daily. You can cook, stir-fry, add to your salads, use topping inside the wrap, or any way to consume greens.
* Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes
Consuming healthy carbohydrates is the imperative requirement for your body to get much-needed energy and glucose. Potato and sweet potatoes are two carbohydrate-rich ingredients to include in your diet. You know potato without saying is the vegan synonymous part of your wraps, sandwiches, salads, and other things mixed with the same.
Sweet potatoes are much more nutritious than plain potatoes and offer extensive nutrition. Simple to make sweet potatoes just require a few forks stabs on the same and oven for 40 to 70 minutes at 350 degrees F. Moreover, make naturally sweet baked potatoes and stir-fries to enjoy a delectable treat.
* Squash
The two relevant squash to add to your plant-based diet pattern are zucchini (during summer) and butternut (during winter). Deal with the hot scorching summer hunger with something light and include maximum water content inside like zucchini. Refrigerate it for a few days while consuming and add it to sandwiches, salads, burritos, and other meals.
Butternut is certainly a winter delight for vegans that can last for months without putting inside the refrigerator. Consume butternut after peeling the skin and slicing the pieces as per your requirement. You can find both varieties of squash at a nearby supermarket or buy them online.
* Onions
Onions are the mainstay of the majority of vegan meals you prepare at the house. You can explore any region of the plant-based dish with onion as the lip-smacking ingredient to include. Available in red, white, and yellow colors, pick any variety of onions. One popular variety is slightly sweet tasted and big-size onion that you can include to bring some sweetness to meals.
In addition to the fresh stock of fruits and vegetables, you also need to keep the stock of some imperishable vegan items ready. It is a good natural selection of extensive food items that help you bring in addition to breakfast, vegan snacks, and main course meals. You can bring a variety of nuts, seeds, flour, rice, dried fruit, dark chocolate (made of cocoa and dates only), pasta and noodles (flour made), quinoa, nut butter, tahini, etc.
You can rely on additional panty items to make the lip-smacking choice of chocolate treats , nutritious bowl meals, and a variety of snacks.
It is imperative to have a selection of favorable healthy snacks to include in your daily diet pattern. You need to have a wide assortment of snacks that are healthy, low in cholesterol, fat-free and must be high in protein. One of the options you have is crunchy plantain tostones from a brand like Ojas Vegan. Hard-pressed plantain chips make the best choice for mid-afternoon or mid-evening snacks. Eat it simple or pair up with a wide selection of plantain dips as per your taste buds.
In addition to that, you have several homemade low-calorie snacks to get ready for small hunger desires. Simply add roasted chickpeas, trail mix, rice cakes, fruit and nut butter, edamame with sea salt, and the list goes on.
Cooking distinctive vegan meals is incomplete without adding the list of spices and herbs of your choice. The concentrated flavors add the real taste to your dishes of favorable choices. Some particular lists of spices you should have are mustard, kosher salt, coriander seeds, turmeric, cardamom, and several others. In terms of seasonings for the salad, wraps, and burritos, you should be ready with pickled veggies, lemon juice, salt, tamari juice, balsamic vinegar, and more.
Remember not every cooking oil must be there in your meal pattern. It is a common mistake that people make of using any cooking oil to make vegan dishes. You have to stick to a few selected varieties of oils to cook your dishes flexibly and taste superior.
* Olive Oil: It is a low-temperature cooking oil that contains the lowest amount of fat and keeps your meals go light and healthy. The best recommended is the extra virgin oil and get it unfiltered, if possible. Notice the fact that unrefined olive oil offers a strong peppy flavor with having balsamic vinegar which makes a perfect combination to cook baked items.
* High Oleic Safflower Oil: Especially for higher temperature cooking, lay hands on high oleic safflower oil. It has its resistant to scorching temperatures while cooking.
* Sesame Oil: It is an inexpensive way to enhance any of your plant-based dishes. You can best make stir-fry vegetables and Asian-style noodles using this oil and shorten your cooking time in a hassle-free manner.
* Unrefined Coconut Oil: If you require some delicate flavor on your meal plate, choose to have unrefined coconut oil. It offers some nuances of the fresh coconut inside and perfectly made oil to best complement your dishes.
Vegan cooking is simple, includes more options, and offers a variety of delicacies. Planning is required to shop for the best ingredients, maintain supplies, and know what to include in a particular dish. Refer to the mentioned guide and make your plant-based meals more delectable and healthy. Moreover, consume crunchy quinoa puffs vegan snacks along with other chips from the Ojas Vegan brand.
