Tuesday, May 22, 2012

"Vegan's can't eat anything."

The most common question people ask me is what the difference is between vegetarian and vegan.  Some vegetarian's eat chicken, fish and the rest of the dairy products - eggs, cheese, milk and such.  Vegan's don't eat any products produced by animals.  No dairy and no meat at all.  Some are so hard core that they don't even wear clothing if it is made from animals - wool, leather etc.

Common misconception - "But you need protein and where do you get it from?"  If you combine the right foods together you can build proteins.  A good example is eating a salad made with lentils and rice.  They, together, make up a complete protein. 

I found this information off of this website http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/articles/get-enough-protein-veg-diet.php and they explain it really well.

Each plant food has its own unique amino acid profile, from green leafy veggies to tubers, from barley to quinoa, from lentils to tofu, from macadamias to brazil nuts. By eating a variety of plant foods with 'incomplete proteins' throughout the day, we can easily get enough 'complete protein.' For lacto and ovo-lacto vegetarians, any food can be complemented by the high quality proteins in dairy products or eggs, but it isn't at all necessary to include animal foods to get enough protein in your diet.
Your body puts together amino acids from plant foods to give you complete protein throughout the day. For instance, the amino acids in beans & lentils are balanced by those in grains, nuts and seeds, and vice versa.

Vegetables and fruits also contribute significant amounts of protein. A one cup serving of avocado, for example, has 3 grams of protein, and a medium potato with skin has 4 grams.

Vegans and vegetarians can't help getting all the essential amino acids, through eating different combinations of grains, legumes, nuts & seeds, vegetables & fruit several times throughout the day.

Eating for complete protein isn't a scientific system of food combining, where you have to keep track and analyze everything you eat. It's a natural traditional way of eating, which most human beings have thrived on, for thousands of years.

As a rough guide, the chart below shows some examples of foods which go together well. This chart is very limited, in reality the possibilities could fill several pages, and you don't need to rely on precise combinations of food for complete protein.
Complementary Protein Chart

So vegetarians and vegan's still get protein.  Are you still confused about what Vegan's can eat?  Well, take a look at my completely vegan supper tonight!  It was delish and the kids loved it too.


Broccoli and Cheese Soup ("cheese" made from nutritional yeast that kinda looks like fish food flakes) and
Home Made Vegan Bun's (thanks A for your amazing bread recipe!!)

2 comments:

  1. I have always died laughing at the vegetarians that eat chicken... Ummmm a vegetarian doesn't eat ANY meat... but at least they are trying.

    I explain it the way it was back in the day I was vegetarian. I was considered lacto ovo vegetarian, I ate dairy and eggs...

    Now there is vegan and plain vegetarian... And those ones that won't eat things that kill the plant... ie carrots...

    ReplyDelete
  2. I know! Is that a real thing because you would literally starve if you were all of the above!

    ReplyDelete