1 Eat with friends
If you have friends over for a meal and only one is on a meatless diet, prepare the same meal for everyone. You will not only save yourself the hassle of cooking different dishes, but also liven up your party: research from the University of Chicago shows that sharing the same meal, not just sitting down to eat together, improves trust and cooperation.
2 Explore new cuisines
Forget what you can’t eat and get excited to discover new ingredients and restaurants. Ethiopia has a reputation for amazing vegan comfort food. South Indian dishes are less likely to use meat and ghee than northern ones. If you’re looking for recipes, you may be able to take inspiration from certain occasions: the food eaten in Greece during Lent, for example, is mostly meat-free and dairy-free.
3 Challenge yourself with a week of 30 plants
five a day? old news. Scientists in the US found that people who ate 30 different types of plants in a week had a much more varied gut microbiome than those who ate 10 or fewer. your investigation showed that it could improve your digestion and reduce the risk of bowel cancer. So how do we get more plant-based foods into our diet? Consider adding an extra vegetable to your salad. Grate a carrot in tomato sauce instead of sugar. Start eating plants for breakfast, add dried or fresh fruit to porridge, or cook spinach or mushrooms.
4 Go to the market
And no, it doesn’t have to be a bougie farmers market. If you’re lucky enough to live within walking distance of a local market, it’s a cheap and fun way to shop. All the “hit a bowl!” joy makes the streets vibrant, and piles of fresh produce will inspire your kitchen. When you’ve impulsively bought a bag full of eggplants for a pound, you’ll want to find ways to use them.
5 Think of alternatives
At the supermarket, you’ll notice that the vegan alternatives section is expanding rapidly. And, again, choosing to explore will pay delicious dividends. Jackfruit cooked as a curry or stuffed into a burrito is lush and filling. Oat Drinks are an incredibly creamy porridge and smooth hot chocolate (whip in cocoa powder, sugar, and a dash of mixed spices). Nutritional yeast may sound a bit gloomy, but it’s great for adding a savory, cheesy flavor to sauces.
6 But what about protein?
Plant-based diets may fall short on protein, but you can meet your daily needs by eating a variety of beans, legumes, grains, and nuts, all of which provide more dietary fiber than meat. About a third of global greenhouse gas emissions come from the food systemwith half of those emissions produced by the livestock (or animal-based) sector.
7 Don’t stress about labels
In general, animal products have a higher environmental impact than plant products. If you want to reduce your climate impact, switch to a more plant-based diet. But on a personal level, it can be hard to tell yourself that you’ll never eat roast beef again. There is no need to issue a press release that you are now vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian or whatever. Get rid of the labels. Just keep exploring new foods and making small changes, because every time we choose plant-based foods, we’re helping the environment.
Looking for dietary advice from a puppet? Watch THE NEW NORM&AL SHOW. Season 1 streaming now. Learn more at avena.com
