Photo: Thinkstock
- Vegetarian and vegan diet
- Vegetarian
- Vegetarians live longer
- Passover waiver for the health
- The classic: tofu
- Shooting Star: Tempeh
- Awesome: Seitan
- Shopping and enjoying vegetarian food
- Vegan
- One more step further
- You do not have to starve
- Vegan alternatives
- Restaurants & Shops
- Part-Time Vegetarian
- Only three days a month
Vegetarian and vegan diet
After all the scandals there are good reasons to do without meat. You do not have to become radical vegetarian or vegan - even two days a week without animal products cause a lot.
Vegetarian
Almost two years ago, the first green cafeteria "Veggie Nº 1" of Freie Universität (FU) Berlin opened its doors. "Every day 1, 000 people are fed here. In the first year there were still 400 meals per day - the growth speaks for itself, "says Gabriele Pflug from the Studentenwerk Berlin. Also in the refectory Freiburg students are every Thursday under the motto "meal vegetarian" cooked. And at Puma there are only meat-free dishes in the cafeteria on Mondays. The sporting goods manufacturer has adopted the "Meat Free Monday", a campaign by Paul McCartney and his daughters.
No question: vegetarian is totally trendy. But not only Vöner (for vegan kebabs) or the veggie burger with big fast food chains loaded with vegetables are booming. Even Europe's top chefs such as Tim Mälzer, Matt Wilkinson and Alain Ducasse create healthy star-style vegetables.
Vegetarians live longer
And if you like down-to-earth home-cooking, you'll find plenty of suggestions on how to make roulades, schnitzels or pancakes from plant-based substitutes in numerous veggie cookbooks. Approximately six million people in Germany feed meatlessly, 600, 000 of them vegan, according to the latest figures from the Vegetarian Federation Germany (VEBU). Over the last five years, the number of vegetarian and vegan people has increased at least ten percent annually.
And the veggie lifestyle is always healthy, because vegetarians have a significantly higher life expectancy. The current health-care study from Loma Linda University / California with 96, 000 participants from the US and Canada proves that women who do not eat meat live on average 6.1, men even 9.5 years longer.
Passover waiver for the health
And the risk of contracting the coronary arteries is also one third lower than normal ones. The healthiest vegans are: they are 13.6 kg lighter on average than non-vegetarians and have five BMUs lower than non-vegetarians. This, too, is a worthwhile benefit in avoiding animal foods.
Whether you want to become a vegan, vegetarian or even just a part-time vegetarian - how easy the conversion works, read on the following pages.
These basics need you!
The classic: tofu
Strictly speaking, the quark (silk tofu) or cheese (smoked tofu) made from soya tastes like nothing. But that is his strength. Because so he can be used in many ways. Important for savory dishes: Roast the tofu well and season it vigorously.
Shooting Star: Tempeh
In contrast to tofu, whole soybeans are fermented during the production of tempeh. This Tempeh is wholesome and can be better cut into slices or cubes due to its firmer texture.
Awesome: Seitan
Looks like meat, tastes like meat: seitan is made from wheat protein and makes it possible to prepare just about any classic meat dish as a vegetarian variant. But who does not tolerate gluten, but must be careful!
Veggie on the web
Flexitarian, vegetarian or vegan? Under www.unverbissen-vegetarisch.de you will find tips for a relaxed transition to a meatless diet. Eating Vegetarian in Paris, Barcelona or Berlin? Take a look at the Veggie Guide from www.vegetarian-diaries.blogspot.de!
Shopping and enjoying vegetarian food
From soy milk to veggie burger: In the online shop www.alles-vegetarisch.de there is everything the veggie heart desires. If you are traveling a lot, you will find hotels at www.veggie-hotels.de that offer vegetarian food from the breakfast buffet to the menu. Meatless for Beginners: The Vegetarian League offers a free veggie subscription for 30 days, www.vebu.de.
Vegan
The fact that Nicole Just would eventually feed completely vegetable, she would not even have thought possible until four years ago. Growing up as the butcher of a butcher, meat has been a staple of her diet for years. "One of my absolute favorite dishes was steak, pink roasted."
Then in 2009, the turnaround: Nicole read the book "Skinny Bitch" by Rory Freedman and began to live vegan overnight. "The book is about the problems of factory farming and lobbying in the food industry. I always read the book on the way to work. At some point, I just could not pour any more milk into the coffee. "
One more step further
Vegans are not content to just live meatless: they eat neither eggs nor milk, including all products made from them. Foods derived from animals are taboo. This also applies to bees and the honey they produce. The reason for the total waiver: Vegans are against any kind of animal husbandry for the food industry.
Nicole Just: "Once you think about the effects that come with our consumption, you can not just continue to consume meat and animal products as before. Today I can say: It was the best decision of my life. "
You do not have to starve
But what else can you eat when meat, milk, cheese and eggs disappear from the diet? This question has led the hobby cook over the years to a creative vegan kitchen, which she has been implementing since 2012 as the owner of the Berlin-based supper club "Mund-Art-Berlin".
"Of course, many everyday products are gone. But something new is added. For me, it is now relaxing to be delivered to the supermarket not the overstimulation in the supermarket. I know what kind of food I want to buy and I'll leave everything else to one side. "People who have never tasted vegan before are usually surprised how good that can be. "And you are surprised that you are actually fed up with it."
To be vegan means to go against the tide in everyday life, to be a little different. Nicole Just does not want to come across dogmatic. She does not proselytize, but admits: "To friends, colleagues, and anyone who can not run away fast enough, I'll just stick a piece of my vegan cheesecake in my mouth!"
Vegan alternatives
Without egg
Whether cooking or baking: eggs seem indispensable at first glance, but they are not. For breading, simply swap the egg for 1 teaspoon flour and starch, whisked with 2-3 tbsp soymilk. For quiche, cakes or other desserts, you can replace eggs with pureed silk tofu.
Instead of milk and cream
Oat, spelled or soy milk is now available in almost every supermarket. Also suitable for frothing latte macchiato or for pudding cooking. In the health food store you will also find milk-free cream, vegan cream cheese, coconut milk and a wide range of nutmeg: Whether a paste of almonds, cashews or sesame - they all make soups and sauces creamy, completely without cream.
Vegan on the web
In the blog www.vegan-sein.de you will find valuable shopping tips and many recipes. At www.deutschlandistvegan.de you can find out what the veggie scene has to offer in your place of residence. www.bevegt.de stands for "vegan life and running" and proves that top sporting achievements are possible even without meat.
Restaurants & Shops
The new app of VEBU shows the way to the vegan restaurants in the surrounding area. Fancy vegan treats? At www.veggiesweets.de you can order biscuits and chocolate. More than 6, 000 pure vegan products are on the shelves of the Veganz supermarket (in Berlin and Frankfurt), www.veganz.de.
Part-Time Vegetarian
And what if the appetite for the savory taste of a tender steak simply remains? Steadfast vegetarians solve the problem through meatless variants. Finally, there are now almost every dish, every ingredient as a vegetable veggie version. "But those who can not make friends with tofu, tempeh or seitan do not have to feel bad, " promises Martin Kintrup, author of "Part-Time Vegetarians".
"For me, the veggie lifestyle represents the ideal way of life and nutrition. Nevertheless, the carnal appetite seizes me every now and then, " admits Kintrup. "Then I simply refine classical vegetable dishes with stewed fish, grilled turkey strips or thinly sliced ham."
Only three days a month
According to a recent Forsa survey, there are currently 42 million so-called "flexitarians" in Germany. And according to a recent US study, they already live above average healthy. "If you do not eat meat two days a week, you can significantly improve your blood lipid levels."
The study also showed that it is enough to do without phy- ses - ie about three days a month - to completely dispense with animal foods in order to achieve a positive effect: The metabolism repositions itself and absorbs significantly less fat on the remaining days, This proves that being a part-time vegan or vegetarian also brings much - and less weight.
"You have much more energy"
The blog "Vegan-sein" by Nicole Just is one of the best in Germany.
How easy is the transition to a vegan diet?
Nicole Just: It worked amazingly well for me. It is important that you do not pressure yourself. At the beginning even small steps are absolutely fine. Switching to a purely vegetable diet should be seen as an exciting, completely new beginning, with many new foods, ways of cooking and flavors to discover.
Is there anything you miss?
No not at all. But that was right from the start. I have never forbidden anything, but made a very conscious decision. At the beginning, I started cooking all my favorite dishes vegan. That gave me security. And once you realize that most dishes work without cream, butter, milk and meat, everything is easy.
You replace eggs with silk tofu in your recipes or use seitan instead of meat. Does that taste good?
That's what I asked myself at the beginning (laughs). But pretty soon realized: Yes, that tastes very good! In cakes and pies usually no one notices that neither eggs nor milk or butter were used. The best example is my cheese cake. In meat alternatives, it is so that you have to roast and spice it well. But you have to do that with meat too. Nobody would come up with the idea of simply eating a piece of pork tenderloin.
What's the biggest benefit of living vegan?
You have more energy, are more balanced. I never would have thought that possible. I worked full-time and studied at the same time. During this time, I often felt tired and beaten off. The change made everything much easier. Even today, when I work in the media industry and at the same time run my supper club, I am bursting with energy and feel every day really good.
book tips
Cook goulash or bake cheesecake: Nicole Just shows in "La Veganista" that it also works without animal products.
"La Veganista" by Nicole Just (GU Verlag, around 17 Euro) order here on Amazon.de >>
If you would like to change your diet slowly, you will find suggestions in "Cooking for part-line vegetarians" by Martin Kintrup.
"Cooking for part-line vegetarians" by Martin Kintrup (GU, around 17 Euro) order here on Amazon.de >>
Recipes: Vegetarian and vegan cuisine on SHAPE Online >>
