Vegan "Cheese"

[RickH]

On sausages, I jokingly said that Richmond's new meat free sausages probably didn't need much change to the recipe!

A quick online search for "vegan cheese" brought up one vendor selling a brand called "Sheese" & the others were generally described as things like "cheddar flavour" or "cheddar style" (or another type of cheese) without actually mentioning the word cheese.

[pwa]

Come on, own up, who's tried it?

This was my very faint-hearted New Year Res., that I would at least try this stuff. I emphasise the word 'try'. So I diligently purchased two blocks picked at random: one called 'Violife Epic Mature' and the other 'Applewood smoked'. We tried them both, toasted, today.

My point is, having forsaken meat, cheese is the most planet-busting thing we regularly consume. Overall production emits a whopping 13.5 Kg of CO2 per Kg of cheese - worse than both chicken and pig meat (though not as bad as beef or lamb).

I just felt we ought to do something. Not this, though. Was definitely a one-off try-out... The best I can do to describe them is, one of them was like some heavily-processed fake-Farmer-Jack that we once bought in a convenience store in America (there was nothing else). The other - words fail me!

Of course, if technology were to come up with an exact taste-alike for Roquefort, Stilton, Manchego, Gouda, Wensleydale, Comté, Parmesan....

We have tried it a couple of times. Maybe it will improve over time but the best we have come up with so far is to eat real cheese, but just eat less of it.

[Ride-sleep-repeat]

Our daughter is Vegan.My wife won't try any of her food.I've tried most things and to be quite honest I find it all just bland.The 'cheese' made from coconut is particularly rancid.It's not for me,none of it.The pretend milk is also rancid.
I find the Vegan 'bacon' and 'gammon' a bit odd.Although it's now being marketed as 'plant-based whatever' it's still aimed at Vegans.
The absolute worst stuff is Quorn.It all tastes like cardboard but with the texture of rubber.

[pwa]

Our daughter is Vegan.My wife won't try any of her food.I've tried most things and to be quite honest I find it all just bland.The 'cheese' made from coconut is particularly rancid.It's not for me,none of it.The pretend milk is also rancid.
I find the Vegan 'bacon' and 'gammon' a bit odd.Although it's now being marketed as 'plant-based whatever' it's still aimed at Vegans.
The absolute worst stuff is Quorn.It all tastes like cardboard but with the texture of rubber.

As a vegetarian, I don't understand fake bacon either. But it is possible to make vegan dishes that anyone can enjoy. It is generally a matter of starting with raw ingredients, nothing processed, and making something like a curry with lentils cooked until they dissolve and make a sauce infused with curry, tomatoes and and garlic, with stir fried vegetables that include things like peppers and perhaps some sort of bean. I do a vegetarian curry that is made that way but I make it non-vegan at the end by adding just a little dairy produce to make it more creamy, but it would be okay without that. I sometimes serve it with chips and rice.

I doubt there will ever be a fake cheese that is worth having. If I went vegan I think I would just try to lose my cheese habit. It might be a good reason for me to go vegan because I do eat too much cheese, and being compelled to ditch it completely could benefit my health.

[francovendee]

Alcohol free beer, vegan burgers, vegan cheese, I'll be ordering none of these having tried them already.

We've been told that : red meat, eggs, coffee, sugar, salt, processed meat, alcohol etc are bad for our health.
If I avoided all of the above life would be pretty miserable even if it meant I'd live a lot longer.

[Oldjohnw]

I stopped dairy two or three years ago.

I only eat cheese now

[kwackers]

We've been told that : red meat, eggs, coffee, sugar, salt, processed meat, alcohol etc are bad for our health.
If I avoided all of the above life would be pretty miserable even if it meant I'd live a lot longer.

Taste is a socially constructed thing, there are folk out there who think life would be miserable if they couldn't snack on fried locusts.

[Psamathe]

....The absolute worst stuff is Quorn.It all tastes like cardboard but with the texture of rubber.

I like Quorn (sliced stuff and non-meat sausage rolls). Can't get on with Tofu but like Quorn. I assume the "taste" must depend on what that add to the different products to add taste.

Ian

[Ride-sleep-repeat]

Alcohol free beer

I've tried dozens of different types over the last 12 months.If you avoid the Lagers(although Aldi and Lidls are OK) there are some quite good AF IPAs/Pale Ales out there.The thing that you have to get your head around is the price.They are generally more expensive than their 'proper' counterparts I drink more AF beer than anything these days.It's been quite a revelation for me!
I like Red Wine and have yet to find any AF Reds that don't taste like warm Ribena!

[Oldjohnw]

Isn't most bottled beer almost alcohol free anyway!

[simonineaston]

For strong bottled beers see here... personally I think they're a daft idea, as a major plus of beer / ale / lager etc is its thirst-quenching properties, most being made up of 95% or more water! Best of all, sometimes is a pint of lemonade shandy

[Psamathe]

2019 tour met this German cyclist at one campsite and he could not drink alcohol and convinced me to try the German alcohol free beers (convincing me involved him buying them!) and they were very good. I can't remember the names or brands but I was impressed.

Ian

[Ride-sleep-repeat]

For strong bottled beers see here... personally I think they're a daft idea, as a major plus of beer / ale / lager etc is its thirst-quenching properties, most being made up of 95% or more water! Best of all, sometimes is a pint of lemonade shandy

I can't drink Shandy.It's just too sweet!That said I can't drink any canned soft drink I find them all too sickly.

2019 tour met this German cyclist at one campsite and he could not drink alcohol and convinced me to try the German alcohol free beers (convincing me involved him buying them!) and they were very good. I can't remember the names or brands but I was impressed.
Ian

Erdinger Weissbrau AF is OK but has to be really cold.I keep it in the fridge for a few days then put it in the fast-freeze drawer for 20 mins before consumption.Some Sportives give out a bottle at the finish line as it's allegedly Isotonic.

[661-Pete]

Our daughter is Vegan.My wife won't try any of her food.I've tried most things and to be quite honest I find it all just bland.The 'cheese' made from coconut is particularly rancid.It's not for me,none of it.The pretend milk is also rancid.
I find the Vegan 'bacon' and 'gammon' a bit odd.Although it's now being marketed as 'plant-based whatever' it's still aimed at Vegans.
The absolute worst stuff is Quorn.It all tastes like cardboard but with the texture of rubber.

Disappointing, but not really surprising. Lots of people, trying to 'go vegan' with the above suggestions, will probably react the same.

The mistake that - possibly - your daughter is making and passing on to you (forgive me for being presumptive, I know nothing about her) is that vegan food comprises no more than a list of substitutes for non-vegan foods. I.e. that the total gamut of vegan foods consists of substitute meat, substitute fish, substitute cheese, substitute eggs, substitute milk .... and so on.

It does not.

There is a place for vegan substitutes, true, but they do not have to dominate a vegan diet. Quorn (which is not actually vegan, it contains egg) for example, can be very tasty, but only if it's used in the right sort of dishes. For example, we regularly do a 'chilli-con-quorn' in which quorn mince takes the place of the minced beef - and it is delicious. If 'chilli-con' is on your 'likes' list, and if you have the time and inclination to cook it yourself, try it!

But many other vegan dishes that we do (and alternate with our non-vegan dishes) have nothing in common with non-vegan equivalents. We have many specialities which are out-of-this-world as far as tastiness goes. For example, our version of Masala Dosa (somewhat simplified from 'official' recipes) would not only make your mouth water, it'd bring tears to your eyes (not literally).

But what it boils down to, I'm afraid, is you need to have some time and inclination to cook. If you don't cook, or if you do only very basic cooking, I probably can't help you. If you can (and lots of people have switched to home cooking due to lockdown) - good luck! PM me if you want some recipes.

[francovendee]

We've been told that : red meat, eggs, coffee, sugar, salt, processed meat, alcohol etc are bad for our health.
If I avoided all of the above life would be pretty miserable even if it meant I'd live a lot longer.

Taste is a socially constructed thing, there are folk out there who think life would be miserable if they couldn't snack on fried locusts.

Very true but coming from a white British background I think my construction consists of real cheese and real beer. I've never tried fried locusts but given the chance I would. Who knows I might like them