I'm preparing a large dinner for an organisation at the moment and decided that we'd make the menu vegan/vegetarian (we use a wonderful Italian caterer, so flavour isn't going to be missed). When I mentioned it to some omnivore colleagues, they asked why and I shrugged and said "the Amazon is burning". They shrugged back and said, makes sense. It's not many years since I would have expected complaints at not catering a meat option. I feel progress is being made.
I cook vegetarian Italian food myself often but honestly find that the cuisine is still very much meat based. Good luck finding a vegetarian main dish ("secondo") in Italy (outside of Milano).
> Scientists studying satellite image data from the fires in the Amazon rain forest said that most of the fires are burning on agricultural land where the forest had already been cleared.
I think it's a little less direct than that, in this case. The Amazon Rainforest is a big source of cleaning CO2 out of the air (lots of trees). It's burning, which means our CO2 footprint matters even more than before. So, anything to reduce that is then good.
Also, a lot of farmland is used to grow feed for cattle and other livestock, and it's much less efficient than using the land to grow crops for people instead.
You would definitely still get that with the people I work with, though perhaps they wouldn't bother arguing with you on it, instead writing you of completely (nothing I personally do will have any influence the Amazon burning or not).
>we use a wonderful Italian caterer, so flavour isn't going to be missed
A non meat dish is still going to taste like a non-meat dish. Perhaps your colleagues were just being polite and avoiding treading into politically charged territory after you brought up the Amazon.
Personally I'm a picky eater and vegan/vegetarian dishes simply do not compare to meat. I'm sure others feel similarly. Though for one meal I suppose it isn't a huge deal - but acting like it's just as good simply isn't true for the majority of people - that's your personal taste.
I honestly don't understand why it's such a big deal that so many people insist meat must be part of a meal? To the degree that in Argentina they say "si no hay carne, no hay comida" (if there is no meat, it is not a meal). It feels like if I insisted on having bread at every table sitting. Clearly, it can be seen as just a habit and not a requirement?
Meat is not just a matter of taste, but also of habit and identity. In general, the lower the socio-economic class, the higher the resistance to vegetarian and vegan cooking.
Society wide change is always hard, and meat is way too cheap (considering its environmental impact) to provide the economic stimulus for reducing the amount of meat in ones diet. Learning to cook vegetarian dishes is also non-trivial (although not too hard of course, but a barrier nonetheless).
For people over fifty meat is also an indicator of welfare. Especially for people whose parents didn't have the luxury of eating meat on a daily basis.
Fortunately, the shift to less meat is unmistakably happening, and has been gaining speed in the last few years.
Perhaps because vegans and vegetarians are substantially more likely to be thin and, well, less traditionally manly, both in appearance and in values. It's a different set of cultural values and it isn't invalid just because it differs from yours.
Having a meal with no meat doesn't make one vegan/vegetarian.
> vegans and vegetarians are substantially more likely to be thin and, well, less traditionally manly, both in appearance and in values
I can point you to many fat vegans, and I've heard this 'need meat' BS from guys who were literally 135 lbs, soaking wet, so.... exactly this kind of attitude that 'meat makes you manly'.
Who said that I disagreed with those values, that is a poor assumption on your part.
Meat still does equal wealth to a certain extent - have you priced a whole rib-eye roast, or a full-sized beef brisket lately?
They ain't cheap (and if you buy one, they are daunting to cook - because you know if you screw it up, you've just wasted $100-200.00).
Ground beef, or chicken, or pork - those are all still very inexpensive; though pork can get pricier for certain cuts - mostly it's still very inexpensive.
But damn - if you've ever smoked a pork shoulder and made homemade pulled-pork sandwiches - you know there's no substitute for that.
I’m vegetarian and I take a bite of meat all the time, especially if it’s something special.
None of it is as good as great vegetarian food. Sure the top top top shelf stuff is probably as good. But the average meat at a restaurant or someone’s home is no better than great veggie food.
That said average veggie food sucks. If you are eating in the average-or-below segment then yes meat is probably better. In the good-to-great segment it’s not.
Veg food does require more work, which is a big part of why a lot of people/chefs don’t bother. Meat is basically perfect as-is. You just have to not fuck it up. Veggies require you do some chef work.
> Personally I'm a picky eater and vegan/vegetarian dishes simply do not compare to meat.
What are you eating, and how are you comparing it? If you're trying to treat a salad as a meat replacement, well, it's not going to do all that well. But there's a lot of meals designed to be complete without meat that might work for you, as long as you're not expecting them to taste like beef.
Which is it? Vegetarian would hardly be worth complaining about, but I'm really struggling to come up with a vegan Italian menu that sounds appetizing.
-A mixed antipasto (olives, sun dried tomatoes, bruschetta, breaded garlic mushrooms, griller artichokes, dolmades etc.) to graze on before the meal.
-Panelle Palermitane to start, which are these crescent shaped fitters made with chickpea flour, parsley and pepper. They're a popular street food in northern Sicily. Highly recommend with a little drizzle of lemon juice.
-I can think of 10 odd pasta dishes that could be had for main but a favourite of mine would probably be a puttanesca; a pasta dish with olives, capers, eggplant and red pepper flakes. Proper rustic food and very filling.
-For desert you could have a Castagnaccio which is a chestnut cake with fruits. No milk or egg involved. Great with a shot of espresso!
-Sorbets throughout to cleanse the palate.
That's just 1 option for each part, but you could probably build a dish for each course for each day of the week if needed - all varied in ingredients and flavours.
Honestly, I'd say close to 30% of my diet is Italian - all of it vegan. There are plenty of options. Unfortunately most of the food people think of when they think Italy is something lathered with cheese and cured meats, but when I travelled through there most of the diet consisted of legume based stews, casseroles and soups, and plenty of bread and salads.
