Vegan BBQ

[wtfftw]

I'd expect a vegan to eat nuts tho.

 

[what]

Incidentally runner beans are great barbecued. Just rub them with a bit of olive oil and salt first.

Love runner beans this is on the short list

 

[Epona]

I'd expect a vegan to eat nuts tho.

Peanuts are legumes, not nuts. I'm ok with real nuts and drupes

(I'm also not vegan )

 

[Epona]

My absolute hell is when you go into somewhere like an RHS or National Trust cafe and they have all the cakes out and a set of tongs for people to help themselves and all the crumbs from all the cakes all over the fucking place and no allergen information - that properly boils my piss that does

 

[wtfftw]

Peanuts are legumes, not nuts. I'm ok with real nuts and drupes

(I'm also not vegan )

Mind blown.

 

[Saunders]

I'm setting up 2 grilles so shouldn't be a problem unless the cheese for the veggies migrates to the vegan dishes and causes an apocalyptic outrage from the vegans. Maybe just ditch the cheese and avoid the krakatowa(spellin) moment.

I tend to separate strictly between meat and vegan and let the fish and cheese people take their chances in the mid ground. Have some sort of carb that’s gluten free (like the potato salad, don’t add pre- made mustard unless you’ve checked the ingredients), keep the indoors oven ‘something’ free, and assume everyone is just glad to be hanging out at yours and pleased that you’re aware they can’t easily eat everything

 

[Epona]

Mind blown.

We tend to focus on the nut part of peaNUT - but actually it's a pea that is a bit like a nut in taste and texture, so more like PEAnut

 

[Calamity1971]

I disagree. Vegan yoghurt and Mayo are too sweet in my experience.

Koko vegan Greek style yoghurt is gorgeous. A bit pricey though.

 

[lazythursday]

Genuine question.

As a vegan, what would your fantasy BBQ be?

I've not had to BBQ for vegans yet, but I'd love to be able to ensure I could give them a feast worthy of my BBQ.

I'm not 100% vegan actually, but do eat plant based where possible (being gluten free makes this challenging).

I don't have a fantasy BBQ. I just don't think it's a useful cooking method for non meat food. If you insist on a BBQ then I'd want my favourite fake meat burgers. But I'd much rather you just made chickpea curry or something on your stove and forget about the stupid BBQ. You can have an outdoor gathering without having to cook outside!

 

[Epona]

I'm not 100% vegan actually, but do eat plant based where possible (being gluten free makes this challenging).

I don't have a fantasy BBQ. I just don't think it's a useful cooking method for non meat food. If you insist on a BBQ then I'd want my favourite fake meat burgers. But I'd much rather you just made chickpea curry or something on your stove and forget about the stupid BBQ. You can have an outdoor gathering without having to cook outside!

Yeah I tend to think this works OK in the UK but if you're in hotter climes then cooking outdoors is more of a thing instead of heating your house up to fuck knows what by cooking indoors. And plenty of other countries have good veggie and vegan food that is grilled outside.

 

[Epona]

Not normally a fan of aubergine but thick sliced aubergine and courgette and peppers grilled until it is soft and just getting some charring - served with tahini dressing and some rice/pasta/couscous/bulgar salad - get the fuck in.

 

[Saunders]

How about a desert. Cavemen and women probably get strawberries and cream. What can I do for the vegans?

Strawberries and no cream or some oat cream or some vegan vanilla ice cream; the not-vegans will not even notice it isn’t dairy
Macerate the strawberries in vanilla sugar for a few hours and serve them with an assortment of shop bought biscuits including ginger nuts or jobnobs and a choice of extra thick double cream and some vegan vanilla or chocolate ice cream.

 

[jontz01]

I've never got my home made Hummous as good as I'd like.

More lemon juice. Salt and a touch of sugar if you want it more 'store bought'.

 

[RubyToogood]

Not normally a fan of aubergine but thick sliced aubergine and courgette and peppers grilled until it is soft and just getting some charring - served with tahini dressing and some rice/pasta/couscous/bulgar salad - get the fuck in.

Well this is another way to approach it - barbecuing veg as an ingredient /for sides rather than the main event. I have a friend who does veggie barbecues that way. But you then need to offer another form of protein.

 

[Epona]

Well this is another way to approach it - barbecuing veg as an ingredient /for sides rather than the main event. I have a friend who does veggie barbecues that way. But you then need to offer another form of protein.

I've already suggested various protein suggestions upthread.

It's also not necessary to consume protein at every meal* - if the BBQ provider was the main source of nutrition for the vegan in question over a period of time then it would be incumbent on them to provide a fully nutritionally balanced diet.
But I'm assuming that it's a one off free meal in the host's garden and that one could have something high in protein for the next meal the guest prepares for ones' self.

*Edit to add: I have actually suffered from protein deficiency due to being on a dig which is quite manual work in a country that didn't understand the concept of vegetarian and where we'd paid upfront for catering - and I only started to notice symptoms after about 10 days of heavy manual labour and no protein. Going to a BBQ for an afternoon and having 1 low protein meal is not going to damage anyone.

 

[lazythursday]

It's not going to damage anyone but personally find a meal without any protein really unsatisfying. Especially if you have to watch everyone else eating more substantial fare.

 

[Epona]

It's not going to damage anyone but personally find a meal without any protein really unsatisfying. Especially if you have to watch everyone else eating more substantial fare.

But it's a party that someone else is putting on and presumably paying for and cooking all the food without any cost to you.

It's not like going to a restaurant and having an unsatisfying meal that you've just paid £25-£50 for.

If the options at a free party are that unsatisfying to you then just take a tupperware box of your own food, or eat before you go and just enjoy the company.

It's been a while since I put on any sort of party, but I recall 20 years ago it could easily cost upwards of £100 to put on a bloody finger buffet for 20 guests, what exactly are you expecting when you turn up to somewhere for free?
(And I have always provided vegan options because half my family is vegan and I grew up with that, but it's not always the job of the host to provide you with exactly what you might want, a lot of the time they are having to fit in a lot of peoples' likes and dislikes and life-threatening allergies)

 

[lazythursday]

But it's a party that someone else is putting on and presumably paying for and cooking all the food without any cost to you.

It's not like going to a restaurant and having an unsatisfying meal that you've just paid £25-£50 for.

If the options at a free party are that unsatisfying to you then just take a tupperware box of your own food, or eat before you go and just enjoy the company.

It's been a while since I put on any sort of party, but I recall 20 years ago it could easily cost upwards of £100 to put on a bloody finger buffet for 20 guests, what exactly are you expecting when you turn up to somewhere for free?
(And I have always provided vegan options because half my family is vegan and I grew up with that, but it's not always the job of the host to provide you with exactly what you might want, a lot of the time they are having to fit in a lot of peoples' likes and dislikes and life-threatening allergies)

I always take my own food if I go to events like this because I don't expect to be catered for.

I'm just making the general point that if you're going to create an option for vegans you should try to include protein as there's nothing more unsatisfying than just a Portobello mushroom or whatever. Lots of restaurants are terrible for this too and it's just because there's not a widespread enough understanding of vegan nutrition.

 

[ash]

Tbh I can cope with no protein as long as there’s enough carbs.

 

[RubyToogood]

It's not exactly hard to buy vegan burgers and sausages these days though. There are beany types as well as fake meaty types.

 

[Epona]

I always take my own food if I go to events like this because I don't expect to be catered for.

I'm just making the general point that if you're going to create an option for vegans you should try to include protein as there's nothing more unsatisfying than just a Portobello mushroom or whatever. Lots of restaurants are terrible for this too and it's just because there's not a widespread enough understanding of vegan nutrition.

Honestly a vegan can go without protein for 1 meal for a party better than I can survive going into anaphylactic shock and possibly dying because ooh surprise peanuts (which makes it extremely difficult to eat anything at parties, or in a lot of restaurants/takeaways).

I know more about food being unsuitable (and about it being more critical to health) than all this discussion tbh.

And I did provide some good protein suggestions earlier in the thread anyway, I'm perfectly OK with doing vegan food as most of my family is vegan. Please understand though that getting enough protein at a party is not a do or die issue.

 

[lazythursday]

Honestly a vegan can go without protein for 1 meal for a party better than I can survive going into anaphylactic shock and possibly dying because ooh surprise peanuts (which makes it extremely difficult to eat anything at parties, or in a lot of restaurants/takeaways).

I know more about food being unsuitable (and about it being more critical to health) than all this discussion tbh.

And I did provide some good protein suggestions earlier in the thread anyway, I'm perfectly OK with doing vegan food as most of my family is vegan. Please understand though that getting enough protein at a party is not a do or die issue.

The question asked at the beginning of the thread was 'what are good things to make for vegans' and I gave my opinion which is basically that it should be filling (I take the point that someone else made that a decent amount of carbs also helps). I know how you feel re peanuts - tbh it doesn't matter what anyone makes at a BBQ, personally I won't be eating it because there's too high a risk of gluten cross contamination.

 

[Epona]

The question asked at the beginning of the thread was 'what are good things to make for vegans' and I gave my opinion which is basically that it should be filling (I take the point that someone else made that a decent amount of carbs also helps). I know how you feel re peanuts - tbh it doesn't matter what anyone makes at a BBQ, personally I won't be eating it because there's too high a risk of gluten cross contamination.

And I gave lots of good ideas

 

[what]

Anyone of the Urban weekday crew got any suggestions?

 

[Whagwan]

You need this book... It's veggie overall rather than vegan but does have vegan recipes in it:

CHARRED: The Ultimate guide to Barbecuing Vegetables

The past few years have seen an explosion of interest in cooking over fire, with cooks all over the world seeking to get elemental in their cooking. But fire and smoke doesn't always have to be about hunks of meat. Chargrilling and barbecue are a fantastic way of getting the maximum flavour out...

www.genevievetaylor.co.uk