Reddit mentions of But I Could Never Go Vegan!: 125 Recipes That Prove You Can Live Without Cheese, It's Not All Rabbit Food, and Your Friends Will Still Come Over for Dinner

But I Could Never Go Vegan

Start reading :)

• http://yourveganfallacyis.com/en
  
• http://www.godfist.com/vegansidekick/guide.php
  
• http://logicalveganism.blogspot.com/p/fallacies.html
  
• Is there such a thing as ethically acceptable milk? Eggs? Honey? Doesn't "organic" mean that the pig is "treated well"? Many times non-vegan who make these arguments will also be very unaware of how intensive factory farming works and what it is. They may be highly misled (Bite Size Vegan has >300 informational videos on veganism, and is a great place to begin learning facts about animal agriculture that you can use in your defense of veganism) by what these labels mean, if they are legally required to mean anything at all. Even if such things could be produced (according to some various definitions of "acceptable"), they are often so prohibitively expensive that no one would be able to afford them anyway.
  
  Facts on Nutrition:
  
  
• Many major world Nutrition or Dietetics organizations say that a well-planned vegan diet can be healthy.
  
• There is no essential nutrient that cannot be found from a vegan source (plant, fungi, bacteria, inorganic material): phenylalanine, valine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, lysine, histidine (amino acids of protein), alpha-linolenic acid, linoleic acid (Omega Fatty Acids), Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, B12, C, D, E, K (Vitamins), calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, chlorine, magnesium, iron, zinc, manganese, copper (Minerals), as well as choline, inositol, taurine, arginine, glutamine and nucleotides in infants. You don't have to memorize this list, just know that there is nothing we know of that we need for survival that can only be found in animal sources and not plant, bacteria, fungi, or inorganic sources.
  
• Here is a more detailed introduction to vegan nutrition.
  
  Some quick memes:
  
  
• desert island
  
• canines. Individual physiological characteristics taken one at a time in isolation are not a good indication of whether we can (or should) eat meat or other animal product foods. The length of our teeth or the size of our brain or the length of our intestines don't, alone, tell us what we are capable of digesting. What we are capable of digesting, as an entire organism, tells us what we are capable of digesting. (and none of that says anything about whether something is ethical to eat).
  
• Veganism is not a cult or a religion. Not all vegans agree with each other about every aspect of veganism. It's a diverse and dynamic group with a lot of on-going discussion. You don't have to have any sort of specific politics or other beliefs to begin making vegan decisions.
  
• "Humane slaughter" is an oxymoron and fundamentally still the wrong direction of thinking about the issue
  
• A person doesn't have to be an "animal lover" to understand and support veganism. You don't have to be completely infatuated and in love with every new animal you see to know that it's wrong to kill them, just like you don't have to be completely infatuated and in love with every human stranger you walk past, to know it would be inherently wrong to kill them. Veganism is not even asking for some sort of overwhelming compassion for animals. It's asking for the bare minimum of treatment you would show anyone, even a stranger... or the bare minimum of what you would want anyone to show you.
  
• Don't let perfect be the enemy of good. For those who reject veganism because they don't accept all parts of it, or think they would have to stop their lives and change "everything at once": 1). Veganism isn't always as hard as people make it out to be, especially after the beginning when you get into the habit of it. 2). Even partial reductions in the amount of animal products people use helps animals and reduces animal suffering in the world. Eliminating 10% of the meat they eat is better than 0%. Eliminating 50% is also better than %0. Eliminating 90% is better than 0%, even if it isn't 100%. Any amount that these products are bought and used less, is better than it not happening at all.
  
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  > like a gentlemam with smashing arguments? I don't want to lose my temper or keep discussing the matter with them and ruin the road trip because they are very stubborn on the matter.
  
  It's one thing to memorize a lot of information about a topic (like veganism), but it's a whole different thing (it's a different set of skills) to keep your composure when talking to people who are being stubborn (or even purposefully obnoxious). That's a different problem, with a different solution and set of skills required.
  
  You can handle it a couple ways. What will work best for you will depend on who you are: on what your personality is and on how you communicate best.
  
  
• Joke back. Are you someone who likes making jokes back at what other people say? Then joke back. You can use whatever humor you like (witty, dark, sarcastic, observational). They joke about you not getting enough protein, joke about them dying young from a heart attack. They start bragging about how they would totally kill an animal with their bare hands if it gave them a steak, joke about not wanting to leave your pet dog with them because they'll slit its throat while you're not looking. They joke about needing cow's milk, joke about them not being a X-year-old man who isn't weened yet or about how you didn't notice the were a baby cow all this time. Or you can use humor to divert or end the conversation if you want. If they joke about not being able to give up meat, joke about how you're not able to give up their mom (I'm so funny). But if you're aren't the type of person who likes joking, you don't have to.
  
• Stick to the facts. If you find yourself getting upset, for some people it's helpful to just stick to the most dispassionate, logical responses to whatever they say, no matter how silly or frustrating or stupid it seems, even if they're joking. You can sometimes start with just saying back to them what they said, so they can hear it, and then politely but thoroughly pick what they said apart, small piece by small piece. But again, if you don't feel like that approach, you don't have to.
  
• You can also simply excuse yourself from the conversation. It doesn't seem like they're the kind of people that this approach usually works with, but it might. You can simply say "Yes, yes, very funny, can we talk about something else, like ___, instead?". or "I don't know, if you're interested in veganism you should read about it. I don't have all the answers." (it's completely fine to admit you don't know absolutely everything about veganism, just that you know enough about it that it looked better to you than what you were doing at the time). Or you can refer them to other resources (websites, books, documentaries, etc.) that deal with the issue more comprehensively than you can or even just feel like doing on any given day.
  
  Final Thoughts on Having Contentious Conversations and Practical Change:
  
  When you go into these conversations, try to be prepared with factual information, and do you best to remain polite, and educate when you can. If you find yourself getting angry, frustrated, or sad, try to keep calm and stick to the evidence you know. Keep in mind that other people may be listening to and benefiting from your conversation, even if the person you're speaking directly to isn't. It is okay to admit you don't know something, you've been wrong about something, or that you want to stop talking about the topic.
  
  Try and maintain reasonable expectations. Not everyone is going to go vegan overnight. If it's helpful to, think about it as "planting seeds" rather than forcing immediate and total change.
  
  Finally, you may fall into the bad habit of talking only about "Why everyone should be vegan", rather than the "How", as in, "How do you go vegan?"
  
  Practical tips for how to do something are just as important or even more important as knowing why to do it.
  
  You could challenge your friends "I bet you couldn't go vegan for a week", but if you do, then be sure to also recommend some resources to help them start:
  
  
• Ingredient substitutions or good vegan brands that substitute for common animal food products (plant milk for milk, vegan butter for butter, etc.)
  
• Habits to get into, like reading ingredient labels before buying food, or material labels before buying clothes.
  
• Apps or websites like barnivore.com for alcohol or https://cronometer.com/ for tracking nutrition in the beginning
  
• Vegan cooking blogs, websites, youtube channels, or cookbooks for recipes
  
• Email them links to things like a vegan food plate, meal plan, or pics of grocery hauls, to see what kinds of things and in what proportion to aim for eating.
  
  Don't just drop all the ethical vegan information on them and expect them to know what it means to, or how to, use it in practical everyday life.

I've only seen one part (which I thought was sort of bullshit) but I've heard it's for the most part a good advocate for a plant-based diet. Have you seen either Cowspiracy or Earthlings? The former covers the environmental impacts of the livestock industry, and the latter covers the ethics. I would whole-heartedly recommend both, with a warning attached to Earthlings because it can be genuinely shocking and/or traumatizing to watch. Cowspiracy can be found on Netflix, and Earthlings is free to watch here. If you want some ideas for how to execute the actual transition, I found this page to be a useful resource. IMO a whole foods diet is the way to go, it's made me feel so much better physically. But always remember there's plenty of junk food like chips, frozen veggie nuggets, and ice cream you can buy at the store if you want to have an unhealthy day. If you want a crap-ton of fancier, more complex recipes and good guides on substitutes and such, try a cookbook like this one or this one. Both are great resources, and if you want to make the switch I would definitely recommend getting one of them. Lastly, check out www.happycow.net! You can find what restaurants in your area are either fully vegan or have vegan options. Makes it a lot easier to eat out with friends and such. Anyway, hope I haven't rambled on too long or overwhelmed you with information! Hopefully some of that helps you come to a decision on this. It really is up to you, but like I said, make sure to watch those documentaries! And don't shy away from researching them afterwards to learn more about how destructive the livestock industry is.

Thug Kitchen.

But I Could Never Go Vegan!

Also, look up some high-rated vegan restaurants or restaurants with vegan options on this site.

There are also many vegan cooking channels on YouTube, check out some of those.

https://www.amazon.com/But-Could-Never-Go-Vegan/dp/1615192107/ref=cm_sw_em_r_cawdtod_wxe3wb1BW1S5H_tt

But I Could Never Go Vegan!

This book helped me believe I could actually go vegan. Creative, tasty recipes and every last one is an absolute hit!

This book changed everything for me... delicious and simple recipes. Its my go to cookbook and a lot of my omni-friends have received a copy and adored it.

The Vegan Activist's "Complete Guide To Vegan Food" should be really helpful. For recipes, his "Top 3 Vegan Recipe Channels" video is pretty good. TheVeganZombie, and CheapLazyVegan both have relatively simple recipes on their channels as well. It's not needed, but the cookbook "But I Could Never Go Vegan!" is definitely worth getting as well. It talks about some of the different ingredients vegans use, how to prepare things like nut butter, veggie broth, cashew cream, etc., and has 125 different recipes.

I personally don't usually go too crazy with recipes, most of the stuff I eat is super simple.

For breakfast, I always have some sort of nutrient shake. I'm currently trying naturade's vanilla VeganSmart powder, it tastes like a bannana milk shake when blended with a banana and almond milk (I dilute the almond milk with water to save $). Sometimes I'll also eat hash browns, oat meal, or cereal as well.

My go-to dinner is just a bag of mixed vegetables that comes with sauce packets, and a box of new orleans-style long grain & wild rice. Rice goes in a rice cooker with water, veggies are steamed in a pan with water and the sauce packet. If I'm feeling a little crazy, I'll add some more mushrooms, siracha, and soy sauce. Rice and veggies are done in about 20 mins, low effort, and tastes great. The rice takes longer to cook than the veggies, so start cooking the rice sooner if you want them done at the same time. Also feel free to cook the rice on the stove if you don't have a rice cooker, there really isn't too much of a difference.

I also typically eat a lot of gardein products, you can find their stuff everywhere. it's relatively cheap, and tastes great. Other than their gravy, I've loved everything I've tried from them. Their beefless ground/meatballs taste almost exactly like real beef, and their chick'n tastes spot on when cooked right. I'll literally just fry up their Crispy Chick'n in oil, use the sauce it comes with for dipping, and call it a meal. Unhealthy, simple, and tasty :).

Anyways, I wish you the best of luck. Stick around and ask any questions if you need help, I know it isn't easy being vegan in a non-vegan world, especially when you're new.

You can also make it yourself. There's a recipe in the book But I Could Never Go Vegan!.

These are the ones on my wishlist:


The Vegonomicon


Everyday Happy Herbivore


Thug Kitchen


But I could never go vegan!


Oh She Glows Cookbook


I personally own The Vegan Stoner Cookbook and I like it a lot.

There are actually two cookbooks I've found great recipes in (granted my husband and I happily eat mostly vegan...) that might be an easy starting point. We love the maple miso tempeh, and while that may be too hard of a sell for your family they might like the broccoli 'cheese' soup- it's made creamy with blended chickpeas 👍🏽

Yeah 100%, i'm at work now but i'll scan in a bunch of recipes from the book tonight.

It's this book, which on kindle or paperback is super cheap and super worth it. All the recipes I have tried have been amazing and it does everything.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/But-Could-Never-Go-Vegan/dp/1615192107/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526462459&sr=8-1&keywords=but+i+could+never+go+vegan

Canned Jackfruit was recommended a meat sub in But I could never go vegan! if anyone wants a good book rec.

I can recommend a few books that we constantly use to cook from:

The Happy Herbivore

But I could never go Vegan

500 Greatest-Ever Vegetarian Recipes

We use the first two on a weekly basis, although we mix in some traditional vegetable noodle soups, homemade pizza (with vegan cheese), lots of wok-style noodles with vegetables and tofu and more.