Flummoxed by what to serve to your veggie friends? Before you resort to serving up veggie burgers and nut roast, read up on how to treat your guests to something imaginative and delicious.
Flummoxed by what to serve to your veggie friends? Before you resort to serving up veggie burgers and nut roast, read up on how to treat your guests to something imaginative and delicious.
Hands up, who doesn’t know someone who’s a vegetarian? With as much as seven per cent of the British population claiming to be vegetarian, and a higher percentage abstaining from red meat, the majority of us have at least one family member, friend, neighbour or work-mate who’s a veggie.
These days, before putting together a menu for guests, hosts and hostesses worth their salt will make an effort to find out in advance what their invitees will and won’t eat, either for religious, health or moral reasons. Finding out whether your guests are vegetarian or vegan is an important first step in making sure that everyone will have a good time, but there are a few common pitfalls that non-vegetarians tend to fall into.
The first is to misunderstand what a vegetarian or vegan is and what they will or won’t eat. Most hosts understand that rare steaks are definitely off the menu, but they might be less clear on other food items.
Granted, this may be because some people who claim to be vegetarian will, in certain circumstances - such as to avoid causing offence to their host, for example - eat 'forbidden' foods. Also, some vegetarians are stricter than others, which can be confusing to non-vegetarians. For example, some vegetarians might forgo wine that's not vegetarian or vegan, while others might not. Some insist on vegetarian cheese; others don't.
The best thing to do is to assume that your vegetarian or vegan guests are observant. They will be very pleased that you made the effort to source vegetarian cheese or vegan wine and you’ll be able to avoid offence and embarrassment on all sides.
So you thought a glass of wine or beer would be guaranteed free of animal products? Think again. Most wines, many spirits and some beers are 'fined' (clarified) or filtered using animal products such as egg white or isinglass, which is derived from the swim bladder of a fish. Some drinks, such as Campari and some soft drinks, use cochineal (derived from a type of beetle) as a colouring agent. Read the labels carefully and choose drinks that state that they’re suitable for vegetarians and/or vegans. The good news is that there's a wider range of good-quality drinks than ever.
Fishy things such as anchovies tend to sneak into a variety of condiments. Worcestershire sauce, which contains anchovies, is a common example (there are vegetarian versions available) but read the label on things such as Thai curry pastes, which frequently use fish sauce or fermented shrimp – no-nos for vegetarians and vegans.
Non-vegetarians tend to forget that most cheese is made with rennet, which comes from a calf’s stomach. Before you go adding the likes of goats’ cheese soufflé or mozzarella cannelloni to the menu, make sure you buy vegetarian cheese. Cheese that is suitable for vegetarians may be marked with the Vegetarian Society’s green ‘V’ logo or will be marked ‘suitable for vegetarians’. At farmers’ markets and farm shops, simply ask the producer.
It’s getting easier to find dairy-free vegan ‘cheese’ too, which is made from soya protein. Do try your recipe out in advance, though, because it doesn’t always melt in the way that ordinary cheese melts, although newer products are much improved in this respect. It’s best using it as, say, a topping, rather than an ingredient.
Ovo-lacto vegetarians (those that eat eggs and dairy products) will generally eat eggs, but do your best to make sure that the eggs you buy come from free-range chickens, rather than a battery farm, as animal welfare is likely to be a paramount consideration.
Planning on panna cotta or a chocolate mousse? Many desserts are made using gelatine as a setting agent. As gelatine is derived from the bones of animals, it’s off-limits for vegetarians and vegans. Use agar-agar, which is derived from a red sea vegetable, or carrageen, derived from seaweed, as an alternative. Gelatine also sneaks into things like prepared salad dressings, yoghurts and many prepared foods. Read the label carefully and, where possible, prepare it yourself.
Non-vegetarians seem to have a blind spot about desserts, forgetting that eggs and butter are used in the majority of baked goods – and are off-limits to vegans. If you decide to substitute margarine for butter, make sure that the product you buy is free from animal fats or fish oils. Before using any pre-made pastries, batters, doughs or biscuits, read the label. There are lots of desserts that don’t rely on eggs and dairy – fresh fruit for example – so make the most of unadorned fresh produce.
This is another ingredient that non-vegetarians seem to forget is animal-derived. While it’s true that some vegetarians have no quarrel with eating honey, many others do, and your vegan guests are certain to take against it. There are good substitutes, though, such as golden syrup. Or, for a completely different flavour sensation that won’t ruin your recipes, try maple syrup.
For definitive advice on what is and isn’t suitable for vegetarians, check the database of the Vegetarian Society. For advice on what is suitable for vegans, consult the Vegan Society website.
One of the difficulties that many non-vegetarians have is getting out of the meat-and-two-veg mindset. The fact is that you don’t need meat to make a meal. Really. Nor do you have to resort to ‘vegetarian’ options of meaty dishes, such as nut roasts and bean burgers (most vegetarians will probably have had their fill of these already).
Try to avoid vegetarian dishes that have suffered from overexposure, too. Roast peppers and baked goats’ cheese salad is lovely, but your vegetarian guest will probably have eaten this mainstay of restaurant ‘vegetarian options’ more times than they care to remember.
Vegetarian food is all about enjoying a wide variety of textures and flavours, so choose what’s freshest and most enticing at the market – then make the most of it. Use handfuls of fresh herbs, extra virgin olive oil, and combinations of fresh and dried spices to complement the ingredients. Seek out ingredients that you may not have tried before, such as farro or smoked tofu. Plan for a variety of flavours – hot, sweet and sour, say – and let your imagination (and a good vegetarian cookbook or two) be your guide.