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Ideas for Traditional British food that is Veggie!


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Old 07-02-2008, 02:25
alfablue
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My son has just opened a 15th century country pub. The theme is classic and historic British food. We are having trouble identifying veggie dishes that genuinely fit this brief. I am a vegetarian, but my diet comprises mostly mediterranean and asian style foods, so I am not helping much! I would be very grateful for ANY suggestions for appropriate dishes, starters or mains. Many thanks in anticipation. (ps so far we have cauliflower cheese, and glamorgan sausages).
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Old 07-02-2008, 06:54
Ruby Shoes
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Traditional roast dinner with a veggie roast (all the supermarkets do them) or nut roast and veggie gravy.

Vegetable pie and chips.

Potato rosti's with a veggie topping (starter)

Vegetable casserole with (or without) fake meat pieces and crusty bread/rice whatever.

Sausage and mash with veggie and onion gravy.

Some kind of veggie quiche/tart with new potatoes and salad.

Traditional fry up with veggie sausages, veggie bacon etc

Veggie haggis (found in supermarkets again) with whatever the scots have with it. Neeps and tatties whatever that is!!

Veggie bubble and squeak.

Veggie burger with chips.

If you shop around you can get veggie steaks made from seitan. Of course you can get Quorn but they're not vegan.

Waitrose do veggie fishfingers so fishfingers and chips for the kids?

I could probably come up with a lot more but it's early! I may get back to you!

Wherever possible it would be worth trying to source vegan ingredients or have vegan options as more and more people are becoming vegan and products such as quorn are unsuitable. (There's a pub near me that has a page of veggie food (great, they're trying!!) but it's all quorn products and unsuitable for vegans) Redwood foods are all vegan and a lot of Frys and some of Cauldron are. Also have some soya milk on hand for tea and coffee and soya margarine for the bread. If you do things like that you will soon be recommended in the veggie books etc. A lot of people have dairy intolerance anyway so it wouldn't just be for the vegans!
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Old 07-02-2008, 07:58
Ruby Shoes
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This site has some nice ideas
http://www.vegsoc.org/cordonvert/recipes/homegrown.html
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Old 07-02-2008, 07:59
Lemonhunny
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Not quite sure RubyShoes noticed the bit about "The theme is classic and historic British food."

I don't think potato rosti falls quite into that theme


LH
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Old 07-02-2008, 08:04
Ruby Shoes
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Not quite sure RubyShoes noticed the bit about "The theme is classic and historic British food."

I don't think potato rosti falls quite into that theme


LH
Not sure what you mean. Just had a quick search and potato rosti comes up on loads of restaurants offering traditional british food.

We could also argue that fish and chips isn't british (but portugese). I guess it depends whether people regard it as traditional or not.
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Old 07-02-2008, 08:48
maybe
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Those sound delicious
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Old 07-02-2008, 08:54
alfablue
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Thank you for all of your ideas, it is a great help - keep them coming!

On the rosti subject, I share the dilemma about when something can be embraced as part of our tradition. Of all the British restaurants that I can find on the web (i.e. those making a point of serving British food), when it comes to the veggie option they mostly tend to fall back on pastas and risottos, or other mediterranean dishes. Whilst I like these very much, I don't quite think they fit the brief. We are also trying to avoid meat-substitute products. Good point about making them vegan friendly!
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Old 07-02-2008, 08:58
stud u like
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I don't think there is such a thing as classic or historic "British" food. Your son could get into trouble by advertising it as such.

Considering we had so many invaders before the 15th C our country would have collected and assimilated their food and ingredients. With Roman,Viking,French and other influences upon our diet,it is very difficult to find or even suggest that our food is quintessentially English.
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Old 07-02-2008, 09:13
Gogfumble
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Cheese and broccoli bake? Don't know how traditionally British that is though.

Toad in the hole but with veggie sausages?

A veggie English breakfast.

Veggie hotpot.

...sorry, keep adding things as I think of them, pretty much any of our Traditional English food you can adapt to be vegetarian.
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Old 07-02-2008, 09:16
stud u like
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Cheese and broccoli bake? Don't know how traditionally British that is though.

Toad in the hole but with veggie sausages?

A veggie English breakfast.
Broccoli arrived in England in the 18th Century.
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Old 07-02-2008, 11:37
Inkblot
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Toad in the hole but with veggie sausages?
Yes, or you can make vegetarian toad by putting some vegetables into the batter instead of sausages; maybe mushrooms, courgettes, cherry tomates, fennel etc though it's possible some would need pre-cooking or parboiling first. Then serve with roast potatoes or bubble'n'squeak.

On the same lines, big Yorkshire puddings with steamed vegetables inside, served with veggie gravy and roast poatatoes.

Roast some root vegetables, eg butternut squash, parsnips, sweet potatoes and then... I dunno, serve with a typically English sauce such as a gravy made with port and some seasonal greens.

Vegetarian soups - pea and mint, local mushrooms, tomato etc served with home-made or locally baked artisan breads

Welsh rarebit

The important thing is to have a good choice for vegetarians. This place is all vegetarian and I'm sure meat eaters could find something they'd like.
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Old 07-02-2008, 11:46
alfablue
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I don't think there is such a thing as classic or historic "British" food. Your son could get into trouble by advertising it as such.

Considering we had so many invaders before the 15th C our country would have collected and assimilated their food and ingredients. With Roman,Viking,French and other influences upon our diet,it is very difficult to find or even suggest that our food is quintessentially English.
Well I take your point that all food that is considered British is an amalgam of the various cuisines brought to our shores by immigrants and invaders throughout our history, but to say there is therefore no British food using that logic would be the same as saying there are no British people, just "imports".

There are indeed historical dishes that are considered to be British from medieval times and before, and though alluded to in documentary evidence, actual recipies are rare.

There are a group of food historians at Hampton Court who research this very topic.
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Old 07-02-2008, 11:59
andallthatjazz
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Maybe you can get some ideas from Simon Rimmer's Greens veggie restaurant in Manchester....it's been mentioned few times on GFL before.
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Old 07-02-2008, 12:04
alfablue
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Maybe you can get some ideas from Simon Rimmer's Greens veggie restaurant in Manchester....it's been mentioned few times on GFL before.
That looks good, thanks
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Old 08-02-2008, 09:50
grassmarket
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Welsh rarebit.
Porridge.
Leek and potato soup.
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Old 08-02-2008, 10:10
Mariaella
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Quorn/Veggie Mince Cottage Pie or Veggie Mince Pie with a Puff Pastry Lid
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Old 08-02-2008, 11:48
Ruby Shoes
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I would try and avoid Quorn products if possible because it's unsuitable for so many people!! I'm momentarily cheered when I see veggie options on a menu but it's shorted lived when I see it's Quorn! It may as well be meat!
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Old 08-02-2008, 11:54
alfablue
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I would try and avoid Quorn products if possible because it's unsuitable for so many people!! I'm momentarily cheered when I see veggie options on a menu but it's shorted lived when I see it's Quorn! It may as well be meat!
I agree, as a veggie I always avoid meat substitutes, and I think they are wrong for the pub too - although it is pub food, we are aiming for the highest quality home produced dishes and Quorn or TVP don't really cut it. Thanks for all the ideas though, keep them coming!
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Old 08-02-2008, 12:15
Mariaella
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Two of my children regularly consume quorn mince and quorn pieces when making chilli or curry dishes. Please , folks, can you elaborate on your objections to the stuff.

Is there a health concern, or is it too much like cheating because of the similarity to real meat in form and texture etc? Is it over processed? I do realise it contains egg whites and isn't suitable for vegans.
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Old 08-02-2008, 12:21
diablo
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If I had the misfortune to find myself wanting lunch in a vegetarian pub, I'd be pleased to see cheese and onion pie (with gravy) on the menu.

Although I don't know if they did that in the 15th century.
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Old 08-02-2008, 12:29
alfablue
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Two of my children regularly consume quorn mince and quorn pieces when making chilli or curry dishes. Please , folks, can you elaborate on your objections to the stuff.

Is there a health concern, or is it too much like cheating because of the similarity to real meat in form and texture etc? Is it over processed? I do realise it contains egg whites and isn't suitable for vegans.
I have no health concerns about Quorn, on a personal level it is merely that it resembles meat too much for my liking, and the sorts of dishes it is used in it represents a direct meat substitute,, whereas I don't feel the need to replace the meat. From the pub point of view, it doesn't sit right to be incorporating a manufactured product in what is hopefully, fine food.

From a vegetairian point of view, if the egg it contains is free range then it should conform to vegetarian standards (I don't know if it does).

But I have no objection to others eating Quorn if they like it, go for it!
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Old 08-02-2008, 13:07
Ruby Shoes
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Two of my children regularly consume quorn mince and quorn pieces when making chilli or curry dishes. Please , folks, can you elaborate on your objections to the stuff.

Is there a health concern, or is it too much like cheating because of the similarity to real meat in form and texture etc? Is it over processed? I do realise it contains egg whites and isn't suitable for vegans.
Hi

This is from my point of view and may not be the point of view of others. I'm a vegetarian for ethical reasons. I didn't give up meat because I didn't like the taste but because I didn't agree with the slaughter and unecessary suffering of animals. I became a vegan because I realised that the dairy and egg industry is just as bad as the meat industry. Just as many animals suffer and get killed unecessarily to provide milk, cheese and eggs. You would be shocked at the extent of abuse and suffering that goes on in the dairy industry. There are plenty of websites that will show this if you are interested. I would be a hypocrite if I didn't eat meat because of animal cruelty but still ate cheese, eggs and milk. Every quorn product contains eggs and most milk.
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Old 08-02-2008, 13:31
alfablue
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Hi

This is from my point of view and may not be the point of view of others. I'm a vegetarian for ethical reasons. I didn't give up meat because I didn't like the taste but because I didn't agree with the slaughter and unecessary suffering of animals. I became a vegan because I realised that the dairy and egg industry is just as bad as the meat industry. Just as many animals suffer and get killed unecessarily to provide milk, cheese and eggs. You would be shocked at the extent of abuse and suffering that goes on in the dairy industry. There are plenty of websites that will show this if you are interested. I would be a hypocrite if I didn't eat meat because of animal cruelty but still ate cheese, eggs and milk. Every quorn product contains eggs and most milk.
Ruby, I agree with you, I am struggling with my own hypocrisy (as I see it) as a vegetarian, and despite protestations of my friends and family, I know I can't go on indefinitely like this and veganism is beckoning. I realise that this step will be of similar impact to when I went veggie in the dark ages 25 years ago,in terms of how it will exclude me from various social dining opportunities. I really hate being treated as a special case by (well meaning, but very anxious to please) hosts.
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Old 08-02-2008, 14:01
Ruby Shoes
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Ruby, I agree with you, I am struggling with my own hypocrisy (as I see it) as a vegetarian, and despite protestations of my friends and family, I know I can't go on indefinitely like this and veganism is beckoning. I realise that this step will be of similar impact to when I went veggie in the dark ages 25 years ago,in terms of how it will exclude me from various social dining opportunities. I really hate being treated as a special case by (well meaning, but very anxious to please) hosts.
You know, I don't think it will be the case!! My friends happily cook me vegan and have no problems with it. I used to offer to bring my own but they seem happy with cooking vegan. It's not as difficult as it was with things like soya milk and soya margarine so readily available and used. You can even get soya custard from the supermarket and you can pour it over an apple pie (check the ingredients, some are vegan). (Or soya whipping cream!!) Soya ice cream in loads of flavours, choc ices, cornettos, sausage rolls, loads of junk food lol! It's just as easy to cook a vegan chilli as a veggie one, just change brand of soya mince. You can buy vegan cheese sauce mix for cauliflower cheese or make your own from soya milk and vegan cheese. There are various varieties of soya cream cheese spreads etc.

Thought I needed a paragraph here! If you check cooking sauces, some of them are vegan and there are always vegan ones in the 'free from' ranges in the supermarket.

Pausing for breath... I could go on lol
If you do take the step and want any advice, don't hesitate to contact me
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Old 08-02-2008, 14:02
grassmarket
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Two of my children regularly consume quorn mince and quorn pieces when making chilli or curry dishes. Please , folks, can you elaborate on your objections to the stuff.
.
My objection to it is that, in evolutionary terms, it is closer to the kind of fungus that causes athlete's foot than to the kind of fungus that we eat as mushrooms.
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