Bye bye, meat... bye bye, dairy

THERE was an epidemic in my social circle towards the end of last year which seemed to spread faster than swine flu.

While I was dithering over how big the turkey needed to be, all around me the world seemed to be turning vegan.

Oh no, not another one, was my usual reaction, mainly because I have a fairly fool-proof repertoire of meals these days that I can usually pull out of thin air if someone pops over unexpectedly.

And, I have never quite got over the couple of potential buyers who came to view our house one Saturday morning, liked it (and us apparently) so much they stayed for dinner but didn’t think to announce they were both vegan until the roast pork came out of the oven.

Vegetarians don’t phase me. Left to my own devices I probably don’t eat meat 90 percent of the time. But vegan? Now, that’s a whole new box of tofu.

However, when a friend threw down the gauntlet and suggested I shouldn’t knock it until I have tried it I couldn’t really come up with a reason not to give it a go.

Announcing to family and friends that I was embarking on a dry January had already drawn gasps of disbelief but throwing in Veganuary to boot did have a few of them wondering if I had finally flipped.

As it happened, giving up the booze at the same time was a smart move. No craving carbs or giving in to a nice chunk of Camembert with my Chianti.

Preparation was obviously key to everything which is how I found myself in supermarket aisles I hadn’t even realised existed.

And to say I felt smug at the checkout unloading a ton of shiny veg and a few gallons of sparkling water is an understatement.

Butter was replaced with vegan-friendly spread, milk with an assortment of almond, coconut and soya substitutes and after much hunting around Sainsbury’s I found a caramelised vegan cheddar.

Actually I couldn’t wait to get started. My vegan friends were only too keen to share recipes and advice, the best of which was to stock up on herbs and spices.

“Otherwise everything starts to taste a bit bland quite quickly,” said one.

A record 50,000 people signed up this year for Veganuary and around 20 percent of those are likely to remain vegan.

First off the hob was a vegetable curry with chickpeas, carrots, sweet potatoes and green beans which was so unbelievably good I have recreated it many times, long after my vegan month was over.

Breakfasts were a doddle, avocado on toast, a staple at any time, fresh fruit, veggie smoothies. My kitchen resembled Covent Garden fruit and veg market.

Lunches didn’t really change that much, salad as usual but I became more adventurous with the ingredients in the absence of eggs or cheese or meat.

I also developed an addiction- to Pak Choi.

Work colleagues were intrigued to know what I was eating most days and looked slightly envious when I reeled off lists that included pasta with avocado sauce and baby tomatoes, peppers stuffed with cous cous, bulgur wheat and garlic, herbs with courgetti on the side. Few vegetables escaped the spiralizer that month.

I scoured the cookery books I have acquired over the years for inspiration and found it everywhere. Everyone from Mary Berry to Jamie Oliver have veggie dishes that can be adapted to vegan.

Deliciously Ella by Ella Woodward offered up big batch cooking in the shape of mushroom risotto with basil cream and black bean burgers. The Helmsley sisters have a vegan section in their book and courgette and tomato with butter bean pesto has also become a regular favourite.

I didn’t find cooking or coming up with ideas for tasty meals a problem at all. Every dish was a riot of colour which screamed ‘this is going to be very good for you’ from every angle.

But day five threw a curved ball. I was struck down with a blinding headache and felt distinctly dizzy; so much so I had to leave work and take myself off to bed with an electric blanket where I slept for 14 hours.

Perhaps it was my body getting rid of toxins, who knows, but the next day I was back to normal and fighting fit. It was then I began to notice some significant changes.

Blemishes, spots and skin tags virtually disappeared overnight. My hair took on a shine that had not been there before and I swear it was growing thicker and quicker. I felt lighter and bursting with energy. One weekend morning I had done two loads of washing and hung it up to dry all by 9am instead of crawling back into bed with tea and toast.

“This vegan lark is alright,” I heard myself telling friends.

But while shopping and cooking was a piece of (non-dairy) cake, eating out was a whole other enchilada.

Taking a lunch break with a colleague in an Old Town bar it was clear that my options were limited. In hindsight I should have gone for one of the salads sans meat but what I opted for was a mixed platter without the chilli. To make up for this they kindly gave me extra onion rings and chips. I can only describe it as brown.

A vegan wrap however the following day with spinach, chick peas and potatoes and coriander was sublime and has become another go to lunch.

I failed miserably with my morning cuppa. Try as I might I could not enjoy that first cup of tea with any of the milk substitutes. After a couple of weeks I crumbled and had a splash of milk in my first cup of tea of the day.

Other than that my vegan January was a roaring success. Maybe it helped knowing I was only doing it for a month. Since then I have slipped back into some old ways and I am not feeling as good.

Dairy, I am beginning to think might be the culprit. There’s no doubt my energy levels have dropped and I am not sleeping half as well.

While I don’t feel I could commit to a total vegan lifestyle, yet, my experiment has left me questioning what I do eat and where it is coming from. If I do eat meat and dairy now it is organic. True vegans may sneer that’s not good enough but I feel it is better than the alternative and I am not supporting intensive farming because health benefits aside, I watched numerous vegan-promoting documentaries on Netflix during January and cried - a lot.

I don't believe we need cheap meat because we don’t need to eat so much of it.

For now though if I am invited out I will eat what I am given.

So far I think I have become 65 percent vegetarian, 25 percent vegan and a meat eater 10 percent of the time.

I may fluctuate as the year goes on.

For me the jury is still out on whether veganism is the answer but at least it has got me asking the right questions and if everyone did a bit of that then the world really then would be our lobster.