How to Turn Your Favorite Cultural Dishes Vegan

Ever felt like you’re trying to square a circle? That’s what it can feel like for when you are trying to make cultural dishes vegan. With the rising tide of people opting for plant-based diets for health, ethics, or Mother Earth, it’s a real noodle-scratcher for those who grew up with plates full of animal products. But hey, who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?

In this guide, we’ll explore the vegan transformation of classic cultural dishes, making it possible to cherish your culinary heritage in a plant-based way

Vegan Pantry Essentials

Meat substitutes:

• Tofu
• Seitan
• Tempe
• Textured vegan protein
• Legumes
• Mushrooms
• Young green jackfruit

Dairy alternatives

•  Nut milks, creams, nut cheeses, vegan whip

Seasoning

• Nutritional yeast: mimics egg and poultry flavors  

• Vegan fish sauce

So let’s dive into some traditional dishes across the world and learn how to make them vegan.

Your Favorite Cultural Dishes Turned Vegan

European specialities

Most European dishes we can think of include heaps of cured meats, cheeses, grilled meats, and yummy stews. You won’t believe it, all of them can be made vegan. Here is how:

Spanish Cuisine (e.g., Paella, Jamón, Chorizo)

Vegan Paella

Use plant-based sausages, artichokes, bell peppers, peas, and beans. Flavor with saffron and smoked paprika for the authentic taste.

Vegan Jamón

Create a vegan ham using seasoned and baked seitan or marinated tofu.

Chorizo

Use textured vegetable protein (TVP), like the one from Bob’s Red Mill. Or use seitan as the base and season with paprika, garlic, and other traditional spices to add the chorizo flavors.

French Cuisine

Coq au Vin: Replace chicken with hearty mushrooms like Portobellos or seitan, and cook with the traditional wine sauce and herbs.

Boeuf Bourguignon

Use mushrooms, carrots, and potatoes as the main ingredients. Seitan can also be a good beef substitute, stewed in vegan-friendly red wine and broth.

German Cuisine

Vegan Schnitzel

Create a schnitzel using pounded thin seitan or breaded eggplant slices, fried until crispy. We prefer the fried eggplant!

Vegan Sauerbraten

Marinate seitan or a firm tofu in a mixture of vinegar, water, and spices, then braise it in the marinade.

Italian Cuisine

Vegan Osso Buco

Use large chunks of jackfruit or mushrooms as a substitute for veal, slow-cooked with vegetables and broth. Here is a great recipe that we like.

Vegan Lasagna

This traditional dish originally uses ricotta cheese made from cow’s milk. Fortunately for us, by adding a bit of seasoning and using a cashew ricotta substitute, we can achieve the same texture and flavors as in the original.

Russian Cuisine

Vegan Stroganoff

Typically this a sour cream-based sauce with beef, served over noodles or rice. For the vegan option, you can use mushrooms as the beef substitute and create the creamy sauce from vegan sour cream or a cashew cream base, flavored with mustard and paprika.

 South American

 Watermelon Ceviche

Traditionally, ceviche is made from raw fish cured in citrus juices. However, to create a vegan alternative, you can use watermelon as a substitute for fish. Alternatively, thinly slice young coconut and then mix it with all of the regular seasonings for a delightful twist.

 Flautas

This dish is a tortilla filled with meat, fried until crispy. To make this dish vegan, fill with mashed potatoes, refried beans, or a combination of vegetables. Fry until golden and crispy.

Middle Eastern and Asian (Thai, Chinese, Arab countries)

Most Asian and Middle Eastern cuisines can be made vegan already. In Asian cuisine, you have to swap the fish sauce with a vegan variety.

Here are some dishes we thought were pretty tasty in their vegan form:

 Pad Thai

Traditionally, this dish is made with eggs, fish sauce, shrimp, or chicken. To make it vegan, you can use tofu instead of meat and a vegan fish sauce substitute. 

Vegan Peking duck

Yes, you heard it right, you can make a vegan version of this! What you will need is roasted, seasoned, and crisped jackfruit or seitan as a duck substitute.

Middle-eastern Kofta

This is a spiced meatball or meat skewer dish eaten across many Arab-speaking countries. To make the vegan alternative, make the meatballs from lentils, bulgur wheat, or chickpeas and season with traditional spices.

The Bottom Line

Where there is a will there is a way! Swapping meat dishes with vegetarian or vegan can help you come closer to living a more sustainable and healthy life.

Read some of our other blogs and follow us for more vegan food and travel tips.