Lately I have been having second thoughts about my meat-eating lifestyle. I would like to convert, but meat substitutes (like boca burgers) seem so expensive and i'm just a poor college student. are ramen noodles vegan friendly? Just kidding, but seriously, how do i shop vegan-friendly on a tight budget? I have a budget of about $75 every two weeks for food. also, do you take vitamins to make up for the protein you are not getting from meat? Can vegans eat eggs? Drink milk?
As a poor, vegan college student, I'd like to say: You are not alone, and it definately can be done! =D Let's see ... usually, you can work something out with your college, if you either go to their medical facility and ask them to put you on a better meal plan (or whatever), or request that they add vegan food to their cafeterias. If you have any other places to eat on-campus, there are usually things to eat there. Pasta: Always vegan, high carbs. French fries: As long as they are cooked in veggie oil, and not cooked with other meat (like chicken patties), then they are a-okay. Salads / Wraps: Always a plus. Pita bread / hummus: Yay! Cereal: If it's non-Kellogs, go for it, along with some soymilk! Canned veggies & soups: Check the ingredients: Usually good. Chips / Tortillas / Salsa: Another plus. There are MANY things out there that are vegan, and they aren't all just substitutes for things. You'd even be suprised, I bet, to hear that there are several kinds of cookies and other snack foods, like some types of Oreos (and usually the cheaper, store-brand oreo substitutes as well) are quite vegan. All you have to do is watch the ingredients. Among the big ingredients that you can't have: Anything with "lact" in the name (lactose, calcium lactate, lactic acid, etc.), whey, milk, eggs/egg whites, cheese, gelatin. There are many other things, but these are the biggest. If you search online, you can find lists of all the things that are out there; I find it pretty easy to stick them into a palm-pilot and carry that list around with me, in case I ever need to identify an ingredient that might be bad. Also, there was a thread around here, called "Vegan on a budget" or something like that. I suggest you check it out; it had a lot of good pointers. As for nutrition: Make sure you supplement your vegan diet. Most vegetables and such don't contain protein. However, if you eat products that are made from soy and tofu, you will get a lot of protein out of that. Soybeans contain more protein than meat, and their protein is also of a higher quality than meat. I recommend drinking soymilk daily (soymilk + cereal = HELL YES, far better than normal milk, IMO) to make sure you get your daily protein intake. Other than that, it's also a good idea to supplement B-vitamins, as you'll probably need some more of those, though not as bad as you'll need protein. Ramen noodles ... the noodles themselves are vegan, but a lot of brands (like Maruchan) use non-vegan ingredients in their soup bases and whatnot. You can't get anything that tastes like chicken, beef, etc., but if you find something that is vegan (like chili ramen or something), go for it. One thing I do recommend: If you like noodles, do what I do. Go to the nearest Wegmans, and go to the International aisle. There, you will find a popular product that is called "Yakisoba," which is a type of chowmein. Unfortunately, the writing is in Japanese, so it may be hard to find, but it's in a white and orange package. Here, let me actually give you a link of the package: http://www.katagiri.com/ctlg/jpgf/c/c3001.htm You'd be looking for the one on the right side, in the middle. That's the one I am referring to. It is the best noodle product I have ever come across, and a friend of mine taught me an EXCELLENT recipe for cooking it on a stove, that makes it taste INCREDIBLE! =D If you have a stove, let me know, I'll give you instrctions. It only takes like 5 or 10 minutes to make. It's made by Sapporo Ichiban. I will warn you: It contains a little monosodium glutamate (MSG), but if that doesn't really bother you, go for it. I don't think MSG really has THAT adverse of an effect on the body, ESPECIALLY if your body is healthy as hell because of a vegan diet! And no, you can't drink milk or eat eggs. However, you CAN drink soymilk or organic milk (BUT ONLY if you verify that the source of the organic milk doesn't mistreat their cows; visit the farm in question and see for yourself, some organic farms are actually pretty good). Soymilk can come in a variety of flavours (original, vanilla, chocolate, carob, etc.), and it tastes freakin' great. Also, you can have soy cheese; they sell that at a lot of co-operative grocerie stores, and also at Wegmans. Wegamans = yay. And one last thing ... stay away from milk chocolate. Yes, I know, we all suffer, but there is more to gain (like an extra half of a lifetime!), believe me. You CAN have products that have just "chocolate" in it, as chocolate itself is made from cocoa beans and cocoa butter, which are completely vegan. But stay away from "milk chocolate." Well, that ought to do it. Good luck, man, and let me know if you end up going vegan, so I can give you a formal welcome! =D
Vegans definately do not eat eggs or drink milk. But vegetarians do. If you're an omni now, I highly recommend going lacto-ovo (dairy and egg) vegetarian first, because if you make too drastic of a switch you're likely to fail. Get comfortable with smaller steps first. What you're comfortable with depends on your personality. If the thought of reading the tiny print on lables is daunting, don't do it. You can begin by just not eating anything that isn't an actual hunk of flesh and not worry about gelatin or rennet for now. Some people can go from omni to vegan in a month or two, others need years or even decades. Some never get too picky on the lables. Don't let anyone guilt you into thinking you aren't doing enough, knowing your limits will bring you success in the long run. So once you've decided on a course of action, the vegan part of your diet should be plenty affordable, I spend around $30 CDN per week on food (vegan). Tofu is very cheap and in-season vegetables are usually easily affordable. A cheap veggie that's packed with all manner of wonderful nutrients is bok choy, and plain rice and dried beans are never too pricey. Don't forget to ask questions as they arise! There are a number of dedicated vegan sites on the net, here's the best one IMO http://www.veganoutreach.org/index.html. There's also here and other veggie forums and recipe sites. Good luck!
i agree with price check. ease into the vegan and don't kick yourself if you find it 'easier' to be a strict vegetarian on your budget for awhile. (sometimes a free meal invite from friend is a good thing when you are poor and lacto ovo is easier to find particularly at restaurants) do you have a fridge and stove or are you in a dorm? what kind of food storage space do you have? these answers might help us to give you some better ideas...also think of some of the foods you like and look at ways you can veg it...
hikkaru zero if thats your pic you kinda look like that guy from the grateful dead in the festival express movie...
Haha, thanks jamaica, I think. I should see that sometime. =) HighBlueSkies: Don't worry, going to vegan doesn't seem to be too hard. Both my roommate and I were able to switch over from meat-eating right to vegan, with no problems at all. But if you have problems with it, don't move too fast. My dad tried to go just vegetarian once, and he couldn't handle it; he's an ex-Marine (scary that I'm his liberal son!), so I know he has the dedication to handle it, but it's just too taxing on some people physically, so don't rush yourself all at one time if it ends up being a little too much. It is quite overwhelming, like a culture shock. And your taste buds will go through some changes; I used to HATE raw tofu, and most fruits and vegetables. Now, I can't live without them! Just be prepared for that. As a vegan, let it show your strength! Only the most dedicated and most moral of people dare be vegan; show the world who's their daddy! =D Haha.
I am also leaning towards the vegan lifestyle, but right now I'm going to just slowly work my through no meat to no dairy, it shall be hard but I think I can do it. Thanks for giving all this information for those of us that are interested in becoming one.
http://www.peta.org/accidentallyVegan/ lists of "accidentally" vegan stuff..regardless of what your opinion of PeTA and PeTA2 and their protests/actions whatever, they have lots of good information. =)
Watch anything you can get ahold of on animal rights and factory farming. If you knew the shit that they put in your food, you'd be vegan without a problem! www.farmsanctuary.org www.tribeoftheheart.org www.peta.org (check out meet your meat)
