Today I cooked for a vegan client. She had bought some vegan meat and asked me to use it.
I turned the package over and read the ingredients. It was mainly soy, with a long list of other ingredients added to make it look, feel, and taste like meat.
My first thought was: if we’re starting with soy anyway, why wouldn’t I use tofu or tofu skin? I know how to cook those. I can give them flavor, texture, and a place in a meal without asking them to pretend to be something else.
Reading that label didn’t make me excited to cook. It made me wonder why this was what we were offering people who choose not to eat meat.
I can’t judge a food’s healthfulness simply by counting its ingredients. Still, I would rather start with tofu, tofu skin, beans, mushrooms, and vegetables, and know what I’m adding as I cook. That feels like a better starting point for the food I want to serve.
And honestly, I don’t find the promise of “just like real meat” convincing. When I taste some of these products, I wonder who decided they tasted like meat. To my palate, they don’t. I worry that someone unfamiliar with meat could take that promise at face value.
But the more I thought about it, the more I felt that this was also a question for us as cooks.
If someone asks me for a vegan meal, I should be able to make it delicious. I should also think about whether the meal is substantial enough, where the protein comes from, and how the dishes work together. Removing the meat and leaving a plate of vegetables is not enough. Neither is assuming that a packaged substitute has done the work for me.
Tofu, tofu skin, and beans give me plenty to work with. Mushrooms and vegetables bring their own flavors and textures. It is my job to turn those ingredients into a meal someone actually looks forward to eating.
I respect people who give up meat because they don’t want animals to be killed. That choice deserves care from the person cooking for them. They deserve food made with skill and thought, food they enjoy—not something they settle for because it says “vegan” on the package.
Today also reminded me of a meal I cooked for a friend. He wasn’t vegetarian, but he was eating entirely vegan that month. I made him four dishes.
After eating, he said, “It tastes exactly like meat!”
I know that sounds funny after everything I’ve just said. But I took his words as a compliment about how good the meal tasted and how satisfying it was. Here was someone who ate meat, enjoying a completely vegan dinner I had cooked for him.
It made me proud. I knew I could give him that kind of meal.
That is what I want to do for my vegan clients, too. They shouldn’t have to choose between their values and enjoying their dinner. As a chef, I feel responsible for helping them have both.
