Throw a vegan tasting party!

Photo by Victoria Shes on Unsplash

Description

Have you tasted this? Wow!

A great way to fight climate change is a personal climate step - to eat closer to the source of all food by eating mostly plants and avoiding meat and other animal products. Animal agriculture is a leading cause of deforestation, which throws climate pollution into the atmosphere. Not to mention it is often cruel.

So what is perhaps the biggest barrier to eating vegan food? Probably a lack of familiarity or realization about what is vegan. How about throwing a vegan-ingredient tasting party? Help yourself, your friends, family, and even neighbors eat more plant-based, making even MORE of a climate impact.

Here are some ideas for what a vegan-ingredient-tasting party might consist of:

First - A selection of different types of ingredients for folks to just, well, taste. To know what to focus on with friends, informally survey beforehand on what friends wanted to try. That might include plant milk, cheese and crackers, bean dishes, and plant meats. Many people have likely tried seitans, tempahs, or mushroom-based meatballs.

Second - A selection of more complex dishes to show the actual tasty possibilities. Consider asking others who tend to eat plant-based to bring a favorite dish as well to spread the burden.

Third - A cooking demonstration to help people learn how to cook with items they have limited experience with, such as tofu.

Encourage open conversation and sharing experiences. Talk about how these foods can easily fit into daily meals and discuss tips for making plant-based eating more accessible and enjoyable. By creating a fun and educational environment, you can help inspire lasting changes that benefit the planet, animals, and health. Every small step counts and this party could be the start of something much bigger!

Tips

• Pair up several co-hosts to pull off more variety. Try for at least one of you to be a long-time vegan, to know the tricks of the food markets.

• Have a tasting contest for the milks, the cheeses, or some other foods with different varieties. Have people write down their preferences and then compare notes.

• Naturally be aware of allergies, especially because many products are made with nuts. Make sure everyone knows what they are drinking, and eating in advance.

• Have some foods out on the table that people may also not realize are actually vegan. French fries or candy, for instance, may get a laugh.

• If you can hold this party in an open spot, where you would be comfortable with strangers coming, consider putting the party invite out to your neighborhood - expanding your reach. Some vegan enthusiasts hearing about it through the grapevine may bring items to share. Many will not come, but it still makes a positive impact on those who see it.

• Approach a local community group for help with buying the ingredients; ask them to become co-sponsors of this neighborhood event. Perhaps even approach some local vegan restaurants to donate some ingredients and/or dishes.

• Consider putting out some vegan cookbooks for folks to leaf through, plus some non-scary pamphlets. Be careful about information that will turn people off. The goal of this particular event is to focus on vegan = enjoyment.

• Relax, enjoy, and share the tasting results and some pictures afterward!