Living Vegan For Dummies - Alexandra Jamieson [52]
Vegan-friendly places to shop for food
To find all the amazing, health-supportive vegan foods that you want to start including in your menus, you may need to broaden your shopping trips in variety and geography. But don’t worry: Even the corner deli can offer surprising proteins and a diverse array of snacks to tide you over between trips to the health food store. With planning and practice, your vegan-oriented grocery shopping will become second nature and will bring you into contact with a more diverse population of food lovers. Check out the following places to start stocking your new vegan kitchen:
Co-ops: These are cooperative operations that usually are run by members or the people who shop there. Most co-ops are akin to health food stores, but they offer a substantial discount to members who work a few hours a month or pay a yearly membership fee.
Delis and convenience stores: These places aren’t known for their variety of healthy food options, but even truck stops often carry raw nuts, seeds, and fruit. Some delis offer a fully stocked, meat-filled case of food that you wouldn’t touch in your current vegan life, but they also may provide bean and veggie salads, vegan soups, bread, fruits, nuts, and bottled water to get you to the next health food store.
Ethnic markets: These markets may seem mysterious, with their foreign aromas and alphabets and exotic displays, but they hold wonderful ingredients and surprises for vegans. Most ethnic cuisines base a large proportion of their meals on grains, beans, and vegetables — just like vegans!
Indian markets, for example, offer dahl or lentils, herbs and spices (often in bulk for less expensive prices), curry mixes, fresh produce, and whole grains. Chinese and Japanese markets offer huge varieties of leafy green veggies, ginger, spices, soy foods and tofu, teas, grains, and beans. Middle Eastern markets offer hummus, beans, stuffed grape leaves, and rice dishes.
Farmer’s markets: These fresh markets can be found in every state, and the numbers are growing every year. Most of the markets offer a variety of fruits and vegetables, ethnic prepared dishes, vegan baked goods and condiments, and sometimes soy products.
Farmer’s markets can be indoors or outdoors, and they offer a wonderful opportunity to connect to your food on a deeper level. Talking to the farmer who grew your fresh, local produce, for example, can be a profound experience that makes every bite taste a little better. Plus 100 percent of your dollar goes directly to the small farmer rather than being divided between grocery brokers and manufacturers. Farmer’s markets also give you a better understanding of what’s growing seasonally in your area. Eating seasonal, local produce offers better nutrition and leads to less pollution because the food had a shorter distance to travel.
Grocery stores: The average grocery stores today offer more and more vegan-friendly products as well as organic produce sections and bulk and ethnic aisles. My trips to see family in West Virginia have become easier to pack for over the years because the local grocery chain has expanded its health food section to include organic nut butters and frozen vegan burgers.
Don’t be afraid to talk to your local grocery store manager to request that they start carrying certain items. If you bring a list of products and brands that you will buy, they may just start carrying them! You’ll have even more success if you encourage your vegan friends to do the same!
Health food or natural food stores: These stores offer a safe haven for vegans. You’ll get to know staff members there who are familiar with the foods that are truly vegan, you’ll find loads of soy-based proteins, and you can even purchase organic, vegan versions of your favorite treats. Even health food stores