4 Easy Ways to Achieve Meaty Vegan Meals
Updated: Aug 16, 2021
4 Easy Ways to Achieve Meaty Vegan Meals
When making a meal with alternative or substitute meats, it’s important to know that type of meal you are making. If you would rather not have the texture of meat, then substitutes are best, as they are a replacement for meat rather than a ‘meat-like’ substitute. However, if you would like the texture of meat in your meal, then shop bought alternatives may be for you. With both of these options, there are ways to make them taste as ‘meat-like’ as you prefer.
Substitute & Alternative Meats
The vegan market has expanded massively in recent years, meaning there is a lot for us to choose from now.
Alternative meats can provide a perfect base for your meals, as they can be very realistic to meat – burgers, sausages and mince for example. Some of these, depending on the brand and your preferences, may need flavouring, but it’s all about experimenting until you find what works best for you.
Substitutes can be bean burgers, tofu chicken or mushroom mince, that will need additional flavouring to achieve the taste that you want; but they can also be left as they are if you prefer the taste of the beans for example, rather than meat.
4 easy ingredients to help with the flavour are marmite, tamari, liquid smoke and seasoning.
Marmite is great to add to burgers and mince meals like bolognese. It’s strong flavour intensifies meals and can colour sauces and marinades. For a while, marmite was mainly used as an alternative to beef extract and still is to this day, it’s not just a spread!
Tamari is a must have in your vegan stock cupboard! It’s packed with umami, which is a rich flavour found in beef. It is also found in dried fish, cooked mushrooms and is used to add ‘meatiness’ to meals.
Liquid Smoke – A smoke flavour with your ‘meat’ is a great way to enhance the ‘illusion’. Liquid smoke can be added to sauces and marinades to enhance meat flavours and give a ‘BBQ’ flavour.
Seasoning – If you want to create your own chicken substitute, breaded or plain, have a look at chicken seasoning. This is a combination of herbs and spices all mixed together, available for us to buy ready-made. How easy is that?
There are so many options available to us now, that we can experiment and find a combination of flavours to suit our preference – and it’s fun to try new flavours!
