As soon as someone says they are a vegan, most people immediately think that they must like certain foods such as avocado or sweet potato or weird mixtures of pomegranate and soy cheese on toast… I, however, detest the thought of munching on something like that.
I am a vegetarian of almost five years but since the new year I’ve been following a vegan life-style three days a week. I was anxious to start because I assumed that I would have to eat what I would class as ‘boring’ foods such as avocado. I’ve never been the biggest fan of avocado and I almost felt guilty for not liking it whilst trying to be vegan. In a way, I weirdly felt almost like a fake.
Vegans promote a healthy lifestyle which I adore, however not all the food ideas are for me, for example, I can’t stand the thought of mixing fruit with salad or (like I previously mentioned) pomegranate on toast with avocado and soy cheese.
My boyfriend is fairly keen on avocado and he recently decided to make it his mission to make me try some again. So, we prepared avocado on toast and tried to mask the taste and texture as much as possible, as I wanted to ease myself into the idea. The toast was vegan-buttered and then the avocado was salted and peppered, the meal was bearable to eat but I didn’t enjoy it. Once again, I felt like a fake vegan.
People have asked me “How can you occasionally be a vegan and not like avocado? What is there for you to eat?”
Well there is a lot more to what you can eat than just what vegans promote, it doesn’t always have to be what you think.
In sheer determination to feel more like a vegan, I at least tried avocado again, however, I have finally accepted that it’s okay that I don’t like certain foods and that it doesn’t make me any less of a vegan. You can stick to your original diet, just adjust it to make it vegan.
For example, I never used to eat avocado, so I shouldn’t feel the pressure too now either.
When shopping and researching food I can eat, I was surprised at what actually was and wasn’t vegan. I quickly adjusted my diet, which wasn’t too hard regarding I was already vegetarian. I found that I actually preferred the vegan milk, cheese and butter, so much so that on my vegetarian days I found myself opting for the non-animal product option anyhow.
Overall, I’ve experienced a miniature journey of acceptance with not fitting with the stereotypical vegan assumptions, because I too, fell for the image that is portrayed that you have to like certain foods. You can be vegan without having to follow all the social influencers and media portrayals. Veganism isn’t for everyone, however, because sometimes people need certain dietary requirements, and some people think that they have to try despite this. Veganism isn’t possible for everyone, but for those that it is, give it a try, there’s more to it than you think.
