Years ago my friends were never sure what to get me when they invited me for barbecues, and – living in an isolated place where most foods at that time were not available – I wasn’t sure myself. OK, this is a little over ten years ago; things have changed now, but back then, I always got the inevitable answer: “There will be salad.” I usually smiled, not informing the host that I didn’t like salads.
Yep, I am vegan and I am not crazy about salads, sorry to burst that bubble 🙂
What Goes on the Grill?
Anything.
Burgers, sausages, patties, even skewered vegan tempeh or seitan with grilled veggies, vegan cheese quesadillas, and so on. And of course, we could have a salad on the side, I’ll get one too 😉
(I do like to make my own salads and add some variety to the ingredients)
Roasted vegetables are also very tasty, and I just love grilled shallots. Yummy. How about char-coaled potatoes? And you can’t go wrong with salsa and guacamole.
Where do I Buy This?
In a big city it is easy to purchase vegan BBQ meat substitutes. Even in small towns, getting plant-based food is not a mad quest from store to store anymore.
The vegan food market is growing. Here in Los Cabos, my hometown, places that used to sell mostly meat, now have small vegan havens in their isles. Small, but they’re there. We do not have the great variety as on the mainland or in big cities, but hey, if I can buy vegan meats here, then it will surely be easy in other places too 🙂
How do I Prepare it?
Just throw them on the grill and use your culinary skills. Turn them over before they get burnt, you get the idea 😉
What goes in these vegan meat substitutes?
The ingredients of vegan meat substitutes may differ. They could be soy, tofu, tempeh, nuts, veggies, quinoa, textured vegetable protein, mushrooms, jackfruit, spices, soy sauce, etc. It is in fact much healthier than the animal meats.
Don’t Vegan Meat Substitutes taste bad?
No, on the contrary, they are delicious. As I explained in my previous posts, I have made vegan sausages myself and I was asked by my non-vegan friends to make some for them on a regular basis.
Regarding store-bought items, it all depends on the brand, I suppose, or how it’s prepared. Some people prefer one brand over another. And as with store-bought beef burgers, I am sure that some people who eat meat have come across a few packaged meats that they really didn’t like. I have even heard vegans complain about some vegan brands that I actually like. So, it all depends on your preferences.
Oops, It’s Gone … 
In general, plant-based food is simply finger-licking good and at any event where vegan and non-vegan foods are offered, the vegan ones are always gone at once. I remember a potluck at my workplace years ago. I brought homemade vegan lasagna. My co-workers are big meat eaters, but everyone wanted a piece of my lasagna and they loved it. It was gone in seconds.
Go on, Have a BBQ
With so many products available nowadays, it is easy to add a vegan side to your barbecues, and don’t worry if you don’t know where to find any meat substitutes. Ask your vegan friends for help. Perhaps they could bring something. Many would love to prepare a nice meal or bring store-bought burgers or sausages. We love for you to try it out and we don’t mind sharing 🙂
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Love your post. I’m not a vegan and I’m impressed to see that there are a lot more possibilities than I thought. I don’t have friends neither that are vegan so it’s hard for me to understand better every meal you can eat. Next time I will make a BBQ, I will consider of trying new recipe (vegan ones!) even if I don’t have vegan friends with me.
Thank you for sharing 😀
Thank you 🙂
I am happy you’re inspired to try some vegan recipes. If you need any more ideas, let me know 🙂
Great post, I really like eating meat, but I’m training and doing weight lifting and I like to get as much variety with my food as possible, I have actually tried quite a few vegan products like sausages, cheese, soy yogurt, vegan protein and I really like them, they taste really good and even if I’m meat eater I like to change meat to vegan products from time to time, just to get that variety in food.
And people should know that vegan food can actually be very tasty and your post it’s great prove to that, I’m really happy you trying to educate people about that. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Thank you! I am glad you are trying out different products. 🙂