Vegan Guide

Veganism is becoming more and more popular. Either you want to go vegan for the first time, just try a vegan meal, or have friends coming over that only consume vegan food. This guide should help you to make the transition of trying some vegan products easier. First of all, what is considered vegan and what is not? Vegans can eat anything that is from plants or not derived from animals. For example, fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, tofu, tempeh, nuts and seeds, spices and herbs, vegan beverages, vegan junk food, and vegan cheese. Vegans can't eat anything derived from animals. For example: meat, fish, dairy, eggs, honey, and more.

 

What are the best grocery stores?

Almost every grocery store has vegan products nowadays, however, there are differences in pricing and quality of some vegan items. I will provide you with a list of my top 3 grocery stores, measured by price, selection of vegan products, and quality.

1. Trader Joe’s

The grocery store has a variety of plant-based food options at a low price. It has different plant-based protein sources, such as Tempeh, Tofu, vegan Chorizo, and turkey less ground, for prices starting at $2.29. Further, the store has a variety of vegan dips, such as vegan Buffalo-style spread, vegan salmoesque spread, vegan tzatziki dip, and much more, for prices between $3 to $5.

Check out their store.

2. Whole Foods Market

The store offers a variety of organic and natural products. It has numerous plant-based protein sources, such as tofu, tempeh, beyond meat, vegan ground beef, and more. The prices for each product start at $2,79 for tofu and go to $9.99 for beyond sausages. Besides vegan protein sources, the store has a variety of vegan yogurt, cream cheese, and cheese products from many different brands. Also, here it can be a bit pricier. They have so many vegan products and substitutes, however, you have to pay a bit more for them. Nonetheless, it is heaven for vegans since you can find almost everything as a vegan option.

Check out their store.

3. Sprouts Farmers Market

This store is very similar to Whole Foods Market, it has plenty of vegan products and substitutes, such as different plant protein sources and well as vegan milk, cheese, and dips. Pricewise it is in the middle of Trader Joe’s, being kind of cheap, and Whole Foods Market, being expensive. Also, it does not have as many different vegan brands as Whole Foods Market, still you will find anything you need when creating a vegan meal.

Check out their store.

For clarification, the three grocery stores I mentioned above are just my personal favorites and have a variety of vegan food. Nevertheless, other grocery stores, such as Walmart, Publix, Target, and Aldi have plenty of vegan food available. Also remember, you do not have to buy for example vegan cheese, vegan ground beef, etc. Mainly consuming whole foods as a vegan is definitely an option too. 

When going grocery shopping what should you be looking for?

The great thing about grocery stores is that every product is labeled. This will become handy when only looking for vegan foods, most foods have a distinctive vegan label on it such as:

 

If you do not see a label and think it should be vegan, always check the ingredients of a product. For example, some products such as chips, bread, and sauces will probably not have a vegan label on it but are vegan. However, watch out for these ingredients when checking the label, lactose, cultured dextrose, milk solids, shellac, aspic, l-cysteine, and more. View the full list at veganfirst.

 

The last thing I want to talk about is vegan substitutes that will make your life much easier. If you are having a hard time going vegan because you have always been used to cooking with meat, eggs, and dairy products, knowing and trying these substitutes can make your transition into a vegan lifestyle easier.

• Instead of meat
• Try tofu, tempeh, seitan, meatloaf made out of beans and nuts, and other processed vegan meat options such as beyond meat.
• Instead of fish
• Try, watermelon, or carrot salmon, algae soup (miso soup), or vegan sushi.  
• Instead of eggs
• Try scrambled tofu, vegan Just egg (it is a great egg substitute).
• Instead of honey
• Try agave syrup, maple syrup, or date syrup.

It might seem a lot at the beginning but eating vegan is easier than you might think.