Being a ghaas-phoos person in India is one thing but going bina-doodh is quite another. With no vegan restaurant anywhere, cooking without ghee or butter at home can get bothersome for families.
It is hilarious visiting a specialised maas-machi restaurant and ordering vegan food. At one such famous fish do in Mumbai’s suburbs, the waiter was more than happy to take down conventional fish orders such as Pomfret Fry and Prawns Masala. I then asked him whether he has anything vegan. He thought vegan was vegetarian for short and recommended a Potato side-dish. I did not bother to enlighten him on whom or what a vegan was so ordered the Potato dish and told him to refrain from adding any butter. The waiter looked back at me, up and down and said I could do with some desi ghee.
The main course order came as much as a shock to the waiter since I told him to cook the Vegetarian Biryani without ghee. He said it was not possible since the vegetables and rice have already been mixed with ghee. I then asked for steamed rice and daal and told him to keep the daal away from ghee tadka. He said he would try but no, it came with a generous scent of ghee. I took a bit of daal, poured it in drops over lots of rice and helped myself to a huge measure of mango pickle. All this while my partner gorged on delicious sea-food.
It is not so much the waiter’s fault. Veganism is still quite alien concept in India. People turn vegans either because they are lacto-intolerant or because they do not want to eat any animal produce. And it is not so difficult to become or remain one. Pure healthy eating which is basically cooking with little oil and eating more of vegetables and fruits is easy. A typical Indian meal of daal, rice, chappatis and vegetable suit vegans perfectly if made without butter or ghee. There are also Vegan Chefs that have sprung about. They make any and every dish in the world but without milk and cheese, this includes cheesecakes and cheese spreads. And there are high-class restaurants like Olive which have prawn, chicken and pork dishes for vegetarians – food that look non-veg but made with soya. Not to forget the odd Vegan shake or sandwich at some cafeterias.
The problem arises if you go to glitzy restaurants. The one that offer 5-7 course meals. It is almost a rule to (quite needlessly I think) to lace or dip every course in cheese, paneer or just butter. But none of the butter is actually missed. No, this is not a moral statement. Yes, the aroma of butter can be quite enticing. But vegan food is actually very easy on the stomach. Once vegan, one automatically drifts towards dishes that consume less oil, are more raw and fresh.