I met Matthew Cunningham last year when he took my vegan lifestyle series of classes. He registered himself and his wife – an anniversary present for her (are you swooning?). Matt is a new vegan, an accmoplished athlete and is training for his first iron distance triathlon. I told him that I hear from lots of guys who find cooking in and of itself intimidating, let alone vegan cooking. Matt has some tips!
Adopting a plant-based diet can be a major adjustment for anyone. As a former meat-eater who enjoyed steak, chicken and fish in all its forms, I was a little overwhelmed at times after deciding to go down this path. However, in retrospect, it was one of the best choices I have made that brings me daily satisfaction along with greater energy and vigor.
After some time, you should see how liberating the vegan life can be. I recently saw the line below and think it fits this topic perfectly!
‘It’s Not About Restrictions; It’s About Creating New Habits’
Vegan Quick Tips from Matt Cunningham: 5 tips for navigating your plant-powered kitchen
Plan Ahead
Clean eating and nutrition are too often a casualty in the chaos of life. This doesn’t have to be the case. Scheduling the time to prepare meals is something I’ve come to love as we discover new recipes and ways to fuel our active lifestyles.
Buying (and cooking) in bulk is one way to save time and money. Try to hit your local Costco right when they open on a weekend morning to avoid that inevitable rush that comes later in the day. Load up on frozen fruit (blueberries, mango, strawberries, pineapple), dark leafy greens, carrots, mushrooms, non-dairy milk, avocados, hummus, dates, almond butter, hemp hearts, etc. After a trip or two, you will have your plant-based route in check and should be able to divide and conquer in 30 minutes or less!
These stores are also starting to carry more vegan foods (soups, veggie burgers, stuffed grape leaves) that are ideal for those nights when there is no time to cook. Looking for something they don’t have? Stop at customer service and fill out a product request……we do it every time…..power to the people!
Step Out of Your Comfort Zone(s)
This is one of my favorite mantras for the kitchen or any other part of life. Adapting to a vegan lifestyle presents many opportunities to incorporate foods that you might not have tried before or to try them in new ways. The possibilities are virtually endless.
If you’re not a fan of certain veggies, throw them in the blender and drink them. The Vitamix is one of the best investments we have made for our kitchen. I’ve yet to concoct a smoothie recipe that I didn’t like.
Restaurants will present more opportunities to experiment and find new culinary favorites. With the vegan lifestyle becoming more mainstream, it’s exciting to taste what innovative dishes are being created. Some of the few I’ve loved include a beet steak at Leaf in Boulder, CO and gourmet falafel at Nourish in Banff, Alberta. When you find a dish in a restaurant you like, try and replicate it at home.
Play to Your Strengths
Are you a grill master? You can still demonstrate your skills just as much. Ditch the steak and chicken and start grilling veggies –peppers, onions, squash and zucchini are just a few that taste amazing off the grill. Try marinating some Portobello mushrooms, just as you would a steak, and grilling them is only one of your options. We do this a few times a month and use them for grilling, in salads, stir fry or as mushroom burgers. Try a marinade of soy sauce, some balsamic vinaigrette and whatever spices are at your disposal. After marinating, they have a flavor that pops along with the hearty texture and mouth-feel of the traditional meat-based dishes you are used to.
Have a chili recipe that you’ve been cooking for years? Great! You can still prepare it for those cold winter nights. The easiest swap is to replace the meat with sweet potatoes. This has become our go-to Super Bowl meal in my house. We make enough to feed an offensive line and, therefore, are enjoying leftovers for days. This sweet potato and kale chili recipe from Forks Over Knives will keep you fueled while not feeling too heavy.
Ditch Your Pre-Conceived Notions
Many of us grew up in households where salad was something minor that you endured before attacking the main entrée which always featured steak, chicken or some kind of meat as the centerpiece. In ditching the meat, make a huge salad your meal. There’s no reason a salad can’t be as filling and tasty as the traditional dinners you have grown accustomed to. Load up a large bowl with kale, spinach and your favorite dark, leafy greens (ditch the iceberg). We usually take the kitchen sink approach, filling the bowl with whatever is in the fridge – including peppers, cucumbers, carrots, edamame, mushrooms, sugar snap peas, onions, etc. Top it off with avocado, pumpkin seeds, slivered almonds, hemp hearts or soy curls. There are many delicious dressing recipes to be found that ditch the dairy. If I’m especially hungry, after a strenuous workout for example, I’ll also have a piece of sprouted toast with hummus. It’s a simple, guilt-free dinner packed with nutrients that won’t give you digestion issues before you retire for the night.
Go Online
The vegan lifestyle’s growing impact is plainly evident in the arena of social media. Facebook and Twitter are home to various organizations and people sharing recipes, clothing and other products and best practices for the plant-powered crowd. You can spend hours on Instagram and Pinterest exploring and sharing with like-minded eaters. Apps like Happy Cow and Yelp make it easy to find options when you are on the road. Join a local meet-up for extra support and recommendations.
Vegan Quick Tips on JLgoesVegan.com
An Arizona native who has lived in Minnesota, Montana, Texas and Saskatchewan, Canada, Matt Cunningham now calls Colorado Springs, CO home. A lifelong hockey player and coach, his job with USA Hockey takes him around the country for coaching clinics and player camps. While playing college hockey at Minnesota State University, Mankato Matt earned degrees in Mass Communications and Sport Management. A graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition’s Health Coach Training Program, Matt is currently training for the Boulder 70.3 triathlon in June and Ironman Arizona in November. His plant-powered lifestyle fuels triathlon training, mountain biking, floorball, skiing and other outdoor pursuits. Matt has completed yoga teacher training and will begin teaching in Spring 2014. Keep up with Matt on his blog From the Ice to Ironman.
One thought on “Vegan Quick Tips: 5 tips for navigating your plant-powered kitchen”
Comments are closed.
Great article Matt. Thanks for sharing this and keep fueling those swims, rides and runs with plant-based power!