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[Wide eyed wanderer]

Hey,
I wanted to ask any vegetarians who live or have lived in Asia what the meal options are like in China, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. I am looking to live in areas smaller then the huge metropolises like Seoul, Taipai and Tokyo. I know this probably really limits my options. However I recently started eating fish and I still eat animal bi-products.

I am just hoping that I don't have to become a meatatarian again... lol!

[denise]

I'm vegan and I ate quite well in Japan (undoubtedly with occasional screw-ups in restaurants, although I did try to make sure there was no fish oil or anything...). There is plenty of tofu available, and I remember some very creative uses of soya in dessert-type things.

And Taiwan... I only spent a week there visiting a friend, but it is veggie heaven--lots of fake meats and colorful fruits.

Really, it is possible to live on a vegetarian diet just about anywhere. I've had well-meaning people express doubt and tell me that my options would be limited, but those comments generally come from meat-eaters who aren't aware of the many veggie options.

d

[Glenski]

Meal options? Cook for yourself, and you can eat anything you want.

[Wide eyed wanderer]

Thanks guys! I plan on cooking for myself I just wanted to make sure that grocery stores had tofu or other meat alternatives. I guess I always have beans, nuts and legumes to depend on, I pretty sure you can find those where ever you go, it's just nice to have some variety. I have just been to some remote towns in canada where the options have been extremely limited, so I was just hoping it didn't get even more limited in remote Asian villages. Any good meat alternatives you suggest that are over there?

Thanks again!

[Justin Trullinger]

I'm with Denise-

The place where you "can't" be vegetarian doesn' exist.

Cooking at home worked well for me in Korea, but there are also lots of nice veggie tofu options in restaurants...


Best,
Justin

[naturegirl321]

Pretty good, just make people understand what you do and don't eat. For example in China, peopel thought vegetarians could eat chicken or seafood. If you cook for yourself, then you should be fine.

[Wide eyed wanderer]

Thanks guys! It's good to know! Now I can live in a remoter area if I want to!

[nickpellatt]

Its not always as easy as suggested, although this does depend upon how strict a vegetarian you are.

When I first arrived in China (in a town of around 100,000 - which is remote for China) I was with two vegetarian girls. They found it hard going, and one of them decided to revert back to meat eating whilst there! They both had numerous problems, and the girl who remained a vegetarian would sometimes just skip meals out entirely, and stay at home with a packet of biscuits, because trying to eat out was a chore.

Vegetarianism wasn't widely understood so people would frequently serve or order food with meat in, and just be of the idea that, 'yes, I know you said you dont eat meat, but this really is delicious so you might want to try!'.

Another problem would be foods that might be vegetable based, but would still be served with meat....green beans fried with small pieces of pork is one example .... street vendors often include small pieces of meat in noodles too, even when you say you dont want them. Picking meat out of every dish can be a chore.

Final thing is that if you are strict ... you should be aware that food may be cooked with meat, or using the same oils as meat ... even if served seperately.

As I say, I was in a small city town. By Chinese standards that is remote, but these problems were encountered by people I travelled with. As far as vegetarian alternatives such as soya based sausages and the like...no chance whatsoever.

[naturegirl321]

When I went to China I wasn't vegetarian, when I returned to CHina I was a strict vegetarian. And if peopel asked, it was for religious reason, becuase somehow they don't understand that the reason I'm vegetarian is becuase I can't stand seeing things slaughtered in front of me.

[Jati]

In my Malaysian town there is a vegetarian restaurant that uses tofu and creates meat-like dishes. I don't know how it is done but they get tofu products to taste like duck and beef and so forth. Very tasty! I had never come across this anywhere else, but I like to go at least 1-2 times per week.

[Jetgirly]

[jasonXkeller]

I have been vegan for 16 years. Though I have traveled very little outside of the US, I am optimistic about maintaining my diet. It would seem that the prevalence of Buddhism in many Asian countries would make it very easy to be vegan or vegetarian. I also have an outlook that may not be shared by many vegans and vegetarians. I don't feel that meat is "icky" or "gross." I take a very pragmatic approach. If my goal is to eliminate my contribution to unnecessary suffering, the use of shared utensils or cooking spaces does not detract from my goal, therefore I do not care one way or the other. I am also not opposed to picking out an occasional piece of meat. Many times the effort we, as vegans and vegetarians, put forth are not equally beneficial to the welfare of animals, leaving us inefficient and less effective in our efforts. Do the best to maximize the overall benefit your efforts will generate.

Sorry for ranting. Good luck!

[Glenski]

[yaramaz]

I was vegetarian for 15 years before I gave it up in central Turkey (where everything had at least a little lamb broth in it, except the tomato/onion/cucumber salads). Now in Shanghai for nearly a year, I'm back in a mostly-veggie diet because it is really easy. Even eating out is easy because there are so many simple vegetable dishes-- potato shreds with vinegar and chili, lotus root, snow peas, green beans...lots of glutinous rice and tofu and peanuts and greens... lovely! I'm not a big fan of the texture of meat here, as it is too soft and squidgy for my taste, so even though they use it sparingly in most dishes I tend to just go the meatless route. Here in shanghai, there are quite a few vegetarian and specifically vegan restaurants. I've tried a few- not bad.

[Justin Trullinger]

I'll add that there are a lot of countries where you'll meet ex-vegetarians who will tell you "I was vegetarian for ___ years, but when I came here, I realized that you just can't be vegetarian here."

And yet, everyplace I've been told that, I continued to be vegetarian. My wife is vegan, which has sometimes been hard, but is far from impossible.


Bes,t
Justin