A common saying is that »The first impression is irreversible.«
People are often hesitant to eat vegan food because they think it will taste like grass or cardboard at worst. Not even thinking that any dish, vegan or not, that is not well prepared can taste bad.
It is a common misconception when it comes to vegan food that it doesn’t taste as good as non-vegan dishes. On the contrary, if appropriately prepared, it may be delicious.
When you understand seasonings and plant-based cooking, you can please even the most discerning critics.
In this article, I’ll give you some tips & tricks on how to make vegan food taste better by adding spices, herbs, fresh fruits, vegetables, or other highly aromatic ingredients.
Does Vegan Food Taste Better?
In 2018, food industry specialists Mattson studied whether 100% plant-based or vegan food tastes better. Three-quarters of respondents claimed plant-based does, in fact, taste better, whereas only one-quarter of respondents preferred vegan.
Go ahead and reread the previous article. Which tastes better – vegan or plant-based? Yes, it is a trick question where they compared vegan food to 100% plant-based food, which is all the same thing. But here is the catch; vegan food was considered the only food with a vegan label.
From this simple experiment, it is evident that people are prejudiced against vegan food, and they believe food with a vegan label does not taste better.
Tips and Tricks to Make Vegan Food Taste Better
When I initially started preparing vegan meals, I needed to figure out where to begin. I felt utterly lost. Then I gradually learned tips and tricks for maximizing the flavor of the nutritious foods I was consuming by enhancing their natural flavors, blending them nicely, and spicing them up to satisfy my taste buds.
From what I’ve learned over the years, I’ve compiled this list of essential tips and tricks to make vegan food taste better:
- Use high-quality, fresh ingredients to give your food more flavor.
- Spice up your food. Spices and herbs add flavor and even nutrition!
- Add more beans and grains to your diet. It is a fantastic way of making a dish more enjoyable while improving its nutritional profile.
- Don’t be afraid of healthy fat. This one greatly enhances the flavor of your food.
- It is okay to use salt. Vegetables are enhanced by salt, which also softens and lessens their bitterness.
You can take simple steps to make your food taste better.
Some might still wonder if you can use this approach for all dishes. Of course not! I hardly doubt you would like to put salt on your banana.
To make it easier for you, I will go through some dishes we all love and give you more specific tips on enhancing each of those foods.
How Do You Make the Vegan Soup Taste Better With 5 Simple Tricks
Soup is a lovely dish that reminds me of my grandma. It is warm, comforting, heartening, and relatively affordable to prepare. You can use any leftover vegetables you have lying around. Additionally, it can be tasty and nutritious. But how do you make vegan soup delicious?
Follow these tips to make your vegan soup taste better.
1. Pick Your Soup Profile
Make a few hasty selections based on what’s in the pantry and refrigerator. Do you have any carrots, herbs, tomatoes, and beans available? Create a minestrone-style soup by adding a little garlic and possibly some tiny noodles.
If you find any tofu, bok choy, or coconut milk, you can make authentic Thai soup with ginger, curry, and boiled noodles. Celery, black beans, and tomatoes? Add plenty of cumin, oregano, and green onions for Mexican soup.
Don’t experiment—keep it simple.
2. Oil Makes a Big Difference
Using a small amount of oil in cooking facilitates the extraction and delivery of nutrients and flavor from spices and herbs that would otherwise pass directly through our digestive tract.
Don’t exaggerate, though. Most of our fat intake should come from wholesome foods such as nuts and seeds.
3. Use Onion
This one is my favorite because I love the taste of onions.
Try cooking using delicious yellow onions. Onions will significantly improve the flavor of your soups, curries, and stews!
I sauté chopped onion in a tsp of oil and a pinch of salt over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Salt releases onion moisture and enhances sugar caramelization, giving the soup a mild sweet taste. But be careful! Avoid burning the onions!
4. Deglaze
When vegetables are cooked at the proper temperature in a skillet heated to medium, a Maillard reaction occurs. Deglazing your pot or skillet properly with a few teaspoons, perhaps 2 to 4, of a cold liquid like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, vegetable broth, or water will unleash more lovely flavors into your soup.
5. Add a Finishing Touch
For finishing, add a dash of lime or lemon juice to brighten, or possibly a drizzle of oil to intensify the flavor. Add chopped green onions, herbs, or even olives at this point.
Croutons also work.
Sprouting beans add a nice crunch. As a finishing touch, a swirl of vegan or cashew cream will elevate even the simplest of soups to the next level. Yum!
How Do You Make Vegan Burgers Taste Better With 5 Simple Tricks
Who doesn’t like a juicy, seasoned burger in a soft bun loaded with fresh salad and tomato slices?
Being vegan doesn’t have to mean giving up burgers. Contrariwise, vegan burgers are lovely.
Here are five tips for enhancing the flavor of your plant-based patties:
1. Variety is the Key
You can make vegan patties with many things as the base ingredient, so be creative with your recipes.
Mushroom and black bean burgers are delicious, but have you ever tried a zucchini burger? It is amazing!
You can also use beets, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, kidney beans, and lentils to make patties.
It is possible to prepare tempeh, tofu, teriyaki, and textured vegetable protein burgers. The choices are endless.
Each ingredient has a unique taste, so try them to find out which flavor you like the most.
2. Sauté the Vegetables
Suppose you sauté the vegetables before adding them to the burgers. In that case, you will not only get that specific flavor of sautéed vegetables, but you will also get a texture that is much softer than the fresh vegetables.
3. Season Them Properly
Whatever ingredients you choose for your vegetable patties, season them well. Use your preferred herbs and spices to flavor the burgers. Try different spices to see which you like the most.
Are you preparing an Asian-type Burger? Use garlic, ginger, and allspice powder.
Is it a patty with an Italian theme? Add basil, oregano, and garlic.
Are you making a mushroom patty? Thyme is a mushroom’s favorite herb.
4. Consider Using Flavorful Liquid Ingredients
Its dry ingredients do not just determine a burger’s composition. In addition to providing moisture, liquid ingredients can also contribute to flavor.
Common ingredients include tamari or shoyu soy sauce, but for various flavors, try balsamic vinegar or vegan Worcestershire sauce. They can add special notes that will astonish even omnivores.
5. Add Flavor With Condiments
Condiments are a great way to add the wow effect. On top of all previously used ingredients, adding the right condiment can take your burger to a new level.
To achieve this, try using ketchup, mustard, or vegan mayo.
Make Vegan Cheese Taste Better With 5 Ingredients
Whether you switch to vegan cheese for ethical or dietary reasons, you might find that many store-bought vegan kinds of cheese are flavorless. Fortunately, there are various ways to enhance vegan cheese flavor if you are willing to make one yourself.
Here’s how you can make vegan cheese taste better:
1. Nutritional Yeast
Nutritional yeast is deactivated yeast that comes from yellow flakes and powders. It is handy when preparing cheese and cheese sauces because of its uncanny cheesy, nutty flavor.
2. Dijon Mustard
The intense flavor of Dijon mustard plays an important role when preparing vegan cheese. If you don’t have a high-speed blender, use smooth Dijon mustard instead of whole grain when making your vegan cheese.
3. Miso Paste
Various miso pastes can contribute to a more realistic, or should I say, dairy cheese flavor.
Miso (also known as fermented soybean paste) is a savory, salty condiment that imparts an umami taste to dishes. It can range from mild to highly intense, depending on the kind you choose.
4. Garlic and Onion
Garlic and onion are a unique combination of standard components that can improve the flavor of vegan cheese. They are both regarded as fragrant components in cooking and serve as the flavor base for many recipes.
Incorporating them into vegan cheeses is a terrific idea because of the savory, umami flavor they bring.
5. Lemon Juice
Lemon juice adds a slightly sour flavor to dairy-based cheeses. It is only for some, though. If you dislike lemon juice, skip this one.
Conclusion
Vegan food can taste great if it has the right ingredients.
Next time you want to take your cooking skills to the next level, consider experimenting with various spices, herbs, and condiments to discover new tastes and give your food a taste boost.
Try some of the mentioned easy ways to enhance the incredible flavors of vegan foods and surprise your friends, family, and even yourself with your newly acquired cooking skills.
Just keep in mind to always go for the freshest ingredients you can find, use spices and herbs, add grains and beans, fat to get flavors, and salt to bring everything together, and you should be fine.
