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Kitchen essentials
Bridget Walsh on 27 August, 2011 | 
As a vegan, I am constantly haunted by the question: “But WHAT do you eat?”. I eat a lot. I eat well. Sometimes I eat too well. Although most people tend to just blurt out that question at me before actually thinking properly about the answer (ie: thoughtfully dissecting what they eat, removing the animal products and seeing that there is actually a lot of potential for meals there, beyond their meat and cheese addiction) it doesn’t really surprise me that this reaction is so common.
Coming from New Zealand, where the country’s economy would most likely be crippled if the lamb and dairy industries weren’t booming exporters, I know how fundamental people seem to think their animal products are. Quite simply, they aren’t fundamental at all. In fact in many ways they are detrimental, but this is something to be discussed in another article.
The focus of this piece is instead the food I do eat, regularly and religiously. The items that, barring seasonal availability, you will always find in my kitchen. Many of them are just building blocks, rather than sources of protein or carbohydrates, but vital to my enjoyment of food and love of cooking, all the same. They are my ‘non-negotiable foods’, and together with whatever fruit & vege arrives in my delivery each week, my tools for running amok in the kitchen on a regular basis!
• Fresh lemons and limes - a squeeze of lemon juice with some salt and olive oil can dress almost any salad to subtle perfection!
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Garlic
• Ground cumin - good for Mexican and Indian
• Dried herbs: rosemary (potatoes!), basil (everything), oregano (vital for home-made pizza, and also something I put in my dog’s casserole)
• Fresh chilli (chopped in a jar)
• Soy milk - literally used in place of dairy milk
• Dairy-free spread (margarine) - same rules apply as soy milk
• Celery, carrots & onions (preferably red) - core flavour base in many dishes
• Rice - various kinds for curries, salads and risottos
• Couscous & Quinoa
• Chick-peas, kidney beans & lentils dried ready to be soaked
• Organic baked beans - lazy breakfast food
• HUMMUS (bona fide staple)
• Good nuts - walnuts, brazil, almonds etc
• Dried fruits - sultanas, apricots etc
• Seeds - linseed, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame
• Fresh herbs (as long as they won’t go to waste)
• Dried cinnamon, nutmeg & ginger
• Spinach - added to cooked food, or be the base of a salad
• Jarred tomatoes/Passatta (Italian, Mexican, Indian, soup base…)
• Bananas - smoothies, breakfasts, freeze them when they get to ripe and use them for baking
• Frozen berries - smoothies & baking
• Peanut butter - the kind that only contains peanuts, maybe a little salt… guilty pleasure
• Maldon sea-salt
• Balsamic vinegar
• Wholegrain mustard
• Soy-sauce
• Organic, dried noodles
• Frozen peas
• Tin of corn kernels (no sugar added)
• Rolled oats
• Thai curry paste & Coconut milk
• Dry, wholegrain pasta
• Rice-bran oil (for cooking)
• Black-peppercorns & grinder
• Organic flour (white & chickpea) - I have a soft spot for baking
• Brown, unrefined sugar - see Organic flour!
• Golden syrup (for baking) & Maple syrup
• Baking powder & soda