Interview - Mr Meat

Jarrod Clyne is a friend of mine who I once watched eat his way through a kilo of fillet steak, all in one sitting.  So you can imagine my surprise when Phil told me that Jarrod was, at one stage, a vegetarian.  Jarrod has an excellent sense of humour and he reminds me of all of the good things about people from the country, only he is really smart and has good taste.  Basically he is a stand up bloke.  He kindly agreed to share his story which, to me, just gets more and more interesting.

 

I was vegetarian for a year when I was at university, in 2004. I had thought about being a vegetarian for quite a while, and had long since decided that it was immoral to eat meat. I was practicing Zen Buddhism, and this was a major factor in my decision. Zen Buddhism doesn't focus very much on the moral precepts of Buddhism, and apparently the Buddha did occasionally eat meat, and he did not categorically forbid his disciples to eat meat. As a monastic religion relying on donations the monks were to gratefully receive and consume all food they were given, including meat. Consequently I was able to rationalise being Buddhist and eating meat for a long time, but eventually I felt that since I was not relying on alms (does living with your parents at the age of 23 count?) I should faithfully follow the first precept of Buddhism - 'Do not kill'. The Buddha told his followers not to kill, participate in killing or cause to have any living thing killed. A demand for meat obviously causes animals to be killed. I stopped eating all meat, including fish.

 

I had been on one week Zen Buddhist retreats with only vegetarian meals and hadn't found it particularly difficult. I was also already eating vegetarian meals for lunch, due to the University Hare Krisna Society serving delicious meals for $2 (all you can eat for $3!). Dinner was therefore the main challenge. I would describe myself as a very lazy vegetarian - I would just exclude the meat from a meal and subsitute a handful of peanuts, some eggs, or occasionally some chickpeas. I also ate an absurdly high amount of vegetarian pies. I ate hot chips pretty regularly too. Unsurprisingly I was fatter and less healthy as a consequence.

 

About one year and a quarter after my original decision I was travelling in Europe and Japan. My desire to eat meat returned quite strongly. I kept thinking of my old rationalisations as to why it was acceptable to eat meat. Vanity was also a factor, I felt that I would rather look good (eat protein, go to gym = more attractive) than be moral. The fork in the road came at a dinner at a bohemian buffet restaurant. The restaurant prided itself on a very extensive selection of vegetarian food, but also had a decent selection of meat dishes. I chose the meat and it was amazing.

 

I haven't ever seriously considered returning to being vegetarian. During a gym 'bulking' regime perhaps 90% of my food intake was red meat and I felt awesome. Eating meat is is very enjoyable, and and I find that if I don't eat any meat for dinner then I don't feel satiated at all. I still believe that it is morally wrong to eat meat - to cause suffering to living beings - but I'm relatively comfortable with that immorality, and the cost of being moral is just too high.

 

I like this part of The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran. I think he's talking to a sheep he has just killed and will eat:

 

"By the same power that slays you, I
too am slain; and I too shall be consumed.
For the law that delivered you into my
hand shall deliver me into a mightier hand."

 

I believe that the most important goal in life is simply to enjoy your life. That may sound trite, selfish, or even unacceptably nihilisitc. I don't think that it is, and while I am mindful of the immorality of consuming meat, I do so because it helps me enjoy my life, and after all, eventually we too will all be consumed.

What I Ate - 24 February 2010

Today I ate:

2 pieces of toast, one with Marmite and one with peanut butter.
2 nectarines.
3 pieces of sour cream and chives rice cakes with cottage cheese.
Leftover leek, mushroom and barley stew.
More toast but this time with honey.
Scrambled eggs with toast and tomato.
Half a black bean burrito with roasted potato and kumara.

Bit of a dinner planning fail on my behalf tonight.  I couldn't make up my mind as to whether I was going out or not tonight, hence two dinners.  Both were pretty good though.  Kumara goes so well in burritos.  They were sort of a copy of the breakfast burritos that they make at Sweet Mother's Kitchen that come with delicious potato hash.

I just realised that I haven't had any chocolate today. 

What I Ate - 23 February 2010

Today I ate:

2 pieces of toast with peanut butter.
2 nectarines.
More toast with Marmite, avocado and tomato.
1 apricot and pear yoghurt.
1 strawberry chocolate marshmallow Easter bunny.
Leek, mushroom and barley stew with more Mexican street salad.

The Mexican street salad is really, really good.  I got Jamie's America for Christmas and this recipe is one of the first things I have made from it.  It was a lovely fresh coleslaw with lots of chilli and lime.

What I Ate - 22 February 2010

Today I ate:

2 pieces of peanut butter toast.
3 nectarines.
Toast with Marmite, avocado and tomato.
1 apricot yoghurt.
Handful of chilli and lime cashew nuts.
Black bean enchiladas with Mexican street salad.
Whittaker's Dark Ghana chocolate.

What I Ate - 21 February 2010

Today I ate:

2 pieces of Vogel's toast with peanut butter.
1 trim latte.
Barbeque Bean Supreme roast red onion and parmesan sausages, agria potatoes, red onion, courgette and sweet corn.
2 beers.
1 shot of Jagermeister.
Courgette, cheese and egg tart, green beans with garlic, chickpea and capsicum salad, roasted potatoes, puree garlic broccoli mash.
Homemade banana and nectarine ice-cream.

It's barbeque weather at the moment, which I think poses a bit of a practical challenge to a vegetarian, as barbeques are very much about meat.  Hence the vege sausages.  We hadn't tried any soy 'meat' replacements before Sunday, and weren't sure what to expect.  They were quite tasty, but very different to real sausages.  I can't put my finger on what it was that didn't quite work for me - the texture perhaps?  They were pleasant enough but just not as tasty as meat.  Then again, perhaps I am romanticizing about sausages, because they can be truly awful.  In fact, given the choice between Sizzler's and bean sausages I would pick bean sausages any day.

Towards the end of lunch the host suddenly announced that he had poured out a shot of Jager for all of us.  I'm not really a fan of shots but peer pressure prevailed and that's why it ended up on the list.  Between the liquor and the drum and bass music, it was as if I was 19 again. 

After the Phoenix game (they won by the way, bring on the next semi final) we went to Phil's parent's house for dinner.  They are both excellent cooks and Sunday night dinner at their house is a regular appointment.  They pick us up, feed us lovely food and wine, and then drive us home.  We are so spoilt.  I felt a bit strange imposing our eating restrictions upon them but they were very understanding and made an incredible vegetarian feast. 

What I Ate - 20 February 2010

Today I ate:

Porridge with grated apple and blueberries, served with plain yoghurt.
1 trim latte.
1 apricot.
Baguette with feta cheese.
Rice crackers with rocket and parmesan dip.
Grapes.
Lemon, lime and bitters drink.
Tomato and olive pasta sauce with whole wheat pasta and parmesan.

Saturday was lovely and sunny, perfect weather for a picnic lunch that I had with my friend Jen.  She kindly offered to be vegetarian for the meal which I thought was quite nice.  I don't mind other people eating meat in front of me at all but it was nce to know that all of the yum food we had was ok for me to eat.

Saturday was lovely and sunny and perfect picnic weather.

Interview - In the Beginning

Today's interview is with my friend Hannah Lloyd.  Hannah and I have been friends since we were in high school and she was the first vegetarian I ever met.  In fact, looking back, her decision to become a vegetarian was probably slightly scandalous in small town rural New Zealand.  I doubt that she really cared what anyone thought though.  She currently lives and works in Scotland.

What are your dietary restrictions? What animal products will you not eat?

 

I am a lacto-ovo vegetarian meaning that I eat dairy products and eggs but I exclude meat, poultry, and seafood from my diet. There are also other things I need to restrict from my diet too; for example, I need to avoid rennet and gelatine as these are derived from animal products.

Rennet is found in cheese and and is generally derived from calves; however, vegetarian cheeses contain rennet from bacterial or fungal sources.  Gelatine is a gelling agent and can be found in foods such as jelly, various sweets (including marshmallows!) and sometimes yoghurts and sour cream. 

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How long have these restrictions been in place?

I have been vegetarian for approximately 10 years - it’s very difficult to pinpoint an exact date though but it has been for at least 10 years.

What are the reasons for your diet?

I became a vegetarian for ethical reasons predominantly. I am very much an ‘animal lover’ and have always found it difficult to eat animals even as a child. I have difficulty disassociating the meat product from the animal itself.

What are people's reactions like when you tell them about your dietary restrictions?

People are very much interested in this and tend to be quite inquisitive and will ask me questions mostly about my reasons for being a vegetarian. It’s much more common that it used to be and is no real shock to people. When I first became a vegetarian in my teens it was much more unusual but I know plenty of vegetarians now.

How easy or difficult is it for you when you eat out?

 

I don’t really have any issues eating out at restaurants and cafes as a vegetarian. I live in Edinburgh and I did notice when I moved here almost 5 years ago that the availability of vegetarian foods is much better than in New Zealand. I’m actually quite spoilt for choice here in Edinburgh as there are 3 vegetarian restaurants. It’s always a real treat to go to a vegetarian restaurant but I must admit it’s very difficult to choose what to have when I can eat anything on the menu!

Otherwise restaurants generally have at least one vegetarian option available. I’m not a particularly fussy vegetarian and like a range of food so one option is sufficient for me. I do check ahead with restaurants before I go there, either by viewing the menu on-line or telephoning in advance, just to be certain that they do have a suitable vegetarian option.

With cafes it can be different as I have on occasion been into cafes for lunch and they’ve run out of vegetarian panino and sandwiches. This doesn’t happen too frequently and it’s easy enough to find another cafe so it’s never been an issue.

I would boycott any restaurant that did not offer a vegetarian option on the menu and I did need to do this recently. A restaurant recommended to me by a friend did not have any vegetarian mains on the menu despite having a huge selection of main meals.  When I enquired with the restaurant I was advised that they’d make a stir fry vegetarian for me. However, I avoided the restaurant as I certainly do not like to think that the restaurant felt they’d ‘whip up’ something. My view is that even non-vegetarians eat vegetarian food so having at least one available option is important.

When travelling abroad other considerations are required and it pays to be prepared. A vegetarian must be prepared by learning how to explain their dietary requirements in the language. Also note that the definition of a vegetarian can vary from country to country and this should always be researched before travel. For example; in France a vegetarian will generally eat fish so in France restaurants will refer to a dish as being vegetarian that actually contains seafood.

Do you miss the foods that you have cut out?

Not at all. Initially I did miss marshmallows initially but that was really about it. I certainly don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything.

Would you or have you ever actively encouraged others to adopt your dietary restrictions? Why or why not?

 

I believe that everyone has a right to choose what’s best for them. To be a vegetarian is my decision and I do not expect others to feel the same way I do. I have no issues dining with non-vegetarians and handling meat products either (I am happy to cook meat too!). However, if someone did express an interest to me about becoming a vegetarian I would certainly provide advice and guidance.

 I do believe that too much red meat in a diet is unhealthy so do encourage that people have meat free days from time-to-time for health reasons. In fact; I have read magazine articles recently about a new trend to be a ‘Flexitarian’. This means being a part-time vegetarian, for example; one might choose to be a vegetarian on certain days of the week or for 2 weeks per month.

What is your favourite food?

 

I have so many favourite foods it would be very difficult to say. I love eating falafels with hummus and salad in wraps or pita bread pockets. That makes for a nice and easy lunch or dinner. Couscous with roast vegetables is always great too and it’s winter here in Scotland I’ve been enjoying delicious wintery comfort food such as soup and vegetable casseroles.