La Vie Vegan Ham (from France (?!)
La Vie Plant-Based Ham again is from the same French company, and it’s flying off the shelves worldwide. Again it’s made with pea protein, along with radish extract. Great for a vegan cheese and ham toastie!
Ham is one of England’s most popular foods. But most comes from factory-farmed pigs. So it’s good for people to try plant-based ham, all or at least some of the time.
And so-called ‘processed meats’ are linked to cancers and other health conditions. It’s really easy to make your own or buy good plant-based brands, they taste and smell exactly the same.
Read more on food safety for people and pets.
Heura is a young fresh Spanish company, based in beautiful Barcelona. Its plant-based ‘cold cuts’ are sold in sustainable packaging, and sold across Europe. Great in a sandwich or a spaghetti carbonara.
Vegusto Sandwich Slices are found in good health shops This award-winning Swiss company (which makes amazing nut cheeses) produces plant-based ‘luncheon meat’ in plain, herb or smoked.
Suma Organic Pea and Vegan Ham Soup is sold in health stores, Co-op and NISA supermarkets. Just open, heat and serve.
Just pop the ring-pulls over the hole before recycling, to avoid wildlife getting trapped.
How to Make Your Own Vegan Ham
This vegan ham (A Virtual Vegan) is made with seitan, a ‘wheat-meat’ popular in Buddhist cultures. When properly prepared and cooked with marinated ingredients, it looks and smells and tastes just like meat.
This is a complicated recipe, but ideal for ambitious cooks (or chefs) wishing to offer ham on the menu for veggie diners.
If you don’t want to use seitan, this Vegan Ham (School Night Vegan) uses the vegetable celeriac. Just boil the ‘ham’, and pour the glaze over, before baking. Serve with tangy vegan cheddar cheese or as a Sunday roast with spuds, stuffing and gravy. Good in sandwiches with baby spinach, sauerkraut and vegan mayo.
Vegan Christmas Ham (Gaz Oakley) is a recipe by a top chef, that is simple to make, once you get through the seitan bit. Cover with mustard maple glaze. Leftovers store well, ideal in sandwiches.
Debunking Two Arguments Against ‘Fake Meats’
The first one is that vegans and vegetarians should not eat fake meat. What we eat is our business, many people like the taste of bacon, but don’t want animals harmed. There’s nothing wrong with that.
The second is that not eating real bacon is harming British farmers. In fact, most bacon is not just factory-farmed but comes from abroad (say Denmark). And there is not enough land in England (a country of 60 million people) for everyone to eat free-range bacon.
What is Real Ham Made From?
Lovely pigs, that’s what.
World Health Organisation classifies all processed meats as Group 1 Carcinogens (bacon is linked to increased risk of colorectal cancer).
The ‘ham taste’ does not come from the meat itself, but from how it’s smoked (hickory, applewood etc) and flavoured (maple etc). So once you know this, it becomes easy to replicate the taste.
