How to offer vegan options all year round
As we near the end of Veganuary, where thousands of Brits take the pledge to eat Vegan for the whole month, we thought we’d share how Dunns Food and Drinks can help you offer vegan options year-round.
Do you think you could avoid meat, dairy and all other animal products for a month? It may sound like a simple task, but when you add up the various sources of animal-based foods in our everyday diets, you can begin to see why specific vegan options are needed.
Not only will this help your customers through the challenge, but it will also cater to the 600,00 vegans and vegetarians in the UK, including 2% of 25-34-year-olds, all year round. While vegan options are becoming more common, not every restaurant can accommodate a meatless, dairy-free menu - can yours?
Dunns has everything you need to cater to your regular vegan customers like vegan meat substitutes, cheeses and even vegan beer and wine. This month, we're highlighting some of our favourite vegan products in our impressive range.
The best vegan meats
When it comes to vegan meat alternatives, the market is improving all the time. Gone are the days of dry veggie patties or stuffed mushrooms. Nowadays, there are heaps of satisfying meat-like products to choose from made from a range of different ingredients. Depending on your style of menu and desired flavours, you might choose to replicate different elements of meat - from taste to texture.
Vegan meats are made from a variety of ingredients, from soy, textured vegetable protein, to wheat and gluten. Here at Dunns, we are well stocked to cater for your meatless menus, but today, we’re focusing on our favourite meat-free alternative: Moving Mountains.
Eco-friendly vegan burgers - available at Dunns Food & Drinks
For those of you who are environmentally conscious, Moving Mountains offer a gourmet-grade vegan patty which is not only delicious, it also generates less greenhouse gas emissions and requires fewer resources to make (compared to a beef burger of the same weight.)
Dunns are proud to stock this exciting new product - and we’re always happy to recommend the company given the excellent feedback we receive from chefs who’ve tried it for themselves.
Realistic vegan cheeses
When it comes to reducing animal products in our diet, many of us would admit that cheese is the last hurdle to get over. With such a unique texture which can be difficult to replicate - and rich, salty flavours which come from the process and ageing, vegan cheeses can be hit or miss.
Luckily, our selection team at Dunns have completed all of the leg work for you, leaving you to choose from a list of hand-selected products we know your customers will love. One of our favourite vegan cheeses is Violife.
Violife is a range of award-winning vegan alternatives to cheese products that can help you move effortlessly into plant-based menus.
It is free from dairy, preservatives, casein, lactose, gluten, nuts and soya. It is based on coconut oil and is fortified with Vitamin B12, which plays an important role in the metabolism of every cell in our bodies. Not only is Violife tasty, it also melts - which helps it bat above its competitors in the cheese alternative arena whilst becoming a versatile weapon in any professional kitchen.
Vegan drinks
Of course, veganism is about more than food - and vegans have to take their drinking habits into account too. Whether it’s a coffee during the day or a delicious evening drink, Dunns has everything you need to cater to your vegan clientele.
Minor Figures are one of our favourite plant-based milks due to their great flavour and steaming capacity. Paired with the right coffee, Minor Figures oaty milk alternative stands up to scrutiny.
As for evening drinks, Dunns has a brilliant selection of vegan beers, wines and spirits. Did you know that not all alcohol is inherently vegan? However, Panther Milk is. Despite the name, this unique cocktail is crafted using Minor Figures oat milk and is taking the market by storm right now. We’re proud to say that Panther Milk is stocked exclusively at Dunns. To find out more - simply give your rep a call.
To find out more about our vegan range, why not get in touch today? You can also follow updates via our Instagram and LinkedIn pages to stay up to date with our range.
