Many people are hitting the "normal" drawbacks of plant based cooking that don't exist with traditional cooking, and you can avoid a lot of them

I love and I hate the internet, because it is giving you the wrong idea of what vegan/plant based eating should be. <br><br>I'm a long time vegetarian, now vegan (20 years). So I've encountered these problems and drawbacks and now I know a better way of doing it. Nearly everyone in my family (parents, siblings, etc) have always been happy with the meals I make for them because I avoid the pitfalls. What I'm saying is, a lot of these problems can be avoided in general, and especially when transitioning from animal products to plant based if you know how it should taste. <br><br>**Protein is not just about the ingredients, it's about the way you cook them.** <br>If you're soaking and boiling lentils, pulses, beans, rice and then eating you will be bored to tears. You can't compare the protein of boiled lentils to your steak, because you're comparing apples to oranges. **You need to have a foundation in plant based cooking and understand how to properly prepare plant based foods.** <br><br>The high quality proteins in these items are not easily available to the body, and soaking and boiling will not give you the best nutritional results. Soaking will help with cleaning the beans, and boiling is good to rehydrate them. But the best way to get the nutrition is to throw them into a pan with a bit of oil after soaking, and browning them. **Pulses and grains need to be browned to break down phytates and other compounds to make the high quality protein available to the body.**<br><br>**If you're soaking and boiling your lentils, you have made a huge error.** Every time you soak, you're retaining too much water. The lentils will not brown properly, your dishes will be too mushy and wet, and you will not get the best nutritional results. Instead of soaking, cook the lentils dry for a couple of minutes. This will help remove dust and dirt, and also help break down the phytates. <br><br>**Plant based cooking needs to be balanced to get good results.** <br>People throw in any old vegetables, pulses, and grains and expect a balanced dish. You need to understand how to combine foods to get the best results. For example, a bean curry needs to have the rice to complete the amino acids you need. This will help with growth and overall nutrition. <br><br>**Lack of fat and unhealthy fats.** <br>Plant based cooking needs to have fat for certain nutrients and tastes. But choose your fats wisely and avoid commercially produced oils like canola oil. These oils are not healthy and will lead to inflammation and heart disease and a host of other issues. Instead use mustard oil, coconut oil, or avocado oil, which are less likely to go rancid in higher heat. <br><br>**Using spices and herbs to enhance the taste and nutrition.** <br>Spices and herbs are very good for adding taste to your food. Chilies and turmeric have universal health benefits and are a good place to start. Chili flakes will boost your immunity, enhance digestion, and help your overall gut health. A lot of people think they're celiac or gluten intolerant, but they just don't have a strong digestive system. Good digestion starts with the gut, and there are many herbs and spices that are readily available to help with that. Garam masala, cumin, coriander, and fennel are good choices. Fennel especially does wonders for bloating. <br> <br>**Understanding the texture and body.** <br>When transitioning from animal products to plant based, your dishes need to have texture and body that is similar to animal products. This will help you feel satisfied and not feel lacking. You need to have a good foundation in plant based cooking and understand how to properly prepare plant based foods. <br><br>**Understanding the texture and body.** <br>When transitioning from animal products to plant based, your dishes need to have texture and body that is similar to animal products. This will help you feel satisfied and not feel lacking. You need to have a good foundation in plant based cooking and understand how to properly prepare plant based foods. <br><br>**Fallacy of "quick and easy".**<br>So many people in plant based community are advertising their "quick and easy" meals. These are not healthy, they will not taste good. You can't eat in a few minutes what is supposed to take time to digest. It's simple, if you're eating too quickly, it's going to cause problems in the long run. You need to understand the balance of flavors, textures, and nutrients in a plant based dish, and not rush it. <br><br>**Plant based cooking should not be complicated.** <br>As a beginner, you'll have a lot to learn to get good results. But you don't need to learn to make any complicated dishes. The foundation of plant based cooking is to use simple and common ingredients, and use your oven, stove, and frying pan. <br><br>So many plant based recipes are convoluted and complicated, and a lot of people are overwhelmed because they won't even try. Just go back to the basics, and start with simple recipes and move up. <br><br>I use my oven for 95% of my cooking, and only use my stove or frying pan to finish the dishes. I find that's the best way to cook, especially for plant based. It's easy to make healthy high quality food when you have a solid foundation in plant based cooking, but I don't see many people doing this.