Colleagues of Joe Yonan, the longtime food and dining editor for the Washington Post, know better than to pitch him a headline suggesting something vegan or vegetarian is so good, “you won’t miss the meat.”
He explains why in the introduction to “Mastering the Art of Plant-Based Cooking: Vegan Recipes, Tips, and Techniques” (Ten Speed Press, $50).
“Plant foods deserve accolades because of their own outstanding qualities,” he contends. “Love them for what they are, not for what they are not.”
As a James Beard Award-winning journalist, formal student of French and Italian cooking, former certified judge of competitive barbecue and native Texan, Yonan was a carnivore for most of his life. But he’d been gradually cutting back on meat for decades and eventually lost his craving for animal products altogether.
He started developing recipes for the Post’s “Weeknight Vegetarian” column, turned his fascination with legumes into one of 2020′s most celebrated cookbooks, “Cool Beans,” and delved deeper into the ancient plant-based histories of every world cuisine.
For his latest book, he enlisted top vegan and vegetarian chefs and recipe developers to help him “codify plant-based cooking as not a lifestyle, not a philosophy, but … a cuisine.” Their essays and insights are woven throughout this comprehensive tome with chapters covering every meal type. They’re prefaced by an extensive chapter of “building blocks” such as Lemon-Brined Tofu Feta (used later in Skillet Spanakopita), Silky Aquafaba Mayonnaise, Smoky Mushroom Crisps (for topping White Bean Soup instead of bacon) and Clean-Out-the-Fridge Kimchi. He tells how to make tofu, tempeh and oat milk from scratch, but also recommends his favorite store-bought varieties if you aren’t that ambitious.
You won’t find lab-created meat substitutes in any of these recipes. Rather, he keeps the focus on fresh produce and minimally processed ingredients found in most supermarkets. Thus far, I’ve stuffed Lentil-Walnut Picadillo into sweet potatoes for one vegan meal and tossed a hearty Chard Salad with Paprika Croutons and Chickpeas for another.
Both made big impressions — not because they were meatless, but because they were simply delicious.
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
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