Whats it like for vegetarians in China?

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Whats it like for vegetarians in China?
Jul 13, 2009 11:21
guest83164	I'm going to Shanghai for the year. I'm a vegetarian, I don't eat any meat,fish or eggs. Will this be a big problem in China? Someone told me I should say I'm a Buddhist to avoid being given any meat.(I'm not a Buddhist) Will that work? I would appreciate any advice people have on being a vegetarian in China.

Jul 14, 2009 04:38

SOMMER
Points:
Join Date: May 23, 2005
Status: Offline

If you say Buddhist, they won't serve you onion or garlic. Most lay-Buddhists do eat meat and only abstain on special lunar dates when all veggie restaurants get packed out. Dairy is now ubiquitous.

Just practice your Chinese and get familiar with a few dishes that are most likely to be veg. Mapo Tofu, to my chagrin, had chicken fat, fish sauce and ground pork.

I now carry a pocket guide from Immersion Guides (available here) called Healthy Chinese Cuisine which has glossy pics of dishes with ingredients. I tore out the meaty fishy pages and now just point to what I want. Same can be done for their spicy Sichuan book.

Alternatively print out your own custom page with eat/don't eat sections: pictures speak louder than words. Printing is cheap here and then you can hand it over for the chef to see. When ordering with the waitstaff alot gets lost along the way to the kitchen..
Be prepared to send back 1 in 5 dishes til you are a regular customer.

With the variety and quality, I eat very well here. It just takes a bit of work.

Jul 14, 2009 18:13	#2
MARRIE Points: Join Date: Jan 7, 2008 Status: Offline	There is no inconvenience at all when u, a vegie visit Shanghai. All kinds of Vegie meat taste much better and more expensive than real meat in Shanghai. This is vegie sausage.

Jul 14, 2009 20:18	#3
MARRIE Points: Join Date: Jan 7, 2008 Status: Offline	vegie duck

Jul 14, 2009 20:18	#4
MARRIE Points: Join Date: Jan 7, 2008 Status: Offline	vegie chicken

Jul 14, 2009 20:19	#5
MARRIE Points: Join Date: Jan 7, 2008 Status: Offline	multi vegi slice with special sauce

Jul 14, 2009 20:22	#6
MARRIE Points: Join Date: Jan 7, 2008 Status: Offline	only in Shanghai where top vegie food is available with high cost.

Aug 4, 2009 07:22

GUEST06153

its not a big problem at all, tell them u dont eat any meat or egg thats it.

if u go to a big temple, u should try the monk's food. almost all made by Tofu with different looking (may looks like a meat). compare the local price its a little bit more expensive but worth to try! lots people love them.

and in china, most people like veg more than meat, and vegs and fruits are so easy to get the fresh one there. u dont have to worry about anything. the cheap fresh fruits will do u if u dont like any food there.

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