Going vegan, without the mythology
Most of what makes going vegan hard is not nutrition or willpower. It is not knowing what to order, what to buy, and which of the scary things you read are actually true. This page is the short version of everything else on Internet Vegan.
1. The four questions that matter in a restaurant
Outside a fully plant-based kitchen, almost every failed vegan order comes down to the same four ingredients. Ask about them by name rather than asking whether a dish is vegan, which invites a confident guess.
- Butter. Vegetables, rice, and bread are routinely finished with it.
- Egg wash. Pastry, buns, and noodles.
- Fish sauce and shrimp paste. Standard in much of Southeast Asian cooking, including many curry pastes.
- Honey. Dressings, glazes, and cocktails.
If a kitchen is fully plant-based, none of this applies and you can just order. That is why the directory marks the difference between a fully vegan restaurant and a vegetarian one with vegan options.
2. Six nutrients, not forty
A plant-based diet is not a nutritional tightrope, but it does have a specific shape. These are the ones worth tracking, and everything else takes care of itself if you eat a varied diet:
| Nutrient | Why it needs attention | Easiest route |
|---|---|---|
| Vitamin B12 | No reliable unfortified plant source. Deficiency is slow and can be permanent. | A supplement, plus fortified foods. Non-negotiable. |
| Iron | Plant iron is absorbed less efficiently than iron from meat. | Legumes and wholegrains, with vitamin C at the same meal. |
| Calcium | Easy to miss once dairy is gone, and no obvious symptom until much later. | Fortified plant milk, calcium-set tofu, kale, bok choy. |
| Iodine | US plant milks are rarely fortified with it. | Iodised salt, or a small, consistent amount of nori. |
| Zinc | Phytates reduce absorption from grains and legumes. | Pumpkin seeds, tofu, oats, leavened bread, soaking and sprouting. |
| Omega-3 | Conversion from plant ALA to EPA and DHA is limited. | Flax, chia, walnuts, and an algal oil supplement if you want the long-chain forms. |
The nutrient planner will show you where a normal day for you falls short. Reference intakes come from the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, and the USDA MyPlate protein guidance covers the basics for everything else.
3. Labels lie by omission
In the US, only major allergens such as milk and egg must be declared plainly. Gelatin, carmine, shellac, and animal-derived mono- and diglycerides are not allergens, so a label can contain all of them without a warning. Paste any ingredients panel into the ingredient checker and it will flag the known problems and the genuinely ambiguous entries.
4. Cooking is a swap problem, not a new cuisine
You do not need a different recipe book. You need a reliable set of substitutions and the knowledge of which one does which job: a flax egg binds, aquafaba whips, applesauce moistens, and nothing does all three. The swap converter scales the standard ratios to your recipe.
5. On the nights when you do not cook
Two thirds of the country is not walking distance from a vegan kitchen. The realistic options are a well-stocked freezer, a takeaway from a cuisine that is plant-based by default, or a prepared meal service that ships nationally. All three beat the fourth option, which is deciding at 8pm that this is too much effort.
Common questions
Is a vegan diet safe long term?
Well-planned plant-based diets are considered appropriate for every stage of life, including pregnancy and childhood, by the major dietetic bodies. The operative word is planned: vitamin B12 has to come from fortified food or a supplement, because no reliable unfortified plant source exists.
Where do you get protein?
Legumes, soy foods, seitan, wholegrains, nuts, and seeds, in ordinary amounts. Most adults need somewhere between 0.8 and 1.7 grams per kilogram of body weight depending on training, and a day built around beans, tofu, and wholegrains lands there without effort. The protein calculator on this site shows how quickly it adds up.
Do I have to combine proteins at every meal?
No. The complementary protein idea from the 1970s was withdrawn by its own author. Your body maintains an amino acid pool across the day, so eating a variety of plant proteins over a day is enough.
Is vegan food more expensive?
The staples are among the cheapest food in the shop: dried beans, lentils, rice, oats, frozen vegetables, peanut butter, tofu. What costs money is buying the direct replacement for everything you used to eat, especially meat analogues and vegan cheese.
What about eating out with people who are not vegan?
Pick the cuisine rather than the restaurant. Ethiopian, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Lebanese, and Mexican kitchens all have naturally plant-based dishes on the standard menu, so nobody has to eat around your diet. Failing that, check this directory for what is near you.
Is 'plant-based' the same as vegan?
Not legally, and often not in practice. 'Plant-based' is a marketing term with no definition behind it, and products using it sometimes still contain milk or egg derivatives. Read the ingredients rather than the front of the pack.
Where to go next
- Browse the directory by state to see what is near you.
- Read the guides for the longer versions of everything above.
- Use the tools to check a label, a day, or a recipe.
General information only, not medical or nutrition advice. Talk to a clinician or registered dietitian about your own diet, especially during pregnancy, while breastfeeding, for children, or alongside any medical condition.