veganism?

[utopia]

I'm a vegan (no meat, dairy, or eggs), and hoping to become an exchange student to Russia. Would my being a vegan be a terrible problem or conflict very much with a normal Russian's eating and cooking practices?

[eerina_l]

Hi Utopia

Being a vegan is great in Canada or US, there are a million health food stores, special vitamins stores..etc.
In Russia it is a whole different matter..
Russia is going through major economic crisis, so... NO health food stores, you're lucky if you get fresh vegetables and clean water! Also, hardly any stores where you can purchace food- supplements/vitamins.. A lot of people there have their own gardens for fresh vegetables. Good to bring your own vitamins, although be careful through customs, even a bottle of tylenol or advil gets them suspicious! Most Russian recipes include meat, eggs, butter, sour cream, animal fat in one form or other.. I'm not sure what to tell you I'm a person who eats meat, I do have a lot of friends who are vegetarian, and only 3 that are vegan. Russia is a country where meat is a number 1 on 99% recipes, home cooked or not. You may find a couple modern Pizza places and ask them not to include meat, but then again, there is cheese and tomatoe sause that may include animal fat. Think about these things before you go, it will not be easy for a vegan to survive there on daily basis.

If you have anymore questions, I visit this site every day, so ASK

Eerina


[This message has been edited by eerina.l (edited 30 April 2000).]

[ILay]

Hello.

It will be not easy for you to be a vegan in Russia. Still, you can use Indian (Krishnait) restaurants. They are vegans as well. It's quite cheap and tasty.

2 eerina.l

When have you visited Russia last time?
Trust me - there is really no problem to find vegetables and clean water.
I.e. I have clean water delivered every 2 weeks for just 100 rubels (15 liters of 'Svjatoy Istochnik'). And in any cafe you can ask to cook what you wish.

[Dr_Woland]

Hi

I'm not a vegan, but I'm a lacto-vegetarian, and I live and work in Moscow. I cook quite a lot of vegan things for myself because they're healthier.

I think Eeerina is exaggerating the situation. Right now, at this moment, I could walk across the road from my apt in Moscow and buy fresh cauliflower, aubergines, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers etc from the stall in the street by the tram-stop. If I walk 400m down the street I come to my local market, there I can buy even bigger range of vegetables (lettuce, herbs, asparagus, etc). There I can also find rice (ordinary white, american, short-grain, wholegrain), buckwheat kasha and flour, white and brown flour, pulses (red kidney beans, chickpeas, brown/black/green lentils) etc. Oh yeah, peanuts, walnuts, almonds, cashews, and it's a PARADISE for dried fruit!! All this yummy stuff comes up from Central Asia, along with the spices (getting your spices from the spice-merchant, and discussing and tasting them, is one area where it's better to be in Russia than the West!)

Many grocery stores (and not the "ex-pats on expense accounts" ones, either!) sell soya produce, you can get "beef-type chunks" which go under the name "myaso po-kitaiski" in stores, and you can buy a pack for about 30 roubles which has 4-6 servings in it (that's around US$ 1). There are other shapes and textures around too.

What you cannot get here easily (so bring it with you!) are: (i) gluten-protein things (like the chinese ones you can get, "buddhist chicken" etc etc) (ii) tofu (you cannot get it at all) (iii) specialist flours like gram-flour, etc.

I find I can easily get the ingredients to make vegan pizzas, goulash, stir-fries, lentil stews and bakes, indian dishes like dhal, etc

Eating out is less good maybe, but still easily possible. Russians like Georgian cuisine, and in a Georgian restaurant you can order dishes like Lobio (spicy bean casserole). I eat dairy produce, so there are delicious baked cheeses (sulginin), cheese-breads (khachapuri), and lots more.

The main thing to remember is that in Russia, ANYTHING is possible if you ask nicely, and are prepared to pay a reasonable price for it. Some restaurants see vegans as a loss-maker, since vegetable dishes are notoriously cheap here. However, offer to pay the same price as for a meat dish, if they will make something nice for you, and you may find things improve. Tip the waiter $5 and they will *definitely* improve!

Priyatnogo Appetita!

Dr W.

[Lorisa]

Utopia,

Dr. Woland (OH dear! I just got that! Voland, what a horribly interesting/great name! ... sorry, Master and Margurita reference...) is right, and you can buy whatever you need for sure in Moscow, St. Petersburg, or other big cities. In smaller villages and towns, however, it might be a bit harder.

I just came back from a exchange student-type program, though, and wanted to talk about host-families with you. If you have a host family, you're going to have a few challenges. Russians eat a LOT of meat (I'm not a vegitarian, but after living with my "family," and getting way more meat than I'm used to, I'm considering it.) So you're diet will be different to them. Your concerned "babooshka," mother, or host-sister may not understand your diet. As early as possible, explain to them your diet, that you get what your body needs from other food, and that you are really okay without meat. (if you don't speak Russian well, get a translator-friend to help you with this!) Also, bring along extra money to buy your "diet-specific" food with, as this diet will probably be more expensive than your host-family's diet. Don't worry, though! There is a lot of Russian food that you will be able to enjoy, even being vegan! Potatoes are very common (can you eat those? I'm not familiar with all the rules.) As are pickles, pickled tomatoes, and, if you're there at the right time of year, fresh vegies from the garden! Or fresh picked rasberrys!

I hope you are able to go! It would be a wonderful experience for you!

Good luck.
-Lorisa

[Jake_Zhukov]

I agree with Dr. W. I not a vegetarian, but you'll be fine There is a lot of salad, vegetables, and non meat products there, just take a look around.

[Homenuck]

I am a meateater all the way, but I knew a few vegans who were staying in Moscow. They ate VERY well, making amazing bean salads and stuff that was like chili, but with soy instead of meat.

Fruit and vegetables are very easy to get and inexpensive. Basically, if you're not as lazy as I am (my best friend was the cafeteria!), you'll be fine. Even in the cafeteria, you can ask them to give you soup without the extra spoonful of meat (although I wonder if there was meat in there to begin with... my vegan friends didn't seem to worry about it much).

Eating out may be a different matter, though...

Don't let this stop you from a great experience.

Dave