this doctor cooks Vegan Food

When and how did I learn to cook? 

 

I learnt to cook during my childhood as I watched my 'Gaga' (aka Grandad) cooking away in the kitchen. He was a messy cook (still is!) and so I used to sit on the kitchen table amongst the rubble watching him at work. Occasionally, he let me stir the pots and pans. My all-time favourite was getting to use the wok on Chinese night. Helping Gaga in the kitchen soon became an evening routine and I looked forward to coming home from school to see what he was cooking next. All of my Gaga's fantastic and indulgent foods took its toll on my waist during my teenage years. He was a massive fan of cooking with butter and this began to show. This led me to start taking charge of the cooking in the house to introduce some healthier options and through doing this my confidence in cooking grew. 

 

Why did I decide to go vegan? 

 

I grew up on a very meat heavy diet. According to my family, if a meal didn’t have meat in it, it wasn’t a meal. This was normal for my family so I considered it to be normal for me. It wasn’t until I moved out and begun living with my partner that I started to introduce themed cooking weeks, such as ‘vegetarian week’. Over time my partner started to request 'vegetarian week' 'vegetarian week' and wait for it... 'vegetarian week'. 

 

Earlier this year my partner also started researching more into veganism and a plant-based diet. After a lot of research, she then made the choice to become vegan. This was a massive shock to me, I wasn’t sure how I was going to manage cooking vegan food – as it was a completely foreign concept. A few weeks later, when she was in work (and I was procrastinating away from Hepatology!), I went through some of our TV’s YouTube history. I really wanted to know what could make someone ‘give up’ so much overnight. After my own extensive research into the benefits of a vegan diet, including health, the environment and animal welfare, I cut out meat followed by dairy and then fish. My food has never looked so vibrant and diverse and my health mentally and physically has never been better. 

 

Why did I start ‘thisdoctorcooksvegan’ ?

​

Cooking is a big part of my life. It is my way of switching off my brain away from work but it is also an opportunity to get creative. I started my Instagram page to document my meals to later recreate them. A few people have asked me whether I have a blog where they can find my recipes. I have been putting this off for ages because I never write anything down. This is a bad habit and this blog will help me fix it - bear with me! 

​

​