ON a cold winter’s evening there is nothing like a hot Irish stew to warm you right up; a myriad of root vegetables nestled in a steaming soupy concoction but wait a minute, there’s something missing from this stew – the meat.
Long-time friends Audrey Shanahan and Julie Hyde from Shannon have been spreading the word of vegetarianism with their newly formed Clare Veg Group. According to the group, turning veggie opens up a host of culinary possibilities, as well as helping families save money.
“Vegetarian cooking is fantastic. It’s colourful, there are so many spices and you have lots of ingredients to play with. There are so many different aspects to suit everyone’s taste. You can even have an Irish stew that is totally vegetarian, nice and hearty,” says Audrey. “Of course, in this time of recession, it’s cheaper to be vegetarian. You don’t have to pay as much as you would for meat and you can grow your own food. It’s cheap as chips and healthy.”
The Clare Veg Group meet on the first Thursday of the month at the Temple Gate Hotel, with their first meeting attracting plenty of interest. The meetings enable vegetarians, vegans and even the odd curious carnivore to come along and share their own experiences, along with sharing plenty of recipes.
Julie explains why the pair decided to start the group.
“We both lived abroad, in many places and now we’ve finally settled back in Ireland. We noticed there doesn’t seem to be any kind of support groups where like-minded people can meet up on a regular basis in the Clare area. The group is really a social outlet for people with the same interests; an alternative to going to the pub.”
Audrey says vegetarianism is the fastest growing alternative trend in the developing world. However, while things are improving, being a vegetarian still has its difficulties.
“In terms of vegetarian restaurants, we don’t know of any in Clare. We just went for lunch in Ennis and the first place we went to had 30 dishes on the menu and there was just one vegetarian option. There seems to be a lack of awareness and facilitation for the vegetarian lifestyle. The vegetarian options on the menu are more like a token gesture, like, there’s one vegetarian dish so that will keep them quiet. There is just no choice.
“This was one of the reasons we decided to set up the group. We thought we would take a proactive approach to get the community of vegetarians together and try and make some changes,” says Audrey.
Julie was the first of the pair to become vegetarian, admitting, “Three out of four of the kids in my family are vegetarian. I know we broke my mother’s heart.” However, now her mother proudly boasts of her children’s dietary decisions.
The group are urging parents of teenagers who are thinking of becoming vegetarian to contact them for advice on how to get the most out of a vegetarian diet. “When we were handing out flyers advertising the group, people were like, ‘oh my God, that’s fantastic, my daughter’s vegetarian’. There really was a sense of why hasn’t this been done before and that was really encouraging,” says Audrey.
The pair are adamant that now they have gone veggie, there is no going back for them. “It’s just opened up a whole new world for me,” says Julie.
The pair are aware that the term vegetarian can conjure up plenty of stereotypes and this is something they hope to tackle in the group.
“There can be a stigma out there. People just think you’re a hippy or something but that is something that is changing,” said Audrey.
Another misconception, they say, is that the vegetarian diet lacks nutritional value.
“I think there is an idea out there that vegetarians are an ‘at risk’ group, lacking in protein and iron. That’s a myth,” insisted Audrey.
“There is this image of the ghostly, anaemic-riddled vegetarian with wispy hair and brittle bones and it’s just not true. Anyone who doesn’t balance their diet runs those risks and the truth is protein is in lots of grains that we would eat a lot.”
They both insist they are not on any kind of veggie crusade, trying to convert people with the group.
“We’re not judging people. There is that whole idea that vegetarians have this holier than thou attitude to those who eat meat. We don’t ever want to make people feel that way. It’s very much personal choice and we’re not trying to recruit people. We’re just trying to find people who think the same and want to hang out and talk food and health and get some support,” Audrey tells us.
While the group is for vegetarians and vegans, it isn’t just about food.
“There are sub interests out there that a lot of people who are interested in vegetarianism share. On our first meeting, we ended up talking about Seed Savers, growing our own veg, vegetarian cookery, spirituality, all sorts of things. There is a real diversity there, with all types of people from your 50-year-old woman to younger people. People from all walks of life have come to the group. Really, it’s all about sharing ideas about lifestyle and nutrition and you don’t even have to be a vegetarian to get involved. It’s much broader than that,” says Julie.
At the moment, the group are meeting at the Temple Gate Hotel and guest speakers are set to attend future meetings. Plans for the group involve finding a venue where members can bring their own vegetarian dishes for ‘pot-luck’ eating.
“We’re also hoping to host some social events, maybe going to different places around the county where there are things happening that would interest the members,” says Julie.
Audrey added, “We just want to bring the county’s vegetarian community together. There are pieces of it all over the place and we just want to bring it all together.”
For more information, contact clareveggroup@gmail.com or visit www.clareveggroup.blogspot.com