As a vegan, what are some basic items I should buy from the grocery store?

I am becoming vegan...

I have thought of hummus, soy milk, whole wheat bread...

Anything else?

beans and greens! This is very important for calcium and protein.

On Becoming Vegan
excerpted from the
Kaiser Permanente Vegetarian Lifestyle Clinic in Hawaii
Director: William Harris, M.D.


Food Guide:

Grains and starches are good foods, but when refined they release sugar rapidly, and raise insulin and triglyceride levels. These are foods you want to have as secondary.

Base your diet on fresh vegetables, then fill in Calorie requirements with fresh fruit, starches, and grains.

"Then God said, 'I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has seed in it. They will be yours for food...l give every green plant for food.' And it was so."
-Genesis 1:29

This biblical quote says nothing about dairy, eggs, fish, grain, meat, oil, poultry, or sugar. From the evolutionary standpoint the dietary advice comes out the same. Our remote primate ancestors evolved over 56 million years living in trees where the food supply was mostly fruit, leaves, and nuts. Most of our physiology developed on these foods. Three million years ago our hominid ancestors descended to the ground and began adding meat to the diet as a survival strategy, but all the essential amino acids, fatty acids, and vitamins in the human diet are still synthesized by plants, not animals.

Congrats on being vega! Ive been for many years and love it.
Tofu,lots of fruit and veggies,vegan "meats"(like boca),light soy milk,beans with no lard,whole grain bread,vegan ice cream,pita,rice. Get a vegan cook book and have fun trying everything! There are so many good things out there!

Hope theses links help. If you need anything e-mail me!
http://www.vegcooking.com/shoppingGuide....

Find another grain that goes well with veggies - like quinoa, brown rice or whole wheat pasta...whatever meets your fancy.

Spices rule supreme in my kitchen because I can eat the same dish for a few days, but I can jazz it up and it'll taste totally different from the days before. Figure out what types of spices you like and use those until you're really rolling and comfortable with the vegan diet. Then you can expand your horizons. For me, I love Asian- and Mexican-inspired foods. I have tamari, fresh garlic and fresh ginger, sofrito, sesame oil, teriyaki sauce, sweet and sour sauce, fresh sesame seeds, cumin, chili powder, etc. in my kitchen. I am soon going to branch out and try some curry dishes.

I might get some thumbs down for this one, but I always have a bag of frozen veggies in my freezer. I make weekly trips to the fresh fruit and vegetable market, but sometimes my schedule is tight in the evening. It's easier to use those sometimes if you're in a pinch.

You'll probably want to invest in a good cereal. Breakfast is really important and you'll need some good fuel. High-fibre cereals that are fortified with various vitamins and minerals are a good bet. If you like hot cereal, may I suggest steel cut oats! They are FANtastic.

I agree with the responder above me - beans and tofu. Both are great sources of protein. Beans pack a punch of fibre and tofu gives you much-needed calcium. I always have a block of tofu in my fridge and cans of black beans in my pantry.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head. Best of luck to you dear!

Dried and canned beans - I live on them! Wraps, pitas, flour (for yummy vegan baking). Maybe try other types of milk - I love oat milk in cereal and rice milk in tea. Tofu, fresh fruit and veg. Make your own hummus by buying tahini and chickpeas. So yummy!

no milk, no cheese, get ham!! HAM = GOOD, no beef, and etc., that comes from a cow, get muffins and popsicle and nice lolipop and teh good stuffz, NO DAIRY

Bacon

fruit and vegetables are key
organic food is good too
look at the special K website online
they have a section for vegans