Turns out you can still eat meat without the carbon footprint – just make it plant-based. That’s the ethos behind Henry Firth and Ian Theasby’s new book. The duo behind the best-selling BOSH! series have released (dun, dun, dun...) Meat, which shows you how to cook delicious dishes that feel and taste like meat, but are in fact 100 per cent plant-based. After “giving veganism a whirl” for a month in 2015 (“before it was cool,” they add) – partly prompted by a desire to improve their health and partly after watching the eye-opening environmental documentary Cowspiracy – the pair made the switch permanent and launched BOSH. The rest, they say, is history – and it’s certainly a successful one. But going cold turkey (ahem) wasn’t all smooth sailing. “Initially, the main thing we missed was choice,” Theasby tells The Independent. Back in 2015, when he walked into a restaurant or a supermarket, there simply wasn’t much on offer. “In Pret, you’d get a hummus wrap if you were lucky. If you went to Tesco, you might get a really dry, crumbly falafel sandwich and that was it,” he says. But, fast forward eight years, “you walk into a supermarket today and it’s not what can I eat, but what shall I eat? Because there’s so much choice.” Theasby and Firth are the first to admit that even enduring vegans get cravings sometimes. In their new book, they say: that’s okay! Plants can be meat too. “If you think about a burger, it can made from an animal or it can be made from a plant. We accept that now,” says Firth. It might be strange to hear a vegan say that “we should celebrate meat” but “it’s got wonderful flavours, wonderful textures, but you can make it from plants, either from using vegetables or using some of those products that are now everywhere in the supermarket, which are pretty damn good.” The keyword is texture, says Theasby. “One thing that people lack when they first start eating plant-based is texture, so what we wanted to do was produce a book that was packed full of bite and chew so your mouth doesn’t miss anything when you first go plant-based. Some of the recipes in there you would not be able to guess are plant-based.” The recipes in Meat use a combination of meat alternative products and straight-up plants to achieve this. For example, there’s a section at the start that details how difficult it was to recreate bacon. Using a mix of chickepas and seitan (also known as vital wheat gluten), with flavourings like miso and colourings like beetroot, they create a kind of red and white dough that is rolled out, kneaded and cut into the shape of a piece of bacon. “It looks like bacon, it has the same mouthfeel as bacon, it’s got the same flavour profile as bacon,” says Theasby. “It’s a magic thing.” Don’t let that put you off, says Firth. “People do get a bit freaked out and they’re scared of ultra-processed stuff and of what’s in it. It’s good to read the label but it’s also good to not be scared by new things just because they’re new.” If you aren’t freaked out, however, we’ve got three sneakpeak recipes from the new book to put your mind at ease. Crispy Korean-style ‘chicken’ wings “These wings are SO crispy and delicious! Seriously, we love them. You can eat them as they come or you could push the boat out and serve them in a sandwich with a little plant-based mayo, kimchi and lettuce with a side of fries. They’d also go well with a side of rice and a little salad. Whichever way you choose, we’re pretty sure you’ll love them as much as we do.” Serves: 4-6 as a side Ingredients: For the sticky marinade: 4 garlic cloves 2.5cm piece of fresh ginger 150g gochujang 120ml toasted sesame oil 2 tbsp rice vinegar 2 tbsp light soy sauce 4 tbsp light brown sugar ¼ tsp ground white pepper For the ‘chicken’: 2 x 280g blocks extra-firm tofu 6 tbsp cornflour ½ tsp sea salt ¼ tsp ground white pepper Vegetable oil, for shallow frying For the garnish: 1 fresh chilli or a pinch of dried chilli flakes 1 spring onion A few toasted sesame seeds, for sprinkling Equipment: Fine grater or microplane Blender (optional) Frying pan Saucepan Method: Line a plate or large bowl with kitchen paper Make the marinade: Peel the garlic and ginger and grate with a tine grater or microplane. Combine with the rest of the ingredients and either blitz in a blender or combine in a bowl and stir into a nice smooth paste Prepare the chicken: Press the tofu to remove excess liquid. Tear the tofu into rough chunks about 3 x 2cm. Add the tofu to a mixing bowl along with half the marinade and fold to coat. Sprinkle the cornflour, salt and pepper into the bowl and fold to coat and combine, making sure the tofu is really well covered. Cook the chicken: Pour 1cm of oil into a frying pan and heat over a medium-high heat until the oil bubbles around the end of a wooden spoon that’s held in the oil. Carefully lower the tofu chunks into the hot oil and cook for 2-3 minutes until golden and crispy, turning them regularly to ensure a really even cook. Remove carefully and drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper. Finish the dish: Put the remaining marinade into a saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook until thick and shiny. Add the cooked tofu to the sauce and quickly fold it through to ensure a good coverage. Spoon the tofu into a serving bowl. Trim and thinly slice the spring onion for the garnish and finely chop the chilli (if using fresh chilli). Garnish the tofu with the chilli or chilli flakes, spring onion and toasted sesame seeds and serve immediately with some cold beers! Lebanese-style ‘lamb’ flatbreads with minty yoghurt “Making flatbread may feel like a labour of love but, really, it involves just a handful of cupboard ingredients and a few kneads to create delicious flatbreads that are impossibly soft on the inside with a glorious golden crust on the outside. You could serve them with anything, but we’ve stacked them high with a crumbled tempeh lamb spiced with mint, lemon and chilli, and drizzled them with a zesty mint yoghurt. “This recipe is good for 2, so if you need to serve 4 simply double everything. Deeeeelicious!” Serves: 2 Ingredients: For the flatbreads: 140g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting 1 tsp fast-action dried yeast 1 tsp caster sugar 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp dried mixed herbs 1 tsp table salt 80ml lukewarm water 1 tbsp olive oil Plant-based butter, softened, for brushing For the ‘lamb’ topping: 300g tempeh 1 onion 2 garlic cloves splash of olive oil 1 tsp ground cumin ½ tsp ground coriander ½ tsp ground nutmeg 1 tsp smoked paprika 1 tsp chilli powder 2 tbsp mint jelly 1 lemon Sea salt For the mint yoghurt: A few fresh mint leaves 150g plain plant-based yoghurt 1 tbsp mint jelly 1 lemon Sea salt To serve: Handful of fresh mint leaves Handful of pomegranate seeds 1 tbsp toasted pine nuts Pinch of dried chilli flakes Black pepper Equipment: Large saucepan 2 large flat pans (or 1, and cook the flatbreads in batches) Pastry brush Method: Make the flatbread dough: In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (the flour, yeast, sugar, baking powder, mixed herbs and salt) until there are no lumps. Pour in the lukewarm water and olive oil and bring the mixture together to form a dough ball (ensuring you incorporate every part of the mixture). Place the dough ball on a lightly floured surface and knead for 6-10 minutes until the ball bounces back when pressed. Place the ball back in the bowl, cover and leave somewhere warm for at least 30 minutes Make the lamb topping: Crumble the tempeh into small pieces using your hands. Peel and dice the onion and garlic. Place a large saucepan over a medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the diced onion, garlic and a pinch of salt. Mix well and cook for 5-10 minutes until the onion begins to soften. At this point, add the spices and crumbled tempeh with a dash of water. Mix well and cook for 5 minutes, then stir through the mint jelly. Halve the lemon and squeeze in some lemon juice, catching any pips in your free hand. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes Make the mint yoghurt: Thinly slice the mint leaves. Put the yoghurt in a small bowl and mix through the mint jelly, sliced mint leaves and a pinch of salt. Halve the lemon and squeeze in some juice, catching any pips in your free hand. Spoon into a small serving bowl Cook the flatbread: Place 2 large flat pans over a medium heat (over separate flames). Take the flatbread mixture from the bowl and halve it. Place each piece on a lightly floured work surface and push down using your hands or a rolling pin to create a round, flatbread shape – it should be quite thin as it will become thicker in the pan. Once the pans are hot, add the flatbreads and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden all over and cooked through. If you don’t have two flat pans, cook the flatbreads in one flat pan, one at a time. Assemble the flatbreads: Place the flatbreads on 2 serving plates and brush with some butter. Spoon the lamb mixture on top of the flatbreads then drizzle over some mint yoghurt. Time to serve: Chop some mint leaves and sprinkle them over the top of the flatbreads, along with a pinch of black pepper, the pomegranate seeds, pine nuts and chilli flakes (or your favourite toppings) Orzo ‘meat’-balls “Orzo – a type of pasta – is an ingredient we don’t use very often but when we do use it, we’re always left wondering why we don’t use it more often because it’s lovely. On the subject of lovely, the inspiration for this magnificent recipe came from the queen of cooking herself, Nigella Lawson.” Serves: 4 Ingredients: For the meatballs: 20g flat-leaf parsley (including the stalks) 3 garlic cloves 2 tbsp chia seeds 600g plant-based mince 3 tbsp panko breadcrumbs 4 tbsp nooch (nutritional yeast) or grated plantbased parmesan 2 tsp sea salt 2 tsp ground black pepper For the sauce: 1 small onion 20ml olive oil 1 tsp sea salt flakes 250ml plant-based white wine 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes 3 tbsp tomato puree 1 tsp paprika ½ tsp dried chilli flakes 1 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp light brown sugar 2 tbsp plant-based butter 285ml cold water 250g orzo pasta To serve: Handful of fresh parsley Sprinkle of nooch (nutritional yeast) or plant-based parmesan Small bag of fresh rocket Squeeze of lemon juice Equipment: Large heavy-based saucepan with lid Make the meatball mixture Finely chop the parsley and set aside Peel and finely chop the garlic Soak the chi a seeds in a bowl with 4 tablespoons of cold water for about 10 minutes until it forms a gel Ingredients: Place all the ingredients for the meatballs into a large bowl and mix together with your hands, being sure not to overmix, as it will make the meatballs dense-textured and heavy. Make the meatballs: Pinch out pieces of the mix and form them into walnutsize balls, putting them on a clean plate as you go. You should get about 20 meatballs. Make the sauce: Peel and finely dice the onion. Heat the oil in a heavybased saucepan that’s large enough to take the meatballs and pasta. Add the chopped onion with the salt and cook over a medium heat, stirring every now and again, for about 10 minutes until softened. Add the wine and simmer for a further 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree, paprika, chilli flakes, vinegar, brown sugar and butter. Fill both the empty tins with the water, give them a good swill, pour into the pan, bring the sauce to a simmer, put the lid on and cook for 30-35 minutes. Cook the meatballs: Drop the meatballs gently into the simmering sauce. Bring back to the boil, turn the heat down again to a simmer, put the lid back on and simmer the meatballs for 15 minutes. Add the pasta: Tip in the orzo, stir gently and increase the heat to bring the mixture back to a bubble. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked. You will have to stir it occasionally throughout this time to make sure the orzo isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan. Time to serve: Chop the parsley (to serve). Spoon the pasta into bowls, sprinkle with parsley, nooch and a handful of rocket, add a squeeze of lemon juice and tuck in. ‘BOSH! MEAT’ by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby (HQ, HarperCollins). Read More The dish that defines me: Mallini Kannan’s baked honey-soy salmon Breakfast for dinner and four other things you should cook this week How to save money in the kitchen according to top chefs Money-saving chilli con carne that absolutely slaps with flavour How to pimp up your instant ramen (and save money) Do it for the Gram: Speedy but spectacular goat’s cheese linguine

Like much of the rest of the world, Singapore is racing to feed a growing population with limited natural resources. But with almost no land for agriculture this small, wealthy, fast-paced and densely-packed nation is doing so by embracing and encouraging new food technologies that may someday help feed us all.

Egyptian luxury brands are harnessing traditional craftsmanship from jewellery design to carpet weaving to bring the country's ancient cultural...

Prince Harry will become the first senior British royal to give evidence in court for more than a century when he testifies this week...

Opting for a fresh look, 'Today’ host Savannah Guthrie sported a twisted bun positioned at the back of her head, with soft tendrils gracefully flowing around her face

In a school in eastern France, teacher Sandra Cronimus greets her pupils every morning with...

Daniel Radcliffe’s physique became social media fodder thanks to the finale of his TV show Miracle Workers - in which the Harry Potter star tore off his clothes to reveal a toned body underneath. The now-viral scene delighted fans, with many predicting he will be cast as Wolverine in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) for its forthcoming X-Men reboot. Radcliffe has been open about keeping fit in the past - revealing last year that he credits his parents for driving him to stay in such good shape. “My parents do CrossFit. They’re in their sixties and they’re insanely fit people, so I’ve just got to keep up with [them],” Radcliffe told Entertainment Tonight ahead of the premiere of Weird: The Al Yankovic Story in September 2022. “They’re just setting a crazy bar.” Radcliffe went on to say that he doesn’t actually work out alongside his parents. “We don’t do CrossFit together. CrossFit is their thing,” he said. “I’m not fit enough, probably, for CrossFit. They are phenoms.” CrossFit workouts usually include a wide variety of exercises, including biking, running, swimming, jumping, rowing, deadlifting, and squatting. Sometimes, the intensity of the workout can be tailored to individuals. The franchise was founded in 2001, and it’s marketed as a workout routine that anyone can start, no matter their fitness level. More than five million people around the world practice the workouts, according to CrossFit. Radcliffe also previously thanked his longtime girlfriend Erin Darke for helping him stay in shape. “Since I started dating her, I put on a little more muscle,” he told E! News in 2016. Read More Daniel Radcliffe body transformation leads to unanimous Wolverine prediction from Marvel fans

Chloe Bailey was left in distress after she recently accidentally ate a beef burger, interrupting 10 years of dedicated veganism. The Little Mermaid star, 25, and her younger sister Halle Bailey, 23, have both been vegans for the last decade and have been outspoken about their dietary choices. However, Chloe revealed in an Instagram Live stream that she was mistakenly served red meat instead of a plant-based Beyond Meat burger over the weekend, just before attending Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour concert in Atlanta, Georgia. According to Chloe, the incident occurred on Saturday (12 August) after she ordered burgers for her and Halle in the hotel they were staying in before the show. She told fans: “So I called to get a Beyond Burger for sis and I like usual. Specified that it’s vegan, no butter on the bun, nothing like that. “So we get the burgers, I’m getting out of the shower… and she’s eating the burger and she’s like, ‘Are you sure this is Beyond?’” Confident in her ordering, Chloe said it was. However, when she took a bite of the burger herself, she realised something was wrong. The “Do It” singer continued: “I touched the patty and smelled it and was like, ‘Of course it’s Beyond, yeah’. So I finish getting dressed, I take a bite and the juice dripping from the burger is not like a Beyond burger. I just knew it was not a fake burger. “The one bite I took and I just knew. Immediately I said, ‘This doesn’t feel right’.” She quickly rang the hotel’s front desk to ask if they delivered vegan burgers to her hotel room. However, the concierge’s answer horrified her. “He said, ‘No, they’re brand burgers’. I said, ‘Brand burgers? I said Beyond burgers’. I don’t even know what a brand burger is,” she told fans on the livestream. “Immediately I’m losing my s***. I gobbled down a whole can of Sprite. Halle’s laughing at me because I’m crying. This is right before the concert yesterday. I’m crying, Halle’s just laughing so hard at me because I’m freaking out. “I’ve been vegan for 10 years. I have not consumed any red meat for 10 years,” Chloe added. The clip was shared on the celebrity news Instagram account The Shade Room, and prompted sympathy from other vegetarian and vegan fans. “I’m vegetarian and it’s definitely hard to tell the difference sometimes but you know the taste of real meat and that stomach ache ain’t no joke,” one person commented. Another said: “My first time eating meat after a full vegan diet, my stomach… revolted.” Halle said in a 2017 interview with Complex that the sisters went vegan because of their mother. She explained: “One day, she was like, ‘I’m gonna try to be vegetarian for a week. You can join me if you’d like’. We started the week with her and just never went back.” In an awkward red carpet exchange at the premiere of live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, Halle was asked who she would choose to eat between Flounder and Sebastian. In the film, Flounder is a fish and Sebastian is a crab. She responded: “I would not eat either of them. They’re my friends." Read More The millionaire smuggled out of Japan in a box: Was Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn a victim or a villain? Husband ‘ruins’ dinner because of his wife’s typo: ‘The worst kind of control freak’ Billy Porter hits out at Harry Styles and Anna Wintour over Vogue cover: ‘You’re using my community’ How sizzling kitchen drama The Bear is spicing up the dating game for chefs Mick Fleetwood says his Hawaii restaurant was ‘lost’ in devastating Maui wildfires Where to find the best Guinness in London – and how to spot a bad one

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 24, 2023--

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 24, 2023--

As Tokyo plans to discharge treated radioactive wastewater into the sea, Hong Kong’s Japanese restaurants and seafood suppliers are bracing for a slump in business under a potential ban by Hong Kong on aquatic products from 10 Japanese regions

They Cloned Tyrone stars John Boyega and Teyonah Parrris play Choose Your Squad and reveal