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Are there any vegetarian or vegan options available in Zambian cuisine?

Introduction: Zambian cuisine and its meat-based dishes

Zambian cuisine is known for its meat-based dishes, which are often made with beef, goat, or chicken. Traditional dishes like nshima (a type of porridge made from maize flour), stewed meat, and biltong (dried meat) are staples of the Zambian diet. However, with the rise of vegetarian and vegan diets, there is a growing demand for plant-based options in Zambian cuisine.

Vegetarianism and veganism in Zambia

While vegetarianism and veganism are not as common in Zambia as they are in other parts of the world such as Europe or North America, there is a growing awareness of the health and environmental benefits of plant-based diets. Many Zambians are choosing to adopt vegetarian or vegan lifestyles for ethical reasons as well. As a result, the demand for meatless options in Zambian cuisine is increasing.

Traditional vegetarian and vegan dishes in Zambian cuisine

Zambian cuisine does offer some traditional vegetarian and vegan options that have been passed down through generations. One popular dish is chikanda, which is made from the tuber of a specific plant, mixed with groundnuts, and formed into balls. Another well-known dish is insima, which is a type of porridge made from cassava flour and is often served with vegetables.

Common ingredients used in vegetarian and vegan Zambian dishes

Many vegetarian and vegan Zambian dishes feature a variety of beans, lentils, and vegetables like pumpkin leaves, okra, and tomatoes. Groundnuts (peanuts) are also a common ingredient and are used as a source of protein in many plant-based dishes.

Restaurants and cafes offering vegetarian and vegan options in Zambia

While it may be more challenging to find vegetarian and vegan options in traditional Zambian restaurants, there are now many cafes and restaurants in Zambia’s larger cities like Lusaka and Ndola that cater to plant-based eaters. These establishments offer creative and delicious vegetarian and vegan dishes made with local ingredients.

Conclusion: The potential for more vegetarian and vegan options in Zambian cuisine

While Zambian cuisine is predominantly meat-based, there are traditional vegetarian and vegan dishes that offer a glimpse into the country’s plant-based culinary heritage. As Zambia continues to adopt more sustainable and ethical food practices, the demand for vegetarian and vegan options will likely increase. With the right creativity and attention to local ingredients, there is great potential for more delicious and nutritious plant-based dishes to emerge in Zambian cuisine.

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Food

Low-Carb Noodles: These Noodles Without Carbohydrates are Available

Low-carb pasta is now available in many different forms. Noodles without carbohydrates taste delicious and are a good alternative to conventional wheat noodles.

Low-carb noodles for low-carb diets

With a low-carb diet, you replace carbohydrates with fats and proteins, which also fill you up and provide energy. Conventional pasta mainly contains carbohydrates and is unsuitable for a low-carb diet. There is a large selection of low-carb pasta so that you don’t have to do without pasta despite the lack of carbohydrates.

Low-Carb Noodles: Konjac Noodles

Konjac root extracts have been used medicinally and as food in Southeast Asia for over 3,000 years. The main component of the tuber is the fiber-containing glucomannan. Dried and ground, you can use it as a thickening agent or as a gelling agent and prepare desserts with it. Konjac is also processed into low-carb noodles.

The Konjac noodles, which are visually reminiscent of glass noodles, contain almost ten kilocalories per 100 grams and only around two grams of usable carbohydrates.
Since the pasta substitute is not made from grain, konjac noodles are also gluten-free.
In addition to glucomannan, konjac noodles contain large amounts of water and the natural stabilizer calcium hydroxide.
The low-carb noodles are also known as Shirataki noodles and are versatile. You can find them in the Asian market and in more and more supermarkets and organic markets.

Low carb red lentil pasta

Low-carb noodles made from red lentils contain more carbohydrates than konjac noodles. With around 56 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams, however, they are lower in carbohydrates than conventional wheat noodles. Low-carb red lentil pasta is also healthier for other reasons:
Unlike wheat pasta, lentil pasta is made up of complex carbohydrates. These have a lower glycemic index, meaning they cause blood sugar levels to rise more slowly after eating than wheat noodles. As a result, the low-carb pasta keeps you full for longer.
Lentils are legumes and therefore gluten-free.
Low-carb pasta made from lentils has a high protein content, which also keeps you feeling full for longer. They are a good plant-based source of protein, especially for vegans.

Low carb chickpea pasta

At around 37 grams per 100 grams, low-carb noodles made from chickpeas have significantly fewer carbohydrates than wheat noodles. Your glycemic index is also lower.

Chickpea noodles, like lentil noodles, contain a high proportion of fiber and unsaturated fatty acids.
They are also very high in protein.
In addition, the low-carb pasta contains many vitamins and minerals, especially magnesium, iron and zinc. Wheat noodles have a much lower nutrient content.

Soy Noodles: Asian low-carb noodles

Low-carb soy noodles also contain very few carbohydrates at 13 grams per 100 grams.

Pure soy noodles have a high protein content and keep you full for a long time.
When it comes to low-carb soy pasta, you should make sure that you buy the pure soy version. Many soy noodles on the market are mixed with wheat flour or egg and are then no longer gluten-free and low-carb or no longer vegan.
Just like regular pasta, you can buy soy noodles in different shapes. They are available as classic spaghetti, tagliatelle, fusilli or spirelli. They taste slightly nutty and go particularly well with Asian recipes.

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Food

Frozen Pizza: Is it Also Available in Sustainable and Climate-Neutral?

Pizza always works. Many of us love to eat them – albeit with a guilty conscience. Because frozen pizza doesn’t have a good reputation: it’s unhealthy, the ingredients are anything but regional, and frozen pizza is also supposedly bad for the climate. We looked into the question of whether there are “better” pizzas.

Frozen pizzas are all the rage. Every  eats an average of 13 frozen pizzas a year, and the trend is rising. The favorite variety: salami.

Nevertheless, more and more people are asking themselves when buying pizza: Is ready-made pizza from the freezer okay at all? The suspicion: it has a lot of calories, a bad environmental balance, ingredients that have been widely traveled. We investigated whether frozen pizza really is as bad as it’s made out to be.

Is there a “better pizza” at all?

Our research shows: the range in the freezers of supermarkets and discounters is large, but anyone looking for sustainable frozen pizzas beyond the salami and margarita mainstream has a hard time. Nevertheless: There is now a small and fine selection of organic pizzas, vegan frozen pizzas and even climate-neutral pizzas.

How unhealthy is pizza really?

Whether organic or climate-neutral – pizza is not really healthy, at least not in the frozen version. Due to the mostly white flour, it contains a lot of carbohydrates, but hardly any fiber and few vital substances.

Conventional pizza contains many additives

The list of ingredients for 0815 frozen pizzas contains additives such as antioxidants, stabilizers, acidifiers, emulsifiers and other processed ingredients such as extracts, modified starch or up to six different types of sugar, criticizes the consumer advice center.

Each pizza contains up to 14 grams of sugar. Healthy is different.

Pizza = calorie bomb

Pizzas from the freezer are real calorie bombs – a pizza often contains more than 800 calories. Since people tend to eat up what’s on the plate, moderation is difficult here. If you want to take care of your health and figure, it is better to only eat half or two-thirds of the pizza and save the rest for the next day or two. Families can easily share pizzas and save calories.

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