Lentils
Legumesaka dal, masoor, puy
Fast-cooking pulse packed with plant protein, iron and folate. Green, brown, red and black varieties suit soups, curries and salads.
- Calories
- 116
- Protein
- 9g
- Fat
- 0.4g
- Carbs
- 20g
- Fibre
- 7.9g
44+ whole plant foods with nutrition per 100 g, culinary uses, classic pairings and one-to-one swaps for animal ingredients — a working reference for cooking, meal planning and label reading.
aka dal, masoor, puy
Fast-cooking pulse packed with plant protein, iron and folate. Green, brown, red and black varieties suit soups, curries and salads.
aka garbanzo, chana
Nutty, versatile bean underlying hummus, falafel, chana masala and countless one-pot stews across the Mediterranean, Middle East and South Asia.
Meaty, mineral-rich beans central to Latin American cuisine — from Cuban rice-and-beans to Brazilian feijoada.
aka rajma
Robust, deep-red bean that holds its shape in chili, rajma and three-bean salads.
aka cannellini, navy, great northern
Creamy neutral bean that blends into velvety soups, dips and pasta sauces.
Young green soybeans — one of the few complete plant proteins, delicious steamed with sea salt.
Beta-glucan-rich grain shown to lower LDL cholesterol; works for porridge, granola, baking and savoury pilafs.
Ancient South American pseudo-grain with a complete amino acid profile and a light, nutty flavour.
Whole-grain rice keeping bran and germ intact — nuttier, chewier and higher-fibre than white rice.
aka kasha, soba
Gluten-free pseudo-grain with earthy flavour, popular from Russian kasha to Japanese soba noodles.
Drought-tolerant grain foundational to West African, Indian and Chinese cuisine — mild, fluffy, gluten-free.
Chewy, beta-glucan-rich grain used in soups, stews and grain salads.
Fibre-rich tree nut — the most vitamin-E-dense whole food.
Only nut with a meaningful dose of plant omega-3 (ALA).
Creamy nut that soaks and blends into dairy-free cheeses, cream sauces and desserts.
Tiny seed that absorbs ~10× its weight in liquid — nature's egg replacer and pudding thickener.
aka linseed
Grind before eating — ground flax delivers lignans and ALA omega-3.
Soft, nutty seed with a 3:1 omega-6:omega-3 ratio and complete protein.
aka pepitas
Iron- and zinc-dense green seed — one of the best plant sources of zinc.
Sesame seed paste — creamy backbone of hummus, halva and Levantine dressings.
Beta-carotene powerhouse — one baked medium sweet potato covers a day's vitamin A.
Cruciferous vegetable rich in sulforaphane, vitamin C and vitamin K.
Neutral canvas for everything from cauliflower rice to whole-roasted centrepieces.
Sweet root, high in beta-carotene, that improves with roasting or slow-braising.
aka beets
Nitrate-rich root shown to improve blood pressure and athletic performance.
Umami fruit-vegetable — lycopene becomes more bioavailable when cooked with oil.
Iron- and folate-rich green — pair with vitamin C to boost non-heme iron absorption.
Sturdy, calcium-rich brassica that stands up to massaging, roasting and long braising.
Colourful-stemmed green with a mild, spinach-like flavour and magnesium punch.
The single most nutrient-dense vegetable per calorie by CDC scoring.
Fresh soy curd — silken for creams and soups, firm for stir-fries, extra-firm for grilling.
Fermented soybean cake with nutty, mushroom-like flavour and probiotic potential.
Wheat-gluten meat analogue with the chew of poultry — invented by Chinese Buddhist monks.
Umami-rich Asian mushroom — sun-dried caps produce vitamin D2 when exposed to UV.
Mature cremini mushroom — meaty enough to stand in for a burger patty.
aka nooch
Deactivated yeast flakes with cheesy, umami flavour — the vegan staple for a parmesan-like finish.
Roasted red algae sheets that wrap sushi and season broths with a clean sea flavour.
Silky brown seaweed — the classic seaweed in miso soup.
aka blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries
Antioxidant-rich fruits linked to lower cardiovascular and cognitive decline risk.
Buttery fruit rich in monounsaturated fats and potassium — more potassium per gram than banana.
Portable potassium-rich fruit; ripe bananas mash into a natural egg substitute.
aka medjool, deglet noor
Nature's caramel — the base of raw energy balls, plant milks and whole-food sweetening.
Cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet — extra-virgin adds polyphenols and monounsaturated fats.
Vegan-friendly liquid sweetener with trace minerals — a straight 1:1 honey swap.
Label literacy
Most animal-derived additives fall into a short, learnable set. After a week of deliberate label reading, screening a packet becomes automatic and the number of ambiguous products drops to a handful.
First, scan the allergen line — in the EU, UK and US, milk, egg, fish and shellfish must be declared, so a product without them is already unlikely to contain the most common animal ingredients. Second, scan for the classic named derivatives: gelatine, whey, casein, lactose, albumin, lard, tallow, anchovy, honey, shellac. Third, scan for E-numbers with animal-possible origins. Nearly every packaged product resolves in one of those three passes.
A small group can be plant, mineral, microbial or animal depending on the manufacturer: mono- and diglycerides (E471), stearic acid and magnesium stearate (E572), glycerine (E422), lactic acid (E270, usually microbial despite the name), natural flavours, vitamin D3 (frequently lanolin, sometimes lichen), and enzymes such as rennet and lipase. For these, the supplier decides, so certification or a direct question to the manufacturer is the only reliable route.
Lactic acid, lactose-free, cocoa butter, shea butter, peanut butter, cream of tartar, buttermilk-flavour seasoning and 'milk chocolate flavour' cause confusion in both directions. Lactic acid is normally fermented from plant sugars; lactose is milk-derived. Cocoa and shea butter are plant fats. Conversely, products marketed as 'dairy-free' can still contain casein or whey derivatives under some regulatory definitions.
Isinglass in some cask beers, gelatine and egg albumin as fining agents in wine, and bone char in some cane-sugar refining are processing aids rather than ingredients, so they are frequently not listed at all. This is where certification schemes and producer transparency genuinely add information that a label cannot.
Origin depends on the manufacturer for the ambiguous entries; verification requires certification or contact.
| Ingredient / E-number | Typical use | Origin | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gelatine (E441) | Setting, sweets, capsules | Animal collagen | Animal-derived |
| Carmine / cochineal (E120) | Red colour | Insect | Animal-derived |
| Shellac (E904) | Glaze | Lac insect secretion | Animal-derived |
| L-cysteine (E920) | Dough conditioner | Feathers, hair or microbial | Ambiguous |
| Mono/diglycerides (E471) | Emulsifier | Plant or animal fat | Ambiguous |
| Magnesium stearate (E572) | Anti-caking | Plant or animal fat | Ambiguous |
| Glycerine (E422) | Humectant | Plant, animal or synthetic | Ambiguous |
| Lactic acid (E270) | Acidulant | Usually plant fermentation | Usually plant |
| Whey, casein, lactose | Protein, filler | Milk | Animal-derived |
| Vitamin D3 | Fortification | Lanolin or lichen | Ambiguous |
| Natural flavours | Flavour | Unspecified | Ambiguous |
| Isinglass | Fining agent | Fish swim bladder | Animal-derived |
EU additive register · FSA guidance · manufacturer disclosures
Deliberate practice for one week converts label reading from a chore into a reflex.
Start with your existing basket rather than a hypothetical one. Most people find one or two surprises and nothing else.
Gelatine, whey, casein, lactose, albumin, carmine, shellac, isinglass. These cover the large majority of clear cases.
E471, E572, E422, E920, D3, natural flavours. Decide once how you will treat them and stop re-deciding in every aisle.
Responses are usually quick, and demand signals recorded by brands are one of the few consumer levers that measurably works.
Once a brand of bread, stock, chocolate and crisps is verified, the weekly shop no longer requires reading.
It depends on the manufacturer. Mono- and diglycerides can be made from plant or animal fats and the label rarely specifies. In the EU, an animal-derived version in a product that also lists it as an allergen would need declaring, but that does not cover every case.
Beet sugar always is. Some cane sugar, particularly in the US, is filtered through bone char. Organic and unrefined cane sugars are typically processed without it.
Not automatically. Fining agents such as isinglass, gelatine, casein and egg albumin are processing aids and often unlisted. Many producers now state 'suitable for vegans' explicitly.
It is a voluntary cross-contamination warning about shared equipment, not a statement that milk is an ingredient. How you treat it is a personal decision rather than a compositional fact.
Almost never in modern food production. It is typically produced by bacterial fermentation of plant sugars such as beet or corn, despite the etymology.
Useful as a first pass and unreliable as a final authority. Databases lag reformulations and differ by country, so a verdict should be checked against the actual label in front of you.