[azinman2]

Do people understand it’s nutritional value is not equivalent to what it’s replacing (when mimicking meat)? Looking at the “pulled pork” bun on the webpage made me think, would you still feel like this is just fine for lunch if it was slices of pineapple instead inside?

[TaylorAlexander]

I’m a vegan.

I don’t really like jackfruit, but I can tell you that I don’t look for meat-equivalent nutrition really. I do seek to eat a healthy balanced diet, but removing meat and dairy means changing the rest of your diet to ensure your body gets all that it needs. If you were to go vegan by replacing meat with meat substitutes, you would not be a happy vegan. However the substitutes can be nice. Yesterday I got a beyond burger at Carl’s Jr. The meal had nothing to do with nutrition, but was about a longing for junk food I have missed.

There’s lots of reasons to eat jackfruit and I believe most vegans are clear that jackfruit cannot simply replace pork to make a healthy vegan diet.

[ohyes]

I think with pineapple the bun would be all soggy.

A piece of bread and some pineapple would be fine for lunch I think. It would be weird because we don’t think of that combination of foods as a typical sandwich.

Pineapple has a much different flavor profile than jackfruit. Jackfruit is a bit of a blank slate, and has a texture that is the right mix of meaty and tender. Pineapple is very sour and juicy, it’s completely different food.

We think nothing of cucumber sandwiches, tomato sandwiches, eggplant sandwiches, various bean products (tofu, black bean, falafel).

I think you’re playing on the (gustatorily) incongruent nature of a ‘pineapple sandwich’ and conflating that emotion with the relative nutritional qualities that would comprise a ‘pineapple sandwich’ (probably not far off a cucumber sandwich with quince paste).

[darkpuma]

Heh, I once got a "watermelon steak" at a vegan restaurant in Seattle. Let me tell you, a slice of grilled watermelon is not even remotely similar to a steak.

[on_and_off]

> Do people understand it’s nutritional value is not equivalent to what it’s replacing (when mimicking meat)?

yes

> Looking at the “pulled pork” bun on the webpage made me think, would you still feel like this is just fine for lunch if it was slices of pineapple instead inside?

yes, that sounds like a way better lunch than pulled pork. I am not vegetarian and I am very active but I don't feel the need to eat meat more than once or twice a week. And even then that's only because I like its taste, afaik there is nothing in meat or dairy you can't find somewhere else.

[hombre_fatal]

For some reason, when the topic of veganism comes up, people act like everyone is otherwise incidentally healthy due to their omnivore diet when that's obviously not the case. And that somehow making a conscious decision about what you eat for once puts you at risk for being less healthy.

Meanwhile, our foods are fortified with things like calcium and vitamin D because people otherwise don't get enough. In a nation where we all certainly eat enough. Maybe it's indeed time to drop the idea that we don't have to think about what we eat.

[sct202]

Most people do understand that you need to monitor your nutrition more on a vegetarian or vegan diet, especially if you're converting. For food that's a mimic, it's already hard enough to make something that tastes similar that making it nutritionally equivalent is not realistic.

[Legogris]

Having a vegetarian diet, this is the most difficult thing when eating out. More often than not it's extremely carb-heavy and barely any protein. Few places make balanced vegetarian meals - mostly Indian and specifically vegan restaurants.

[cbhl]

Some do; some don't.

In my experience, most find a source of protein quickly (tofu, tempeh, peanut butter, chickpeas, quinoa).

But some end up with iron deficiency and may need to take supplements. (Broccoli looks like a comparable source by weight -- 1.1mg per 148g, versus 2.2mg per 85g of beef. But 85g of beef is roughly 3/4 cup by volume, whereas to get the ~300g of broccoli for the same 2.2 mg of iron, you need to eat two stalks or three cups by volume.)

[Legogris]

Spinach is a great source of iron. 2.7mg per 100g. Also high in protein. I think there's a reason Popeye is all about spinach.

[cbhl]

True, but if you're eating raw spinach you need something like nine cups to get your RDA (assuming RDA of 8mg/day, and about 3 cups per 100g). Females 19-50 are told to eat 2x that; pregnant females 3x (27mg/day(!), source: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iron-HealthProfessional/).

If you cook it, then your 300g spinach reduces to something like one and a half cups, but you have to be careful to not lose water-soluble iron to your cooking method. Also, you have to like the texture of wilted spinach.

If you're used to eating half-cup sides of spinach, making spinach your primary iron source is a fairly major change to how you eat.

[pvaldes]

Spinach has oxalic acid that can lead to fragile bones. I wouldn't suggest to eat a lot of it (specially if you are a pregnant woman), unless you take countermeasures to assure a correct calcium intake.

[simplecomplex]

Yes, everyone understands that. Especially vegans.

I really wouldn’t worry about one of the most obese countries in the entire world lacking for calories and protein.