Vegetarian eating is a growing trend in India, with a number of people opting out of meat-eating for a few days, or forever
What’s the one dish that is driving food sales at McDonalds? Would you be surprised if I said AlooTikki Burger? In spite of their innovations on chicken and egg burgers, the AlooTikki Burger has been their best seller for the Indian market. The company, when it entered the Indian market in the 1990s, had to change its standardised worldwide menu more than 70 per cent to suit the Indian palate. Over the years, McDonalds has been constantly innovating to introduce twists and wraps, other than burgers, to suit Indian tastes.
It’s not just McDonalds, Domino’s too has seen an increase in its sales of vegetarian pizzas. In fact, the chain has opened as many as 11 all-vegetarian pizzerias, especially in temple towns such as Katra, Amritsar, Shirdi and Haridwar, a move that has notched up its sales in these cities. According to their sales figures, about 65 per cent of all pizzas orders are vegetarian. And even in its latest gourmet pizza selection, made by no less than a celebrity chef, it has a selection of vegetarian gourmet pizzas.Prompted by all this popularity in vegetarian food, KFC, which is known for its fried chicken, introduced a new tagline to its ads to promote vegetarian food last season, “So Veg, so good”, a move away from its famous tagline “Finger licking’ good”. KFC has a popular Paneer Zinger Burger and the paneer-based Veg Twister. And even though its fried chicken sells a lot, the vegetarian dishes are equally popular.
Not surprising, since India has the largest number of vegetarians, with 40 per cent of the population opting only for vegetarian meals. According to a recent “State of the Nation” survey by a TV news channel, even out of the meat eating population, only 30 per cent eat meat on a regular basis. And restaurants are now innovating their menus to include more vegetarian recipes that are not just paneer. Not just standalone restaurants, premier properties and five-star hotels are looking at ways to woo the vegetarian clientele by introducing more and more vegetarian dishes. Several of them also have special menus around religious festivals when people abstain from meat-eating.
The worldwide trend off veganism and gluten-free food is also catching on India. “I was a non-vegetarian and turned vegan about three years ago. It has really helped curb my cholesterol,” says Preeta Pradhan, a senior executive in a background research firm. In fact, she talks of cases in her friends’ circle, where turning to veganism has helped going off insulin to control diabetes and statins to control cholesterol. “It is rare for me to visit a restaurant and not find a dish that suits my veganism. In most menus, I am able to find a dish to suit my palate,” she says.
The need to emphasise on vegetarian food in restaurants has also increased over the years, with youngsters also observing “no meat” days during the week and even going vegetarian during Navratras. In fact, during these fasting days (twice a year), many restaurants in north India go completely vegetarian. Many young people have switched to vegetarian food, thanks to aggressive campaigns such as those by PETA, which uses Bollywood celebrities to promote vegetarianism.
Innovating vegetarian food for chefs has become easier, with more and more exotic vegetable such as asparagus, brussel sprouts, iceberg lettuce, celery, Portobello and oyster mushrooms and kale now available in supermarkets across India. In fact, last season, the popular cooking show Masterchef India, decided to go fully vegetarian. A former judge, who is also a popular chef, says the decision was made as many of the contestants did not like handling meats, as they were vegetarians. “We found that participants resisted from competing since handling meat was an issue for them” he pointed out. One of the most popular chefs in the world, Jamie Oliver, has recently written a book with only vegetarian recipes. He even announced that he would go meatless for three days a week, as it would save “a bunch of money”.
No doubts then that vegetarian food is growing poplar: some thoughts for you to chew on.