Thanksgiving, a holiday traditionally centered around eating turkey, is increasingly witnessing the rise of vegan options at the table.
A survey conducted earlier this year by Wakefield Research (and funded by Saputo Dairy) underscores this trend, stating that over two-thirds of Americans have sampled vegan alternatives, with a third integrating them into their regular diets.
Rob Nipe, co-owner of Grassfed, a vegan butcher shop in the Upper Monroe neighborhood, emphasizes the practicality and inclusiveness of vegan side dishes.
"It just makes it so it's more accessible for everyone," Nipe says, highlighting the ease with which traditional Thanksgiving sides can be adapted for all guests.
He also shares a personal experience that illustrates the growing acceptance of vegan options in traditional settings.
"After two years of my wife and I being vegan, my mother-in-law, whose house we go to for Thanksgiving, she finally was like, ‘You know what? Maybe we just make vegan mashed potatoes. Maybe we don't have to have two pots of mashed potatoes going at the same time,’" Nipe says.
Andrea Parros, owner of The Red Fern, a vegan restaurant in the Park Avenue area, often finds herself contributing to mixed-diet Thanksgiving celebrations.
"Sometimes, we get to do an all-vegan Thanksgiving at friends' houses,” she says. “This year, it is going to be a traditional style Thanksgiving where there will be turkey, which is always cringe for me, but we'll be bringing most of the sides, and they're all going to be vegan."
Making sure that sides are vegan is something she says is easy, requiring only simple swaps of the vegan alternative to traditional ingredients like dairy.
“Green beans, just roast them with olive oil. Brussels sprouts, same thing, roast it with olive oil. Yam mash, use vegan butter and olive oil. It's no different than your traditional cooking and no one would even know half the time,” she says.
Parros and Nipe’s experiences reflect a growing trend of blending vegan and non-vegan elements in holiday meals. They advocate for consistency in the meal, emphasizing that making all sides vegan simplifies the dining experience for everyone.
"If you are going to serve turkey, at least let all the sides be the same, not 'Oh, I made mashed potatoes and then I made you a separate one that's vegan,'" says Parros.
This approach not only makes meal preparation easier for hosts, she says, but also ensures that everyone at the table can share the same dishes.
"If everybody can enjoy the same sides, at least, there's no reason to have to change those recipes,” she says.
Parros says that vegan options for Thanksgiving are readily available at stores like Wegmans.
“You can pick up, vegan Tofurkys at Wegmans on sale. You can make things from scratch. Recipes galore online,” she says. “A quick Google search will bring tons of recipes, if you're more of a person who likes to cook your own food from scratch and you don't really want to do the processed stuff.”
Both Parros and Nipe also emphasize the significance of Thanksgiving’s origins as a harvest festival, suggesting that a plant-based menu aligns more closely with the holiday’s original spirit — the “bounty of the harvest,” says Nipe.
He adds that “it would be a more traditional way to celebrate if the focus were on the vegetable side of things.”
While many of the plant-based roasts and centerpieces at eateries like Grassfed and The Red Fern are already sold out for Thanksgiving, The Red Fern still has a range of sides available for pick-up. Adding to the festive spirit, they are also featuring a unique offering during Thanksgiving week: the 'Thanksgiving Grind.' This holiday-style grinder sub includes Grassfed Rochester’s vegan turkey and is garnished with roasted Brussels sprouts, squash, and crispy onions on a hoagie roll, complete with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy. It will be available through Saturday.
For these two local culinary leaders, the movement towards veganism at Thanksgiving is about more than just food; it's a reflection of a broader shift in dietary habits and a reconnection with the holiday’s roots.
As Parros puts it, “it's about gratitude, it's about love towards your family, love towards beings in general. Why not make the plant-based choice?”
