Personally, I think some of these folks just take it to the extremes with things like that. I wash my pots, pans, dishes and utensils after every use and doubt seriously if there is any "Meat" residue left in the metal of my stainless steel cooking vessels. However, if it is even remotely possible, just how much could there be.
I've got little patience for anybody that is that particular or demanding. I've got tons of food, if you're hungry, eat. If what I have doesn't please you, don't let the door hit you when the sun don't shine and go find it somewhere else.
Maybe she was just trying to push your buttons to see how you'd react.
I've got a nephew that when married to this gal he fell madly in love with, turned vegetarian to embrace her lifestyle. This went on for a few years and then they decided they would eat meat, but only game meat and fish hunted or caught by friends or certified organic from an outlet like Whole Foods. They fell on hard times when jobs dried up and moved back into his parents home for a year or so. They expected his parents to fork over $15+ for a fryer and upwards of $20+ per lb. for free range buffalo meat, etc. My brother-in law looked at them like they were from another planet and suggested they both find well paying jobs to afford that lifestyle. There's not many wild buffalo to hunt in New Orleans as opposed to Montana where they were living prior to moving back.
The marriage didn't last and neither did their diet since they are now omnivores and not at all picky where the meat comes from.
I've got a nephew that when married to this gal he fell madly in love with, turned vegetarian to embrace her lifestyle. This went on for a few years and then they decided they would eat meat, but only game meat and fish hunted or caught by friends or certified organic from an outlet like Whole Foods. They fell on hard times when jobs dried up and moved back into his parents home for a year or so. They expected his parents to fork over $15+ for a fryer and upwards of $20+ per lb. for free range buffalo meat, etc. My brother-in law looked at them like they were from another planet and suggested they both find well paying jobs to afford that lifestyle. There's not many wild buffalo to hunt in New Orleans as opposed to Montana where they were living prior to moving back.
The marriage didn't last and neither did their diet since they are now omnivores and not at all picky where the meat comes from.
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rainbowgardener
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I have been a vegetarian for over 40 years and it would not occur to me to ask that.
But if she is a nice person, I'm sure she would not be offended if you asked her. You could say something like, my pasta pot is just that and only has pasta cooked in it, but I was curious why it would matter to you, if the pot is washed in between uses. Can you help me understand the principle?
But understand that people have lots of different reasons for being vegetarian. For me it is mostly practical - it is about sharing and the fact that if we all eat lower on the food chain, there will be more to go around; it is about environmental effects of meat production; it is about poisons concentrating up the food chain; etc. For me it has nothing to do with it's bad to kill animals.
But other people are coming at it from a much more moral / ethical point of view. If you think it is immoral to kill animals and it is an important moral principle, then it gets tricky where you draw the line as to what counts as participating in that immoral act. Like Kim Davis - her ethical principles say that same sex marriage is immoral and that signing a marriage license would be participating in that immorality. [PLEASE, I am using this for illustration only. NO comments about the whole Kim Davis/ gay marriage issue or administration will end up deleting this whole thread. I don't want that, because I am only making a point about vegetarianism]. In the same way, your friend may have some notion about eating from a meat pot being in some way encouraging/ participating in the whole meat killing industry.
That is sheer speculation and she may have some other principle in mind entirely. In any case, I would just ask her. As a vegetarian myself, who gets asked questions about it all the time, I really doubt she would mind.
But if she is a nice person, I'm sure she would not be offended if you asked her. You could say something like, my pasta pot is just that and only has pasta cooked in it, but I was curious why it would matter to you, if the pot is washed in between uses. Can you help me understand the principle?
But understand that people have lots of different reasons for being vegetarian. For me it is mostly practical - it is about sharing and the fact that if we all eat lower on the food chain, there will be more to go around; it is about environmental effects of meat production; it is about poisons concentrating up the food chain; etc. For me it has nothing to do with it's bad to kill animals.
But other people are coming at it from a much more moral / ethical point of view. If you think it is immoral to kill animals and it is an important moral principle, then it gets tricky where you draw the line as to what counts as participating in that immoral act. Like Kim Davis - her ethical principles say that same sex marriage is immoral and that signing a marriage license would be participating in that immorality. [PLEASE, I am using this for illustration only. NO comments about the whole Kim Davis/ gay marriage issue or administration will end up deleting this whole thread. I don't want that, because I am only making a point about vegetarianism]. In the same way, your friend may have some notion about eating from a meat pot being in some way encouraging/ participating in the whole meat killing industry.
That is sheer speculation and she may have some other principle in mind entirely. In any case, I would just ask her. As a vegetarian myself, who gets asked questions about it all the time, I really doubt she would mind.
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I had something similar happen six years ago when I went on a weekend getaway with a vegetarian family. The mother is friends with my wife and the daughter to my daughter. The two were nice but the father was opinionated.
Apparently he was a fun loving Brazilian musician when the couple dated but he'd become progressively opinionated over the years, tending to close doors on ideas he didn't understand. For example, he deprived his daughter of Halloween trick or treating until she was eight years old. The reason was that he didn't understand it because he's from Brazil, didn't see the kid experience value of it and forbade his daughter from participating.
On our trip we cooked a dinner together and it pained him that I cooked burgers. He behaved agitated. When I pulled out asparagus to cook for both our families he frantically asked me if it was organic, where was it grown and at what store did I purchase it from. That was the last time we did that together.
Now look, I've been eating organic since 1989, far longer than this guy. But I'm not a stickler. Life is too short for dogmatism and closed doors.
Apparently he was a fun loving Brazilian musician when the couple dated but he'd become progressively opinionated over the years, tending to close doors on ideas he didn't understand. For example, he deprived his daughter of Halloween trick or treating until she was eight years old. The reason was that he didn't understand it because he's from Brazil, didn't see the kid experience value of it and forbade his daughter from participating.
On our trip we cooked a dinner together and it pained him that I cooked burgers. He behaved agitated. When I pulled out asparagus to cook for both our families he frantically asked me if it was organic, where was it grown and at what store did I purchase it from. That was the last time we did that together.
Now look, I've been eating organic since 1989, far longer than this guy. But I'm not a stickler. Life is too short for dogmatism and closed doors.
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HoneyBerry
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There could be spiritual aspects to using the same pot that meat was cooked in. People who don't eat meat want to get as far away from it as they can. Even though any meat resudue on that pot would be negligible, it is a big deal to somebody who has made a decision to not eat meat. The reasons behind having made the decision might be deeply spiritual. Perhaps she watched some of the meat factory abuse videos that have been going around.
It does seem extreme to me. Some of the vegetarians I know don't go to that extreme but there are things that I was enlightened about what really is vegetarian.
Agar agar is vegetarian, it is made from seaweed. Jello is made from animal bones. I ordered miso soup thinking it was vegetarian but it turns out the restaurant used chicken bouillion for the base. Rennet is a added to tofu to get it to harden up so even tofu is not 100% meat free unless it is vegetable rennet and it I don't think most people know what kind is in tofu and cheese. I even had problems because I specifically ordered a spicy eggplant dish for a party so my vegan friends would have something to eat. It turns out the restaurant used oyster sauce. So, now, when I make spicy eggplant, I use vegetarian mushroom sauce. I did find some safe foods for them since they actually did not object to milk products like yogurt or cheese which does not require killing the animal. Fresh fruits, salads, roasted root vegetables, samosas, grilled eggplant, and tempei, potatoes, rice steamed or boiled in water or with pandan for flavor were on the safe list.
Agar agar is vegetarian, it is made from seaweed. Jello is made from animal bones. I ordered miso soup thinking it was vegetarian but it turns out the restaurant used chicken bouillion for the base. Rennet is a added to tofu to get it to harden up so even tofu is not 100% meat free unless it is vegetable rennet and it I don't think most people know what kind is in tofu and cheese. I even had problems because I specifically ordered a spicy eggplant dish for a party so my vegan friends would have something to eat. It turns out the restaurant used oyster sauce. So, now, when I make spicy eggplant, I use vegetarian mushroom sauce. I did find some safe foods for them since they actually did not object to milk products like yogurt or cheese which does not require killing the animal. Fresh fruits, salads, roasted root vegetables, samosas, grilled eggplant, and tempei, potatoes, rice steamed or boiled in water or with pandan for flavor were on the safe list.
There are so many beliefs associated with food. I was raised with some and was influenced by the macrobiotic diet when I was in my twenties.
A barbecue show is on teevee this morning. The chef just placed pork bacon over a beef brisket. "He can't do that!" My first thought ... "Now, the grill and everything is contaminated." My second.
I'm no longer in that belief tradition but these ideas were very strong when I was a child. The macrobiotic diet ideas were a reasoning out of what might be a truly healthy diet. Those ideas were layered over religious beliefs. I'm still influenced.
But have none ... influence, that is. DW is very receptive to the practices of the barbecue chef. I have my garden fresh parsnips and carrots for a Sunday side dish. I've just decided they cannot be sauteed in butter and I will use the olive oil, instead.
Steve
A barbecue show is on teevee this morning. The chef just placed pork bacon over a beef brisket. "He can't do that!" My first thought ... "Now, the grill and everything is contaminated." My second.
I'm no longer in that belief tradition but these ideas were very strong when I was a child. The macrobiotic diet ideas were a reasoning out of what might be a truly healthy diet. Those ideas were layered over religious beliefs. I'm still influenced.
But have none ... influence, that is. DW is very receptive to the practices of the barbecue chef. I have my garden fresh parsnips and carrots for a Sunday side dish. I've just decided they cannot be sauteed in butter and I will use the olive oil, instead.
Steve
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My ex-wife was involved in a macrobiotic community but she left because she was in it for the diet not the religious beliefs. She introduced me to eating brown rice thirty years ago. She's also the one who introduced me to organic food.
I'm not familiar with macrobiotic but I believe it's as you say, that it's based on reasoning of what's an ideal food, but that it's not a science based diet.
I'm not familiar with macrobiotic but I believe it's as you say, that it's based on reasoning of what's an ideal food, but that it's not a science based diet.
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rainbowgardener
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HoneyBerry
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HoneyBerry
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This story is a good example of how sometimes we are disconnected but don't realize it. It reminds about a time when I told my friend that my check book was past 3000, meaning that I had written over 3000 checks. I was very young at the time, so it seemed like a big enough deal that it was worthy of telling somebody. Not too long after that, I was complaining about not having any furniture. So my friend piped up and said "So why don't you go buy yourself some furniture with all that money you have in the bank." I was dumbfounded by her statement because I was actually broke. Long story short, she thought that I had said that I had $3000.00 in the bank when I was actually referring to what check number I was on. We had a good laugh about it when we finally got the facts straight.