Whether you’re a vegetarian, a vegan, a health freak, or an animal lover, laying your hands on lip-smacking vegetarian food during your travels can get a tad tricky, depending on the destination you’re travelling to! To give you a better picture, and to make your life easier if you’re a vegetarian, here is list of 7 countries across the planet that offer some of the best and most delicious vegetarian food recommended by HolidayMe (EN).
Countries with the best vegetarian food
India
What better country than India to start this list with?! India — the mother of all when it comes to vegetarian cuisine, is hands down one of the best places on the planet where you can stuff your mouth with some of the world’s best vegetarian delicacies. For a country home to over 500 million vegetarians, Indian cuisine features flavorsome food in endless varieties. Besides, you will find that all packaged foods sold in India display a green mark if they’re vegetarian and a brown mark if they’re non-vegetarian, so chances are you’ll never end up eating meat by mistake. Being the birthplace of vegetarianism, India is a paradise for vegetarians with its myriad curries, spices, vegetable and lentil preparations, pancakes, and what not.
Singapore
Though it is barely half the size of Los Angeles, Singapore scores stunningly big when it comes to vegetarian food. According to records, there are about 359 vegetarian restaurants and health food stores in Singapore, with more than a hundred located in central Singapore itself. Raid the numerous street food stalls in Singapore, and treat your taste buds to an array of tantalizing vegetarian delights. Indulge in Chinese, Western, Malay, Indian, and Mediterranean cuisines as you meander through this vegetarian paradise.
Jamaica
Yet another wonderland for vegetarians, Jamaica emerges as one of the toppers on this list, owing to the nation’s Rastafarian movement. People who believe in the Rastafarian religious principles, follow an I-tal diet, which means they restrict their diet to foods that are “natural and clean”, and the diet is strictly vegetarian; often vegan. Their diets also constitute a rich intake of fruits and juice, too. Though Rastafarians might constitute only a small chunk of Jamaica’s population, be assured you won’t experience a dearth of vegetarian dishes across the country.
Ethiopia
Thanks to their belief in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, a majority of Ethiopians follow meat-free Fridays and Wednesday, along with long periods of vegetarian fasting! So it doesn’t come as a surprise that some of the most famous, traditional Ethiopian dishes are vegan or vegetarian! This also means that almost wherever you travel in Ethiopia, you can never be too far from a place serving lip-smacking vegetarian delicacies. One of the must-try vegetarian dishes here include Injera, a staple food which is part of almost every meal in the country! Injera is a sourdough flat bread, savored with beans, lentils, peas, vegetable stew, and spinach among others.
Israel
About 10% of the Israeli population considers themselves as vegetarians, which makes Israel yet another amazing destination to enjoy some of the most interesting vegetarian food on the planet. Talk about tasty delicacies like falafel, hummus, latkes, babaganoush, tabbouleh, and so much more, which are all purely vegan. What’s more, in the past few years, Israel seems to have been taken over by a certain vegetarian wave, with vegan, meat-free options mushrooming at a rapid rate across the country.
Thailand
Owing to the Buddhist influence across the country, there is no dearth of vegetarians and vegetarian food in Thailand. The country offers an array of fresh vegetables, tropical fruits and other mouth-watering vegetarian delicacies served with a heap of rice or noodles. If that wasn’t enough, there is also a vegetarian festival celebrated in Phuket every year! Awesome, right?
Taiwan
With one out of ten people in Taiwan being vegetarian and also because of the Buddhist and Daoist influences, there is no shortage of insanely delicious vegetarian food dishes to savor in Taiwan! Traditional Taiwanese cooking incorporates a lot of use of vegetables, and besides, even the regular meat dishes can be replaced by fresh vegetables, thanks to the unique, mouth-watering sauces Taiwan is home to! There are more than 6,000 vegetarian restaurants in Taiwan, so be assured you’ll experience no shortage of delicious food for vegans and vegetarians alike!
