It is rewarding to contribute to the well-being of our planet, animals, and yourself, and still feel energized, more focused, and full of drive, living on a plant-based diet

Minzhi is from China. Ever since she turned vegan, Minzhi has been actively sharing her meatless creations on IG and WeChat. Meatless Movement recently had a chat with her. She told Meatless Movement that “Not everyone can be vegan, but everyone can be as vegan as possible.”

Please tell us more about yourself

Vegan is the new modern love
Minzhi – plantbasedchina

I’m Minzhi, I currently live in Shenzhen and Beijing, China. I have a toy poodle who has been with me since 2012. I’m passionate about creative plantbased cuisine, mindfulness meditation, technology for social impact, and documentary movies.

Just because you don’t see it, it doesn’t mean it’s not happening
Minzhi – plantbasedchina

My vegetarian journey started with a documentary called “Before the Flood.” I love nature and consider myself as an environmentalist. When I learned that beef production has a considerable effect on climate change due to emissions of greenhouse gases such as methane, I immediately stopped eating beef.

As time went by, I realized that cows are no different from chicken, pigs and other animals. So I gradually stopped eating other animals within a half-year. Within the same year, I also started practicing mindfulness mediation and I felt that my connection with nature was closer.

Mentally, I became more conscious about my surroundings and how my behaviors affect the environment in a good or a bad way. I receive internal rewards when I do things like reducing plastic usage, eating plant-based diets, and tree planting with Ant Forest!

Positive self-affirmation and gratitude can build better relationships with yourself and others
Minzhi – plantbasedchina

Because I’m flexible, for example, if my friends order a meat dish with vegetables, I don’t mind eating those vegetables, so eating out with friends hasn’t been a big issue. The biggest two challenges I face are the limited vegan options in most restaurants in China, and people have certain misconceptions about vegan/vegetarian such as that it’s boring, tasteless, food only monk will eat, and not enough nutrition. When that happens, I explain the nutrition facts of plantbased diets – why it’s better for humans’ body. Gladly, most of my friends are willing to try vegan/vegetarian food with me, and sometimes I will cook for friends, so they know plantbased food is just as tasty as the regular food they have.

When we think about the origin of the food and how it has been processed, we have more empathy, stronger connection to the food we eat, and higher consciousness of food choices.
Minzhi – plantbasedchina

I think it is part of my identity and I’m very proud to it. My gut feels healthier, and I don’t get pimples as often as I used to. I’m also more conscious about food choices and how they affect my well-being mentally and physically. The perception of climate change as abstract and distant may undermine climate action, however, plant-based diets empower us to solve the climate issues by reducing carbon emissions in every meal. I wish these were some technologies which could illustrate how much carbon emissions I have saved in the past 5 years.

When all you have in the fridge is real food, whatever you make is real good.
Minzhi – plantbasedchina

These three are my most favorite home-cooked dishes. I like minimalism, so most of the meals I make don’t have more than 3 ingredients, so they are quite easy to make. I also have a WeChat Channel called 植 Plant to show how to make all these meals.

Avocado with baked tempeh
Beyond meat burger with veggies of choice
Red quinoa with matcha butter (mixture of matcha powder, cashew butter, oil and honey)

Humans are natural herbivores – we know if a vegetable or fruit is ready to eat based on its color.
Minzhi- plantbasedchina

If you’re new to plant-based diets, you can gradually reduce your meat consumption and replace them with plant-based proteins so your body feels easier to adjust. Adopting a plant-based diet can also help you start experimenting with new recipes, which could lead to you becoming a plant-based chef! It’s possible to encounter challenges, doubts, and feel like quitting, especially when you just get started. Just remind yourself why you started.