Almost all vegan varieties of food are just as good if not better than their omni counterparts. Hamburgers, burritos, tacos, etc. No problem.
But, yours truly has been vegan for several years now, and I can tell you from experience that pizza is something that you just never get back.
Cheese and I have a complicated relationship. For a long time I was one of those vegetarians who would say, “Oh I would love to be vegan, but I don’t think I could ever give up cheese.” Until the day I did.
I don’t really miss it. The couple of times since then that I’ve tried actual cheese, I didn’t really enjoy it. It’s so greasy and heavy, and radically overdone in 99% of dishes.
Nor do I really like vegan cheeses that much.
Here are two roles that vegan cheeses and vegan meats can play:
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Type 1 food is as realistic, in flavor and texture, a substitute for the meat or cheese it imitates. The goal is either nostalgia for omnis turned vegan, or to convert omnis or ease the transition for new vegans.
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Type 2 food exists to provide unique and enjoyable flavors and textures in its own right.
Fake meats can fall into either category. I enjoy Type 2 meats. Tofu, seitan, tempeh can all be prepared in a variety of ways that are enjoyable in their own right, regardless of the fact that they don’t perfectly replace animal meat.
Vegan cheese only really ever falls into Type 1 in my experience. And it fails 100% of the time, and the result is not satisfying. There are cheese-like Type 2 vegan foods, like a nice cashew spread. But they aren’t cheese-like enough to be branded and sold as “vegan cheese”.
Anyway. Pizza.
There is plenty of enjoyable vegan pizza to be had. The best vegan pizza is probably that without cheese of any kind, dairy or vegan. Because, as is the case with the best vegan food, it doesn’t pretend to be something it is not.
So here’s my Dominos order.
Medium (12”) Hand Tossed Pizza
No Cheese, No Robust Inspired Tomato Sauce, Extra Hearty Marinara Sauce, Extra Spinach, Extra Mushrooms
It is super good! I always limit myself to two toppings because there always seems to be a coupon for a medium two-topping pizza. But if I was going to treat myself to three-topping pizza, I would add black olives.
I give this three stars because, as I said, it is a little bit ruined by memories of what could be. Pizza is the one food you really don’t get back. Without cheese, it’s really just a kind of flatbread. Which is super delicious and satisfying! But it also never quite lives up to my ideal of “pizza”.