Buddhist Diet Recipes

Buddhism's first noble truth states that "all life is suffering." Buddhist practice strives for freedom from that suffering. Because Buddhists view everything in existence as interconnected, they try to reduce not just their own suffering, but the suffering of all beings. Food exemplifies the sometimes violent interconnectedness of life: Plants are eaten by animals that may themselves become food--their decomposed remains nourishing soil that will produce more plants and feed more animals. A deep look at this process reveals suffering to be inherent in the food web. But even Buddhists must eat.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness--paying close, patient attention--is a key element of Buddhism. Buddhists do not multi-task. They try to do tasks one at a time, with full attention on each one. Eating is no exception. A Buddhist diet has less to do with certain recipes than it does with the mindset recommended for shopping, cooking and eating: When you are eating, just eat. That means turning off the TV, ignoring the phone and closing up the newspaper. It means taking time to consider where your food comes from, how or where it was grown, what it smells like and what it tastes like. It means chewing slowly and swallowing deliberately.

Nonviolence

Buddhists practice nonviolence and try to integrate compassion into everything they do. Does this mean a Buddhist must be vegan and abstain from all meat, dairy, egg and honey products? No. There are some cases where being vegan would do more harm than good. If you live in Alaska, for example, you would do less harm by eating elk or moose during winter than you would by using gas-guzzling transportation methods to ensure a fresh supply of oranges, broccoli and tofu. You may, however, find yourself choosing more and more vegan meals once you begin to consider where your food comes from and how it was grown or treated. If you do decide to eat meat, dairy and eggs, look for organic, humanely produced products. To reduce the impact food has on the natural environment, try to buy organic foods or locally produced foods that do not have to be trucked in. Look also for items marked "Fair Trade." This guarantees the farmers and other workers involved in the food's production were paid a decent wage for their work.

Mindful Cooking

Buddhist author Carmen Yuen recommends cooking mindfully as a way to appreciate all the effort and hands that go into the production of food. Cooking can also help you get in touch with the seasons--especially if you grow your own vegetables or try to buy locally grown produce. Cooking your own food also allows you to take the time to really appreciate and admire the ingredients that go into a recipe. This is especially gratifying when preparing meals with brightly colored vegetables such as bell peppers, broccoli or beets. Cooking at home also provides you an opportunity to acknowledge all the aspects of your kitchen that make cooking possible: the water that comes out of the faucet, the electricity that runs the refrigerator, the gas that fuels the stove. It is also important to not be wasteful in the kitchen. Save vegetable scraps for making soup stock and make a bread salad out of yesterday's hardened loaf.