Veganuary is the perfect time to switch up your eating to a plant-based diet. It’s also the ideal time for splashing out on new cookbooks, especially those loaded with delicious, money-saving vegan recipes. Thankfully, the latest release from Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, also known as BOSH!, hits all of these points, and more besides.
In BOSH! On a budget, Henry and Ian detail over 100 vegan recipes, each of which uses affordable ingredients. Of course, as is the BOSH! way, all of these recipes promise to be delicious and easy to make.
Henry and Ian are no strangers to putting together recipes that inspire. Their Instagram page, which boasts over 800,000 followers, is home to countless mouth-watering recipes and plant-based tips (the same can be said for their website, too). While this is a proven gold mine for helping new and established vegans liven up their weekly menus, the BOSH! boys haven’t stopped there.
Counting the most recent release, BOSH! On A Budget, Henry and Ian have produced six cookbooks brimming with recipes.
The debut book, BOSH!, and its follow-up BISH BASH BOSH!, are hefty tomes full of meals ranging from super-healthy vegetable bowls to hearty comfort foods.
BOSH! How To Live Vegan is a great handbook for recent vegan converts. As well as easy recipes, the book also details how to properly source good quality vegan ingredients. Additionally, it has helpful tips on sustainable living.
Speedy BOSH! is dedicated to vegan meals that can be prepared and cooked in under 30 minutes, while BOSH! Healthy Vegan is all about eating clean AND satisfying your tastebuds.
To celebrate BOSH! On a budget, resident veggie-muncher William Lobley had the chance to pose a few questions to Henry and Ian. Here’s what he found out:
Your catalogue of recipes is huge. How do you keep inspired, or where do you find the inspiration, to keep creating new meals?
We love food and thoroughly enjoy the recipe writing process. We want our books, website and social media channels to be a really valuable resource for people who are trying out plant-based food, so that keeps us motivated and working hard!
BOSH! On a budget shows that eating vegan doesn’t have to be expensive. Do you have any other money-saving life hacks around preparing vegan food, sourcing ingredients?
• Batch cook, freeze and save for later
• Buy in bulk
• Don’t buy too much packaged vegan food like burgers and chicken
• Buy fresh veggies - they’re actually pretty cheap
• Buy frozen veggies - they’re really cheap
Did you have to make any sacrifices in terms of flavour or ingredient choice when writing more budget recipes for BOSH! On a budget?
No! Writing with budget constraints really got our creative juices flowing and made us think out of the box for ways to create maximum flavour with minimum cost.
What international cuisine is your favourite to adapt into a vegan version?
We’re big fans of curry. The flavours and textures are amazing and there are SO many varieties. We’ve got a fair few curries in our new book - all of which are super delicious and actually pretty healthy!
Do you have a top tip each on switching to, and maintaining, a plant-based diet?
Henry: Watch a few documentaries on veganism like Cowspiracy. The information in those films will definitely legitimise and reinforce your decision to go plant-based.
Ian: Gorge on plant-based recipe videos on the internet - a couple of hours of those will make you realise you never have to miss out on a plant-based diet!
Baking without using dairy and eggs can be tricky - the results can be a bit flat, dry and crumbly. That’s never the case with your baking recipes. What’s the secret?
No one likes a flat, dry cake so we test our recipes over and over until we’re absolutely sure they work perfectly!
Favourite meal each from any of the BOSH books?
Henry: The Tofu Madras in BOSH! On A Budget! is the stuff dreams made of.
Ian: The Mushroom Wellington from our first book has a special place in my heart as it’s become the go-to option for vegans at Christmas. It’s really lovely to know that people are tucking into our grub with their nearest and dearest on the special day.
Would you rather live in a world with no chillies or no garlic?
Henry: No garlic, I LOVE chillies.
Ian: No chillies, I like chillies but garlic gets my vote!
Is there an ingredient either of you just can’t stomach?
Henry: I was never a big fan of eggs and to be honest I’m not that keen on vegan egg replacements either!
Ian: Meat – ha!
BOSH! on a Budget by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby (HQ, HarperCollins) is available for £16.99. Head to their website now www.Bosh.TV
Also available from BOSH!:
www.waterstones.com
www.waterstones.com
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