Eid al-Adha: For Vegan Muslims In India, Belief Is Compatible With Celebration

This post was originally published as part of our daily newsletter, Just One Thing. Sign up here to have a free copy delivered into your mailbox through the week!

***

Have you ever wondered how vegan Muslims celebrate Eid? When food is such an integral part of the festivities, how do they reinvent traditional dishes that contain dairy and meat? What are the alternative ingredients that they use to participate in celebrations with loved ones? We spoke to a few vegan Muslims from different parts of India to learn how. 

Related | How 3 Million Pilgrims Are Fed During Hajj

Aliza Khan is an animal welfare activist who works as a community manager with a vegan restaurant called People of Tomorrow in Delhi. She rescues dogs, turtles, cows and horses.

“I am a die-hard foodie. When I turned vegan, I used to feel sad about not being able to participate fully in the Eid festivities. My family has found creative ways to include me. I have jackfruit nihari, chana kebabs, and halwa made using dalda or refined oil,” she says. She also enjoys feasting on tehri, a flavourful vegan rice dish with potatoes, onions, and spices.

This year, People of Tomorrow is serving a special vegan menu on the occasion of Eid, including jackfruit nihari, tehri, baingan, chana kebab, and sewaiyan made in almond milk.

She adds, “I find it weird when people assume that I eat meat because I belong to a Muslim family. I care about animals, so I do not want them on my plate. I like celebrations, nostalgia, being together with people, but I do that on my own terms. Animal life is precious to me.”

Haroon Ansari, a vegan animal rights activist and mobile accessories businessman based in Dehradun, says, “I make kheer with soy milk or oat milk, and biryani with rice, soybean nuggets, green peas, cauliflower, beans and tomatoes. I have stopped having dairy and meat.” 

***

This is different from the traditional Eid menu that he grew up with. His friends and relatives often question and challenge him because they like traditional dishes prepared in the manner that they are used to. He adds, “It is not easy to change old mindsets. I have a hard time convincing them but the difficulties that I face are nothing compared to the hardships that animals undergo. I like to celebrate by feeding hungry people, and taking care of my cats.”

Unlike metropolitan cities, it is difficult for vegans in Dehradun to buy packaged vegan curd but he is hopeful that things will change because of the growing awareness around veganism.

Kolkata-based Altab Hossain, who identifies himself as an Indian Bengali Muslim vegan activist, usually celebrates Eid with biryani made using soy chunks instead of mutton. He says, “People enjoy having raita or curd with biryani. It is easy to find a vegan alternative in the form of soy curd or peanut curd. You can buy these at stores or even make them at home.”

For dessert, he prefers sheer korma made in coconut milk or vegan mishti doi. He adds, “Some food items need to be veganised but many dishes are vegan by default. Bengalis love eating vegetable fritters – alu chop made of potatoes, beguni made of brinjals, and piyanji made of onions – at all kinds of celebrations. Ghugni made of chickpeas is also vegan.” 

He is on a 72-hour fast against animal sacrifice, hoping to convince fellow Muslims that animal sacrifice is not mandatory so they do not need to give in to peer pressure. He has been receiving criticism and threats for deviating from traditional Eid celebrations. “Allah asked Ibrahim to sacrifice what was dearest to him, so he offered his son Ismail. Allah told him that he had passed the test, and Ismail was replaced with a goat. We are meant to sacrifice what is dearest to us. Religion, at the end of the day, is all about ethical interpretation,” he says.

Delhi-based Farhat ul Ain, an advocacy officer with PETA India, enjoys sewaiyan cooked in coconut milk as her Eid dessert. Her family shares her vegan lifestyle. She says, “I can enjoy my dessert without feeling guilty that I have stolen the milk from a calf. We are required to consume what is halal and tayyib – food that is lawful, wholesome and ethically sourced. The way meat reaches our tables, our plates and forks, is unethical. Factory farming is cruel.”

Like Altab, Farhat emphasises that one must sacrifice what is dear to oneself in order to celebrate Eid in its true spirit. Therefore, Farhat likes to contribute her time and money. “You can bend your taste buds to your will. Who says that vegan food cannot be delicious and decadent?” She enjoys biryani with mock meat chunks and tofu bhurji to meet her protein requirements. “People often dismiss these alternatives without even trying them. This is because of a mental barrier. We use cars and other forms of transport today instead of using animals to go from one place to another. We can also change our food habits. I used to be a hardcore carnivore but I transformed my habits when I saw the horrors inflicted on animals.”

***

Sadaf Hussain, a finalist on MasterChef India 2016, who wrote the book Daastaan-e-Dastarkhan: Stories and Recipes from Muslim Kitchens (2019), is not vegan but he does make vegan versions of traditional Eid delicacies. “I have made raw banana kebabs, rajma kebabs, kala chana kebabs. All of these are good sources of protein. Kathal biryani, made of jackfruit, is another favourite of mine but I dispute the claim that jackfruit tastes like lamb.” 

Also Read: Vegan? You'll Love These Yummy Kebab Recipes

He thinks that different ingredients have different textures and tastes; one can choose what one wants to eat, but it is foolhardy to expect the exact same taste and texture. He says, “There are two kinds of kebabs: the rough and sturdy ones, and those that melt in the mouth. Vegan seekh kebabs can be made using minced carrots, onions and portobello mushrooms. Beetroot can be used to get a reddish colour. Vegan ghee or coconut oil adds moisture.”

Another delicacy that he recommends is vegan haleem made with jackfruit, bajra, jowar, ragi and kodo millets. He makes zarda for dessert. It is rice cooked in sugar syrup, with or without vegan milk, flavoured with cardamom and dry fruit or canned orange or pineapple juice. 

Dhanesh Sharma, chef and owner of the vegan Terrassen Café in Hyderabad, has a big vegan Muslim clientele. He says, “It is possible to make different types of vegan biryani, depending on the choice of protein and your creativity. Jackfruit biryani is a familiar part of Andhra and Telangana cuisine, but people are also excited to try biryani made of tofu and vegan meat.” While potato is a significant ingredient in Kolkata biryani, it is typically not used in Hyderabadi biryani. Sharma says, “It absorbs a lot of flavours, so I like the idea but people in Hyderabad would not eat it. I avoid using it.” He serves a cashew curd raita with biryani.

For dessert, he serves phirni made with almond milk. “Almonds are synonymous with sweet dishes in India. They symbolise festivity and richness,” he says. He avoids using coconut milk because the taste can be “overpowering”. He is of the opinion that “almond milk is subtler and lets the rice and sugar in the phirni do their job. Coconut milk is an attention-seeker. It makes the dish all about itself.” When he talks about ingredients, it seems like he is talking about curating a guest list for a party. “Yes, coconut milk can get too loud in a phirni.”

Chintan Girish Modi can be reached @chintanwriting on Twitter and Instagram