The Buddhist Chef
Jean-Philippe Cyr aka The Buddhist Chef talks morals, mantras and simple cooking
It all starts with compassion for animals
When and why did you turn vegan?
I’m a classically trained chef and pre-vegan I was working in restaurants; one day I was hired to cater an event for 400 people – the menu: rack of lamb; the location: a funeral home. That’s when I made the connection. The worst thing was that some of the people there didn’t even touch their plates – animals had lost their lives for this, and they simply let it get cold. It makes you realise how very spoilt we are, that we can sit there in front of a dead baby animal and not worry about it going to waste.
“Discovering new food and flavours is like learning a new language – it’s exciting to be vegan!”
The biggest shock was realising that I was part of it – part of the problem, not the solution. So I transitioned to a vegan diet and started to share my recipes.