BIPOC Portraits: Supriya Raman Kitchen

BIPOC Portraits is a series in which Best of Vegan contributors Val & Mani Latifi of Plant-Based Passport profile one BIPOC vegan creator each week over the course of 16 weeks, to shed light on the unique challenges BIPOCs face in making the decision to embrace veganism. For BIPOCs, the prevailing narrative that veganism is a white-dominated movement can often mean a perceived loss of cultural identity. The hope of this profile series is to make veganism a little less lonely for BIPOCs and to give courage to vegan-curious BIPOCs out there. In the fourth installment of BIPOC Portraits, Supriya Raman of Supriya Raman Kitchen (@supriyaramankitchen on Instagram) shares her journey to veganism as a South Indian Tamil-American. She also provides a delicious recipe for Adai (Tamil-Style Crispy Lentil & Rice Savory Pancakes).

[The acronym BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color]

BIPOC Portraits: Supriya Raman Kitchen

Supriya Raman is a personal chef and food blogger based in Los Angeles, California. She was a lifelong vegetarian who embraced veganism in 2018, after realizing that animal suffering extended beyond the consumption of meat and into the dairy and egg industries, as well as lifestyle choices. Supriya is currently working on a fun and informative series of cooking workshops to introduce people to Indian cooking. The cooking series will marry her three loves of teaching, food, and connecting with people. When she’s not busy in the kitchen, she enjoys singing, music, books, and traveling. Follow Supriya: Instagram | Website

When you first went vegan, did you see the vegan community as diverse? Did you see yourself as having a place in the vegan community as a BIPOC?

I do see myself as having a place in the vegan community as a BIPOC, but one I’ve created for myself and not one that’s seen or heard as often as it deserves to be. I’ve heard very often that my food isn’t mainstream and each time it strongly feels like “mainstream” means white. BIPOC: Black, Indigenous, People of Color is such a diverse collection of people, to begin with, and it often feels like there is a quota for all of us and there isn’t room for all our unique perspectives.

There isn’t an effort to acknowledge, understand and respect my culture—only an effort to take what could be useful, hence the immense amount of cultural appropriation of all things Indian

The diversity I bring is used as a poster child to add color to the existing white story, but I rarely see true integration or willingness of inclusivity. There isn’t an effort to acknowledge, understand and respect my culture—only an effort to take what could be useful, hence the immense amount of cultural appropriation of all things Indian. In the United States, the vegan lens is ethnocentric, specifically skewed to a colonialistic view—when in fact, veganism (of which plant-based eating is a huge part of) was something my ancestors have been doing for thousands of years. Understanding the health and environmental impact of food is one-hundred percent attributed to ancestors from ethnic cultures from which all modern veganism stems from. I’d love to see more celebration and attribution to our heritage.

Vegan Adai (Tamil-style Crispy Lentil & Rice Savory Pancakes)
Vegan Adai. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Did you have any fears or reservations about going vegan? Did you feel like you might lose part of your cultural identity in your transition to veganism? 

I personally had no fear about going vegan. I grew up vegetarian, and in India, that means something entirely different as compared to here. Our foods growing up always had dairy on the side (ghee, yogurt, etc.) as an additional complement. The stars of our meals were always veggies, grains, and legumes, etc. In fact, there are thousands of regional Indian dishes steeped in cultural significance that are naturally vegan.

Having said that, there is also a big part of Indian culture that’s reliant on dairy for food, religion, and even cultural celebrations. There are a few regional cuisines like the ones popular here: the tikka masalas and butter masalas, which are heavy on dairy. So there are people who are resistant to change because of the fear of losing these things. And that’s who I try to reach with my food. With alternatives that are available these days—and with the understanding of the impact that meat and dairy have on our health, the environment, and most importantly to the animals—I try to show that being an Indian vegan is not only doable, but you can thrive as your unique self.

My approach is to lead by example. And I believe kindness matters. Harshness and judgment aren’t my thing. Nothing is more powerful than action.

Did you worry about how your friends and family would react to your decision to go vegan? And how did they react?

I did, but they weren’t going to stop me. I have very interesting conversations with my family and friends. While all of them are supportive, some still don’t fully understand it, nor are they willing to change. They see it as my choice—not one suitable for them. They all love “animals” but not enough to change daily habits. Habits are hard to change.

My approach is to lead by example. And I believe kindness matters. Harshness and judgment aren’t my thing. Nothing is more powerful than action. A huge reason why I came into social media and share what I cook is so it is available as a resource. Becoming vegan can vary in timelines for different people, and my role as I see it is to provide consistent, gentle reminders for how vibrant, delicious, and inclusive being vegan can be.

When I first went vegan, I didn’t seek alternatives immediately. I focused on whole foods. I wanted to fully explore what plants can do.

Did you have challenges finding vegan substitutes to make your cultural dishes? What substitutes did you make?

I did not have challenges finding substitutes, and I understand that’s because of where I live. Meat has never been a part of my life, so it’s mostly dairy products that I switched to vegan versions for. When I first went vegan though, I didn’t seek any alternatives immediately. I focused on whole foods. I wanted to fully explore what plants can do. It’s then that I dug deep into my heritage and found things like chickpea omelets, lentil-based savory pancakes, and scrambling chickpeas, etc. that are all things from my childhood. I then slowly started exploring and experimenting with other products, and have added a few egg replacements, protein powders, yogurt, cheese, and butter into my pantry now.

Vegan Adai (Tamil-style Crispy Lentil & Rice Savory Pancakes)
Vegan Adai. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with us? 

Contrary to popular belief, veganism isn’t the absence of something; in fact, it’s an embarrassment of plant riches. Going vegan brings a fundamental shift in attitude—one towards variety, diversity, and abundance. There is a perception in the western style of eating that meat and dairy are the stars, and everything else is merely flavor additions; but for billions of people, it’s the opposite. Coming from an ancient culture, the diversity of plants, the understanding of their complex nutrition, and the techniques on cooking to enhance humble foods, are all a huge part of what my heritage taught me. There is so much diversity in eating plants, and it’s something I wish more people embraced.

Article Val and Mani Latifi. Recipe and photos by Supriya Raman of Supriya Raman Kitchen.

Val Latifi is a first generation Filipino-American. She runs Plant-Based Passport—a food and travel blog—with her Persian-American husband Mani. They live in Houston, Texas with their crazy rescue pug Mango. She is an attorney by day. In a former life, she was a music journalist for The Village Voice. She has traveled to thirty-three countries and five continents together with her husband. Travel informs and inspires their cooking. The two of them recreate and veganize dishes they’ve sampled abroad, as well as dishes they grew up eating. Through their food blog, they seek to dispel the notion that you have to give up your cultural heritage in going vegan, while spotlighting underrepresented cuisines. 

If you loved this BIPOC Portrait of Supriya Raman Kitchen, you might also like…

Vegan Adai (Tamil-style Crispy Lentil & Rice Savory Pancakes)

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