Jainism and Animal Issues 1997

Author(s): Federation of JAINA
Publisher: USA Federation of JAINA

Page 22

Jainism and Animal Issues
MCDONALD'S: Fries and hash browns are both cooked in 100% vegetable oil in U.S.A., and are supposed to be prepared in vats separate from those used for meat. However, beware in Canada, where the fries are not veggie since they are pre-fried in beef tallow. McDonald's offers a side salad which is vegan. The only dressing that may be vegan is the Lite Vinaigrette. McDonaldland cookies may be vegan; the lecithin used is soy derived. Many McDonald's also prepare the Big Mac sandwich without meat if requested. The buns are vegan; however, the special sauce contains egg yolk.
NATHAN'S: They cook their thick French fries in corn oil. Corn on the cob is often available.
PIZZA HUT: Basically nothing at Pizza Hut, besides a salad with no cheese or eggs, is vegan. Pizza Hut Thin 'n Crispy and Hand Tossed crusts are vegan. But the pizza sauce for Stuffed Crust Pizza contains chicken fat. All other pizza sauces contain cheese flavor, which they make with animal enzymes. Beef base is used for the bread stick and pasta sauces. The cheese used on the pizzas could be made with either bovine (cow) or synthetic rennct.
PONDEROSA: Ponderosa has a large food bar which typically contains plain vegetables and also a salad bar, fruit, and fried foods. Ingredient listings were not available, but coming up with a decent vegan meal seems possible.
RAX: Rax is now using only Crisco, an all-vegetable shortening, for their fried foods. However, their beans are first cooked in lard. The Rax salad bar has the usual salad bar offerings, and occasionally a three-bean salad which may be vegan.
ROUND TABLE PIZZA: They have a variety of vegetable toppings including black olives, garlic, mushrooms, pineapple tidbits, tomatoes, green peppers, onions, and jalapeno peppers. Their dough and tomato sauce are vegan. They use vegetable shortening.
SHAKEY'S: They have a salad bar.
SHONEYS: Shoney's has a breakfast bar with fruit. Shoney's also has various prepared salads, a salad bar, and soups.
SKIPPER'S: Skipper's uses soybean oil for frying all their menu items. They offer a garden salad which includes mixed greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, and carrots. They make their onion rings with a beer-based batter! Crackers are vegan.
SUBWAY: Subway offers a veggic sub, which is any combination of vegetables including lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, hot peppers, black olives, onions, and/or pickles. Specify to place them only on a white vegan sub roll (wheat roll contains honey), and they can be accompanied by oil, and/or vinegar. A salad with the same choice of vegetables is also available. A few locations are now offering Gardenburger subs and White Wave soy turkey subs. The Gardenburger sub is vegetarian. The "turkey" sub is vegan, but the soy cheese used on it contains casein. These sandwiches are approved for "local sandwich status," meaning that individual Subway owners can choose to sell the product if they think there is a big enough demand. Speak to your local Subway manager if you'd like to try to have either of these subs sold at the shop you frequent.
TACO BELL: Taco Bell has added a new line of low-fat dishes, and there are some differences from the regular menu. On the original menu both the corn tortillas (hard tacos) and wheat tortillas (soft tacos) are vegan. The heat pressed flour tortillas used for burritos do contain nonfat dry milk. On the low-fat menu the corn and wheat tortillas are vegan, and also the light heat pressed tortillas used for the low-fat burritos. Corn or soy oil is used in all frying processes. Both the regular and low-fat refried beans are vegan. For dessert the Cinnamon Twists and Border Ice products are vegan.
TACO JOHN'S INTERNATIONAL: Vegan items available include bean burritos made with refried beans cooked in canola oil. No lard is used in any products or food preparation. The tortillas contain no animal shortening, but may contain dairy products. The guacamole is vegan. Request no cheese or sour cream. Nevertheless, they use same oil for all frying!
TACOTIME: Taco Time uses vegetable oil for their deep fryers, and wanted to make it clear that they have never used lard in 33 years of business. They make their Refritos with vegetable shortening. Tortillas are vegan. Vegetarian dishes available at Taco Time include soft bean burrito, crisp bean burrito, refritos (beans, sauce, and cheese), tostado, nachos, and Mexi-fries. They could not tell us for sure if vegetarian fried items, like the Maxi-fries, are cooked in separate oil from the meat products.
T.G.I. FRIDAY's: They have a Vegetable Medley, which is steamed vegetables served with rice and a dinner salad. Still, beware that the brown rice pilaf served with it contains chicken base. Order a baked potato as a substitute, and you'll have a filling, vegan meal.
WENDY'S: Wendy's has made some changes that are definitely pro-vegetarian. Wendy's Super Bar is one of the best fastde food salad bars, and they are constantly striving to make it better. They have removed the "natural beef flavor" from the spaghetti sauce, making it vegan; this can be placed over the rotini, which is also vegan. At the Mexican Fiesta, the refried beans no longer contain lard. The only questionable ingredient in the Spanish rice is the natural flavoring, which may be animal derived. Their taco chips, taco sauce, and taco shells are vegan. The Garden Spot salad bar offers all the makings for a salad including alfalfa sprouts, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, chives, green peppers, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, and chow mein noodles which may be vegan. Vegan dressings include French, Sweet Red French, Golden Italian, and Reduced Calorie Italian, which contain no questionable ingredients, since they have informed us that the natural flavor found in these dressings is not animal derived. Fruit is also found at the bar. The Garden Spot salad bar is found at all Wendy's, but unfortunately the Super Bar is found only at some locations. Hot vegetarian items at all Wendy's include a baked potato with choice of toppings and French fries. They cook the French fries in separate oil from the meat products; however, there is the possibility that oil used to cook the chicken nuggets could be rotated into a French fry vat!
MRS. WINNER'S: They fry their potatoes only in vegetable oil.
Debra Wasserman ("Vegetarian Resource Group")
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Jain Education Intermational 2010_03
Jain Education Interational 2010_03