Vegetarianism

“Vegetablism,” to coin a term, is as old as Chinese civilisation, at least four thousand years old. The enormous variety of plant foods in China made vegetables, along with grains, the most central and most prominent element in the diet of the people. Much of the celebrated cuisine of Sichuan, an area of extraordinary vegetation, is strictly vegetarian without being Buddhist. No teachers, no government decrees nor religious injunctions were required to maintain and encourage the consumption of vegetables of the most varied sorts. Meats were used sparingly, and often just for broths.