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Vegan/vegetarian Asian restaurants are an interesting breed. For some reason, they're mostly obsessed with replicating the texture and appearance of original meat dishes. Despite the concept of mock meats being utterly confusing, I actually love the taste of it all!

Due to the large Buddhist population, Cabramatta is home to some of the best vegetarian and vegan Vietnamese restaurants in Sydney. Loving Hut is one of my faves.

Loving Hut is actually part of the world's fastest growing vegan restaurant franchise, and dining here requires you to look past the religious propaganda broadcasted throughout the restaurant. It's all a bit bizarre but if you're curious, this forum unravels part of the mystery.

Food-wise, everything is simply delicious. The menu contains over 50 options and there are some great sharing options on the 'yum cha' and appetisers menu, mostly $5 - $10. Think along the lines of prawn dumplings, peking duck, mushroom congee, soy chicken and salad.

The summer rolls are 4 for $5. They're tightly rolled parcels of soy meat, with all the usual suspects of herbs and vermicelli. Dipped into the hoisin and peanut sauce, it's hard to even remember that what you're eating is vegetarian!

The fried seaweed rolls ($6) are as scrumptious. Lightly battered, the seaweed adds a depth of flavour to an otherwise simple deep-fried treat.

Heartier main courses include two pages of noodles! The vegetarian pho ($8) is worth trying, but I also love the vegetarian bun rieu ($9) which is the tomato and "crab" meat noodle soup. The broth is fragrant and nourishing and the crab meat has been cleverly replaced with all sorts of tofu.

The vegetarian banh canh chua ($10) is slightly less exciting. The thickened soup is aromatic but a little bland in comparison to the bun rieu which has a great balance of flavours and textures.

Vegetarian restaurants such as Loving Hut makes it so easy to go meatless!

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Loving Hut
227 Cabramatta Road West, Cabramatta, NSW
Phone: (02) 9755 4410
Web: lovinghut.com.au/stores/new-south-wales/cabramatta

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They say you should never trust a skinny cook/critic... But those that follow me on Twitter/Instagram/RunKeeper will know that I've been on a mission to get fit since late last year. It's less about being slim and more about feeling healthy. In addition to my regular exercise regime, I've been eating a lot leaner (and mainly meat-free) Monday to Fridays. I don't go out of my way to be meat-free but I'll get the vegetarian option where possible. I've been educating myself more about consuming ethical meats as well. Books such as The Urban Cook have been a great resource.

Meat-Free Week is a great initiative that asks you to give up meat for one week from 18th to 24th March.

It's hard to believe, but Australians now eat around 190,000 tonnes of meat each year and are amongst the biggest meat eaters in the world. Eating this much meat has come at a cost. It has created large scale and inhumane industrial farming of animals - factory farming. Two thirds of the world's meat now comes from factory farming and it is considered the number one cause of animal cruelty today. In Australia, it's predominantly chickens and pigs that are affected.

Click to find out more about Meat Free Week.

Thanks to MFW supports, Adam and Lovaine from Restaurant Arras / Arras Too, I've got a super easy and delicious savoury muffin recipe to get you started on your meat-free week journey! These muffins are wholesome and hearty - they really are great for any time of the day!