— Rose Mattax

If the oils are plant-based, uh, then they certainly are vegan. Uh, let me just start out with that statement. Um, I, I, I, I believe where you're coming from is, um, perhaps in the forks or knives course, uh, where there's talk about omitting oil, uh, and other, you know, these, these, uh, added fats for the sake of health, um, you know, and along with salt and, uh, you know, even your bleached granulated sugar. Okay? Uh, but back to the oil. Um, and, and any of these is ingredients, actually, salt, sugar, oil, um, but, uh, the, the oil we'll keep at the forefront of our thoughts here. Um, feel free to use them if you want. Uh, feel free to decrease the quantity if you want, and feel free to omit them if you prefer. It's gonna be totally up to you. Okay. Um, this suggestion of omitting these ingredients in the FOK course, um, it's a suggestion. Um, it's also a recommendation if you're addressing some particular health concerns that, um, um, might, um, uh, you know, best to be approached through the elimination of these things like added oils. Okay? But, uh, I do, uh, understand, uh, having convers had conversations with other students that, uh, from the wording or the way this topic is introduced, that, uh, some folks, um, think that oils are not vegan. Vegan means plant-based. And, um, so yeah, oils that come from plants can be used within this framework of cooking. Okay? Uh, but as I, you know, mentioned a few minutes ago, as you move through this, uh, uh, forks over knives approach to cooking, and you feel like, oh, you know, I, I can only get that flavor from roasted potatoes if I add some oil and, and that's the way I enjoy it, um, then consider adding some oil to your potatoes. Um, whereas, you know, you might choose to omit the oil from other dishes that you prepare. Okay? Um, find a balance that works for you. I think that's the most important thing in cooking. Uh, don't make it punitive on yourself. Um, you know, in the name of better health. Uh, and, and, you know, and unless you flip that switch, and that's the path that you want to go down, in which case you will not feel that you're missing anything or that, uh, the process is punitive in any way. Okay? Um, but I hope that, uh, answers your question, which was a, a simple one, but also provides some context and some food for thought.