— Marcia McCloud

Uh, so a rib off, so it sounds like a, a cookoff, right? Featuring ribs. That's, that's the way I'm gonna take this. Um, so if you are asking about a vegan dish that is gonna replicate ribs, I don't know. Um, on the other hand, if you wanna think about a, a, a plant-based dish to be enjoyed, uh, with other meat that might be at this event, uh, I would say, gosh, there are so many to choose from. And, um, you know, I can't recommend a best one per se. I think the best one is gonna be what you feel is gonna be most appropriate, uh, for the audience or what you wanna achieve, uh, through your participation in this event. And, um, uh, thi this brings a, a an additional thought to my mind. So I'm gonna take a little, a little tangent and, and talk a little bit here about, um, plant-based cooking. Okay? And, uh, so in, uh, in much of the world, uh, that has a history of, uh, of, of plant-based, um, diets and plant, plant-based cooking, uh, you know, such as India and other regions in South Asia, uh, you know, such as, uh, Japan and the tradition of temple cuisines, um, the, the plant-based dishes, uh, they, they, they, they reside on a pedestal all their own. They reflect the seasons, and they reflect nature. And, uh, they reflect the ingredients, um, you know, that are used for that particular preparation. And, uh, there is, uh, uh, you know, no connection to replicating animal cookery, uh, not even a nod. Not even a glance. Uh, you know, these are, um, this approach to cooking, you know, is one that, um, uh, is really mentally and emotionally disconnected, right from the animal and, uh, cooking and, and eating the animal. Um, and so, so, uh, while this, what I just said, I, I realize strays from the core question here. Uh, hopefully it provides some food for thought, uh, in terms of, you know, how one develops, uh, their own food philosophy, uh, which then informs your cooking and how you, um, interface with these external events like, um, a rib off. Um, now on the other hand, you can probably find cookbooks out there and folks that are, are happy to, uh, try to replicate ribs in some way with lentils or, or wheat, gluten or something like that. Um, but, um, yeah, I'm, I, uh, would need to look at a cookbook myself, uh, to talk about that with you. But, um, um, otherwise, I, you know, I hope you'll think about this other approach, uh, to plant-based cooking. And, um, and then back into your context here, think about, uh, a dish or two, um, that would, uh, stand on its own pedestal, um, but taste wonderful alongside some ribs.