A taste of local vegan dishes in English athlete’s cookbook
English athlete Dave Wise’s cookbook, Zen World Cuisine, is partly inspired by his seven visits to Sri Lanka.
“I’ve run the Colombo Marathon five times, and cycled coast to coast across the island once and it was during these visits that I learnt so much about the food, and became vegan. Inspired by the country’s Buddhism, I stood on Negombo beach during monsoon in 2008, watching the stormy waves throw fish up onto the shore. A row of birds waited to pick them off. I thought, life can be difficult for all of us, including the animals, but maybe I don’t have to contribute to the distress as much as I do at the moment. It was then that I decided to not eat meat, fish or dairy any more,” Dave says.
Dave became healthier and fitter as a result of going vegan, and went on to win the Canadian men’s 24 hour running championship event in 2016, at the age of 46, and then once again a year later.
“Cycling across the island - from Negombo to Pasikuda - took me and my guide LH - from LSR Lanka Sportreizen - three weeks, and during that time I learnt much more about local food. Seeing fruit growing all around as we cycled, eating so many new things in small roadside stalls and cafes, I even took a few cooking classes at hotels on our rest days. I’ve since applied the lessons I learnt during this time to the Zen Shojin style of cooking, which I’ve been studying for the past three years.
“Zen Shojin is the oldest codified vegan cuisine in the world, originating in Japan about 800 years ago, and I’ve taken the core guidelines of it and added it to what I’ve learnt during my travels in Sri Lanka, and other key places such as Italy, Greece and India. The recipes in my new cookbook are largely a result of this fine marriage of cultures.”
Dave, now based in Toronto hopes to introduce more people to Sri Lankan food, and the country itself, through his book.
The 2nd edition is now available, and all profits from that will go to the IRSSS (Indian Residential School Survivors Society) in Canada.
The book can be ordered directly from Dave at drwise100@gmail.com
See also https://therunningnaturalist.blogspot.com