Does this breakfast burrito contain sausage? Is there any beef in this spaghetti sauce? Does that salad come with chicken? When you’re a vegetarian, checking the ingredients list on anything remotely questionable becomes second nature. If you’re not sure at a restaurant, you ask (or, in this day and age, you Google). But despite your best efforts, sometimes things slip through your filters because they seem like they should be vegetarian when they’re really not. Check out this list of innocent-looking foods that actually contain animal products to avoid the dreaded “wait, what’s not vegetarian?!”
1. Candy Corn
Yup, everyone’s favorite (or least favorite—it’s very controversial) Halloween treat is oftentimes not vegetarian. Despite being named after a vegetable, many brands of candy corn (like Brach’s, the biggest name in candy corn manufacturing) contain gelatin, that gooey substance made from animal bones and cartilage. If you can’t live without this confectionary fall staple, Jelly Belly makes a vegetarian version.
2. Refried Beans
Beans are one of the essentials of a vegetarian diet, but unfortunately, many restaurants use lard (aka pig fat) in their refried beans. Many canned varieties of refried beans also use lard. Always check the label and look for cans marked “vegetarian,” and if a restaurant doesn’t explicitly label their beans as lard-free, just ask your server before you order!
3. Peanuts
Nuts and seeds of all types are yet another staple of a meat-free diet, yet some varieties are not clear for vegetarian consumption. Most notable is Planter’s Dry Roasted Peanuts, a delicious snack that unfortunately lists gelatin among its ingredients.
4. BBQ Potato Chips
Make sure to check the label before you pick up this cookout essential because some types of barbecue potato chips contain chicken fat. Lay’s Baked BBQ chips, for example, are not vegetarian-friendly while their regular fried BBQ chips are.
5. Pop-Tarts
Can you say childhood ruined? These delicious, sugary snacks masquerading as breakfast foods are not actually vegetarian. The frosting on Pop-Tarts contains gelatin, but if you can’t go without this staple of your elementary school days, get the unfrosted version. They might not be as satisfying for your mouth, but they’ll be far more satisfying for your ethics!
6. Frosted Mini Wheats
Like Pop-Tarts, this breakfast essential contains gelatin in the frosting. The unfrosted version is totally fine, though, but if you can’t go without that early morning sugar rush, try adding a spoonful of sugar to your bowl for that extra sweetness.
7. Marshmallows
You know to avoid the hot dogs on your family’s annual camping trip, but what about the s’mores? Unfortunately, most brands of marshmallows list gelatin as a key ingredient. Luckily, there are many brands of veg-friendly marshmallows like Dandies that taste and feel exactly the same!
8. Broccoli and Cheddar Soup
Broccoli’s vegetarian. Cheddar’s vegetarian. You’d think this Panera favorite would be a go-to for vegetarians everywhere, but unfortunately, the popular bakery-café uses chicken stock in this soup. Their garden vegetable soup and black bean soups are totally vegetarian, though, so give those a try next time you need a Panera fix.
9. Worcestershire Sauce
Some people have a rule of not eating anything that they can’t pronounce. For vegetarians, that rule is particularly true for Worcestershire sauce. Most popular brands include anchovies in their ingredients, but if you can’t go without it, check out Annie’s Organic Vegan Worcestershire Sauce.
10. Stuffing
Come November, it’ll be on nearly every dinner table in America, but vegetarians should think twice before helping themselves to a serving of grandma’s famous stuffing. Most stuffing recipes use chicken stock in the base, but luckily vegetable broth can be used as a virtually undetectable substitute. Just ask nicely if granny could switch up her recipe a bit this year (or make it yourself)!
11. Altoids
They make your breath fresh, but at what cost? These “curiously strong” mints are also curiously not vegetarian. That’s right—they contain gelatin. The good news is that if you have a half-eaten tin lying around that you won’t be able to bring yourself to finish now, chuck the mints and keep the tin. They make great storage containers!
