Almost nothing a vegan actually cooks with is labeled vegan. The trouble is the ordinary jar: the Worcestershire with anchovy in it, the bouillon made from chicken, the dressing bound with egg, the jelly set with gelatin. This is the pantry with those already taken out, read off the ingredient statement rather than the front of the box.

The savory base first: Kikkoman soy sauce in five bottles, less-sodium and gluten-free among them, O'Food gochujang, Soy Vay teriyaki, Marmite, Cholula and Frank's RedHot, Heinz distilled white vinegar by the gallon, Graza and Partanna olive oil. For baking and grains, Bob's Red Mill semolina, spelt, masa harina and sorghum flours, vital wheat gluten, red lentils, pearled farro, millet and buckwheat groats, with Barilla, Rummo and Creamette pasta made without egg. Coffee mate plant-based oat milk singles come fifty to a box. Snacks run to Emerald unsalted almonds and walnuts, SunButter, Once Again peanut butter and Amish Country popcorn kernels. The one non-food thing on the shelf is Surya Brasil henna cream hair color.

The filter here is the ingredient list and nothing more. It cannot tell you how a sugar was refined or what else ran down the same production line, and a may-contain warning is about cross-contact rather than a recipe. Manufacturers reformulate quietly, so check the label on the jar you are holding.

Common Questions

How do you decide what's vegan?

We read the ingredient list for meat, fish, dairy, eggs, honey and gelatin. A product is here only if none of them are listed.

Is the pasta here egg-free?

Yes. The Barilla, Rummo and Creamette pasta in this aisle is made without egg. Check the box, since some specialty shapes do contain egg.

Should I still check the label?

Yes. Makers change recipes without notice, and shared-equipment warnings aren't part of our filter.