Difficulties
I had many culinary failures before I discovered what I really liked. To satisfy myself mentally and convince myself that I had made the right choice, I kept imposing on myself dishes that had to be excellent and close to their carnivorous version, and that was the problem. It took me several days to understand that it was not possible to get the taste of meat back naturally. So obviously there are vegetarian versions of a Flemish carbonnade or even a shepherd's pie, but if you mentally prepare yourself to eat what you call meat, you are bound to be disappointed; at least I was. You have to learn to discover again as you did when you were a child, you have to taste things, make up your mind, add/remove ingredients to finally arrive at a vegan recipe. With a bit of luck and creativity you may create the dish of tomorrow, who knows?
Successes
In my case, I've gotten too close to the substitutes offered by the mainstream department stores. I wanted to change my diet to avoid processed animal products but instead I eat processed plant products. This is definitely one of the things I would like to focus on. Fortunately, following my appointment with the nutritionist, I was able to improve my plate and no longer rely on vegan alternatives from supermarkets. I didn't realise it immediately, but the products in the shops are often too fatty and low in protein. The nutritionist advised me to choose products with a fat content below 10/100g and a protein content above 12/100g. I still sometimes take a few dishes from the supermarket but now I know which ones are good for my health.
I often discover new recipes that I like and that comfort me in my choices. The advantage of a plant-based diet is that the plate is always very colourful and gourmet.
Tips
Unlike more traditional cooking, ingredients in a vegan recipe can very rarely be replaced by another ingredient that looks similar, as you would in a more traditional recipe. I made this mistake when I first started out, but fortunately, you learn very quickly in the kitchen. I can only advise you to try vegan recipes but be careful not to change the ingredients as the result is very rarely positive. Luckily nowadays we have access to information very quickly, so don't hesitate to use it to find out about possible substitutes.