Congressman Ted Deutch knows he's never going to attract special interest campaign contributions from Pork PAC, the political arm of the National Pork Producers Council, or Beef PAC, the political committee of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.

It's not because of his political views, though. Deutch has become increasingly strict about his diet since northwest Broward and southwest Palm Beach County voters sent him to Washington, D.C., in 2010 special election. He's now a vegan, which means he avoids eating meat, fish and dairy products.

"I realized quickly when I got here that the way that we live here going from 7 in the morning until 11 at night that there were always places where there's food, and if you don't think about what you eat, the risks are obvious," he said. "And so I stated thinking a lot more about what I eat and read some books and decided to try it."

Deutch said he doesn't do much cooking. "I've come to really [enjoy] the vegetable side dishes at restaurants," he said. At the capital's National Democratic Club restaurant, six of the 15 entrees are named after members of Congress, including "Rep. Ted Deutch's Vegan Chicken Piccata," which the menu describes as shiitake mushrooms, capers, parsley, lemon and olive oil served over linguine. Earlier this summer, the restaurant offered "Rep. Ted Deutch's Vegan Chicken Parmigiana."

At home west of Boca Raton, he said he sticks to his vegan diet, though he hasn't gotten complete buy-in from his wife and three children. "My family has come a long way," he said. "They used to mock me. They now range from being understanding to willing to try the crazy foods that I eat."

Deutch, 48, said his veganism wasn't prompted by any kind of health scare, though he said "my health has definitely improved as a result."

He said he lost about 25 pounds as a result of going vegan, but declined to disclose his starting and ending weight. "I'm not going there. I'd like to leave something up to people's imagination."

The country's most famous vegan politician is former President Bill Clinton, although there's been a lot of media chatter about whether the former president cheats on the diet.

And Deutch, like many politicians, sometimes compromises on his stands. Aide Ashley Mushnick said her boss "occasionally falls victim to his love for chocolate chip cookies, which he knows usually have dairy in them."

Veganism isn't politically risky for Deutch.

Part of his district includes the Agricultural Reserve in western Palm Beach County, a major vegetable production area with a growing business in organic produce, not a center of beef, pork or poultry.

Besides, Deutch is a shoo-in for re-election in the 21st Congressional District. No Republican is challenging his re-election and he faces nominal opposition in November from a write-in candidate whose name won't appear on the ballot. (No write-in has ever won an election in Florida.)

And a Democratic primary challenge last month Emmanuel G. Morel ended with Deutch winning 92 percent of the vote. For the record, Morel is a carnivore. "I eat anything and everything," he said. "I'm always on a 'see food' diet: I see it; I eat it."

aman@tribune.com, 954-356-4550