Any Veggies Out There?

[MrBump]

I'm thinking that me and the family really need to cut back on red and processed meat.  And have less carbs too.

But whenever I've attempted veggy food it's always been a little bland, unexciting.

Who can suggest kid friendly, exciting, flavoursome vegetarian cuisine?

[Philly Q]

Not a veggie - I eat loads of chicken and fish (not so much red meat).  And I'm no expert on vegetarian diets.

But I am a low-carber.... and I'm thinking if you cut out meat and carbs, you're really going to struggle for sufficient calories.  Unless you're happy to eat a lot of nuts, cheese and eggs.

A lot of foods which are high in carbohydrates aren't particularly nutritious - essentially they're "fodder" (IMO) - but they do provide their share of calories for energy.  Replacing them is tough!

[gwEm]

whenever I feel unhealthy I go veggie for a couple of weeks and I think that it does help.

unfortunately i don't have many recipes up my sleeve, but one of them is mushroom risotto, and its tasty stuff.

[JacksonRR]

I'm a 4 month flexitarian. I eat one meal a week with meal and it's really helped me drop some pounds after gaining 50 after an ankle injury last year that had me sitting down for 2 months while keeping the same eating habits.

Some of my favorite main dishes/snacks are:

 bell pepper stuffed with rice(always), mushrooms, squash, whatever I feel like that day, seasoned sort of Mexican-like
 big portobello caps topped with greens, maybe some mozzarella
 big fan of fresh guacamole: avocado, tomatoes, garlic, lime juice, salt
 really like legumes, tree nuts, raisins, dried cranberries

Ease into it, brother. The gastric backlash can be mighty, especially if you were on a high fat high meat diet.  :(
I started full throttle and had to back track and start with one veggie meal a day.

[tomjackson]

Yes, I've been vegetarian for about 7 or 8 years.

You do have to think a bit more when you cook.  With meat dishes, the meat is often the main flavour, so you can't just take it away and enjoy what's left.  You need to replace the protein, so beans, pulses, soya etc but also get some flavour back in there with herbs, spices and if all else fails plenty of chili!

Get a few decent vege cook books and remember a good dish will taste good to everybody, just becuase it's vegetarian shouldn't mean it's got to be boring. Really you could look at it as an excuse to really concentrate on new styles of cooking, some of the quorn stuff and similar is pretty goodnthese days but if you just swap chicken and steak for quorn you might get a little gutted.

[Lezard]

I don't even eat meat from animals that aren't carnivores themselves...

[Ian Price]

I've been veggie for about 13 years now.

Agree with pretty much what Tom has said here in that you can't replace meat with something Quorn based - it really is its own taste and shouldn't be compared to meat, you will feel like you are missing out if you do this. Also, worth noting that veggie food/recipes are much more widely available than even 5 years ago. When I first started it was pretty much tofu in every restaurant that had a veggie option - and there was only really a choice of one dish in each restaurant (if any choices at all)

I did make myself a great lunch time snack today - Ciabatta with portobello mushroom, grilled haloumi, rocket, cherry tomato and pesto. It was great! I guess if I was a meat eater it would have been chicken instead of the haloumi!

[Sifu Ben]

I'm a meat eater, but I don't eat meat everyday. Strong sauces with a depth of flavour are the key to tasty vegetarian. Make good use of things like soy sauce and balsalmic vinegar to enrich sauces, and of course a decent vegetable stock. Spicy lentil stew and chickpea curry are regulars for me.

[dave_mc]

i tried going veggie for about an afternoon. it didn't take. :lol:

i'd be very wary about changing your diet based on the latest fad advice from magazines etc. (which is often far removed from actual scientific advice... which basically boils down to "eat reasonably sensibly and do everything in moderation" :lol: )

if that's not what you're doing, then fair enough, it's your call. :)

[Attica!]

I really admire Vegans. The dedication and self discipline to be one must be incredible. It's not like being a vegetarian, being a Vegan is like a religion in it's self.

I remember I used to pretend I was vegetarian at primary school sometimes if the vegetarian menu was better haha. But I did go vegetarian once just to get my mum to pack me babybel cheese and other cool snacks :D Only lasted 2 days and I went back onto school dinners haha :P

[Philly Q]

I did make myself a great lunch time snack today - Ciabatta with portobello mushroom, grilled haloumi, rocket, cherry tomato and pesto. It was great! I guess if I was a meat eater it would have been chicken instead of the haloumi!

Sound good - I wish I could still eat ciabatta!  :(

[James C]

I live with my Fiancee, who is a vegetarian, and we do the usual spaghetti and curries etc but substituting quorn in. I would definitely recommend the River Cottage - Veg every day cookbook for ideas.

[gordiji]

being veggie in uk is a breeze, you've got quorn,tofu & pataks curry paste all available in the main supermarkets.
much harder in france  :(
also veggie'ism isn't just about reducing meat for health benefits but reducing suffering for beasts, compassion!
choose your veg carefully, i think red peppers have 20 or so nasty products on or in them.
quinoa is also a good staple as is semoule (semolina for cous cous), both quite high in protein.

[Loomer]

I live with my Fiancee, who is a vegetarian, and we do the usual spaghetti and curries etc but substituting quorn in. I would definitely recommend the River Cottage - Veg every day cookbook for ideas.

My girlfriend and I swear by that one as well! There are some ludicrously delicious recipes in that one, although she does often take liberties and freestyles quite a bit :P

We also use a cookbook called "Veganomicon" a lot. That one even has a polenta recipe which I tend to make for my hangover food occasionally. It's that good!

[juansolo]

This thread is filled with all kinds of wrong.