Favourite Vegetarian Meals , Low Carb Please x

noynoyavery

Hi all, Does anyone have some lovely ideas for low carb Vegetarian, I'm stumped! I was a Vegi for 4 years then got lured back by a bacon sandwich But ready to go back. The trouble is I am currently on a detox, so low carbs, no sugar, caffeine , booze. (Well have had a few very minor slips , but doing my very best) And it appears I am allergic to gluten I bloat terribly when I eat pasta or potatoes and bread . Would love some of your fav meals please. Thank you very much x

kommodevaran

Vegetarian and low carb doesn't mix well. Why do you want to go low carb? You really should choose one of those paths, or neither, if you don't want to make things very difficult for yourself. There are so many ways to eat healthy, and it doesnt have to be strict at all. You can anything, just eat the right amounts.

There is no gluten in potatoes. Get a check-up if you suspect intolerances.

girlviernes

Agreed, strong recommend you pick one or the other. You can of course within a vegetarian diet focus on increasing the ratio of fat and protein to carbs.

noynoyavery

Thanks ..do not most carbs products contain gluten? bread, pasta, etc? There for if I do not eat those as I can not , it will be low or no carb automatically (unless I buy specialist breads etc which I do not like the taste of and is very hard to get around here) . Can't eat too many potatoes (starch allergy) Thanks for the input.

stellamozzarrella

Fruit, vegetables and certain legumes all have carbs in them, and they're all absolutely necessary if you're cutting out meat. I eat a lot of "low carb" vegetarian meals, but only in the sense that I cut out the bread/pasta/rice/tortillas etc. If you're not eating meat, don't go near anyone talking paleo or keto - they're condemning food items on the basis that you're eating a truckload of meat instead.

Here are a couple of my low-starch vege meal examples:

• Low starch vege burger. I use iceburg lettuce instead of the burger buns. You can make your own vegetarian pattie out of chickpeas, mushrooms, sweet potato, broad beans, quorn, tofu etc (there are tons of recipes!) but you can also buy a stack and keep them in the fridge/freezer. Then I go crazy with the fillings - cheese, onions, tomatoes, mayo, pineapple, hot sauce, avocado... The key is lots of vegetables and lots of flavour.
  
• Naked burrito. Basically a burrito without the rice and tortilla. Again, because you're avoiding the meat, stack up on the refried beans, guacamole, sour cream, salsa, cilantro and sauteed veges. If you're eating refried beans that you've bought from the store or a restaurant, make sure they're vegetarian, though, because lots of traditional recipes use a ham hock for flavour.
  
• Chickpea salad. I oven roast chickpeas with lots of dukkah and olive oil, then make a huge salad with lettuce, fresh mint, feta cheese, tomato, grated carrot, nuts, and whatever condiment I have around - often a spicy chutney, but sometimes homemade pesto or beetroot relish.
  
• Vege stew. Sounds bloody awful but it's actually my favourite thing to eat at the moment. Sautee a whole bunch of your favourite vegetables in butter and garlic. I use zucchini, capsicum, onion, brocolli, mushrooms and green beans. Once they're golden and garlicy and delicious, add a cup of your favourite stock and simmer for a while until the stock has thickened and turned delicious. (No flour needed - just patience.)
  
• Vietnamese tofu salad. Mint, cilantro, lemongrass, chilli, cucumber, fried tofu that's been marinated overnight, peanuts, lime... Yum.

Basically, avoid processed carbs and go nuts on fresh/raw ones. And don't skimp on protein or vitamins.

0somuchbetter0

There's basically no such thing as a gluten allergy. You could have celiac disease, but it has to be diagnosed by a doc with blood tests, and you would have been aware of it long before now. You could have developed have a particular food sensitivity, in which case you should work with a nutritionist and do an elimination diet to figure out what is making you feel bad. As for low carb vegetarian diet, I'm pretty sure there's no such thing. It's either low carb or veg, can't do both.

PeachyCarol

Well, you can do moderate carb vegetarian, that's what I do, but low carb? Not going to happen. Feel free to browse my diary.

I have celiac disease so there's no gluten in my meals and I don't eat potatoes.

I eat a lot of Greek yogurt and eggs and things like home made lentil loaf (good recipe here: thesimpleveganista.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-ultimate-vegetable-lentil-loaf.html) and chickpea patties. I eat those with a side of non-starchy veg. There is a line of bean pastas which pack a lot of protein and fiber and those with a veggie sauce make a good meal.

Oh! I forgot tofu since I can't eat it, but it's low carb. You could build meals around that, stir-fries and such.