Want to eat more veggies but don't have the time, patience or energy...
eque_price
Posts: 32 Member
I don't think I could go full vegan. I don't think I could go full vegetarian, but I am tired of eating meat. Once in a while is fine. My problem is the rest of my family don't have the same point of view. How do you manage cooking and time... My busy life style not to mention shift work leaves me feeling tired and worn out... Meal prep is a complete chore. I HATE making dinner let alone making everyone different meals... Not to mention my sweet tooth! I have always had a terrible sweet tooth... I would like tips and hints on how to go more vegetarian and keep the meals extremely easy and interesting. Is this even possible?
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Replies
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I must add... I love, and my pocket book also loves grains like pasta and bread.0
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Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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It takes me about 5 minutes to boil broccoli or cauliflower in a pot, sprinkle a little salt on, maybe a little bit of melted or shredded cheese and that's that. Or you can get bags in the frozen dept that can be steam cooked in the microwave, which takes, literally, zero effort. And they have a very large variety of different kinds for microwave steaming.7
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I love mixed vegetables, frozen or fresh, with spaghetti sauce. Top with parmesan for vegetarian or nutritional yeast for vegan. Easy and quick to prepare.4
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I love my crockpot.
With a larger one, you can make a big pot of roast veggies (or maybe a bit of roast beast with a bunch of veggies around it) without a whole lot of effort & eat for days.
And when you discover the liner bags, cleanup is a snap. (Though I've learned to put about 1/2 cup of water in the crock before the bag, to be sure the heat is evenly spread.)
Here's one example of the liners:
http://www.reynoldskitchens.com/slow-cooker-liners/6 -
Can your family not pop a frozen pizza or lasagna in the oven once in awhile? Dinner doesn't have to be some massive production. A lot of people over think it. We are all busy. Veggies are easy you grill or microwave the. For like 3-4 mins and throw on seasoning. Pretty much any vegetable. Bam. Done8
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Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
^^THIS^^
One of our standard "I'm too tired to cook" meals is a nuked frozen veg and a frozen patty (turkey, chicken, tuna, or salmon from Trader Joe's in our case, you may want veggie burgers) cooked on the griddle pan.
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V83
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Over half of my diet consists of low carb vegetables. I cut them up in advance, and use the steamer all the time all the time. If you don't like prepping anything, there are plenty of frozen and packaged options. Other easy and quick methods are boiling or microwaving, especially for starchier vegetables like potatoes.3
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Do you want to eat more vegetables, as the title of the thread says, or go more vegetarian? Those are different things. I am not vegetarian (although I am moving toward having more vegetarian meals again) but even when I have meat I consider having a lot of vegetables an essential part of any meal. So I'd say do this, eat a larger portions of the vegetables and a smaller portion of the meat. Also explore meatless alternatives, such as legume-based meals and stir fries with tofu and vegetable omelets and the like and start adding them into your rotation. As you find more and your family enjoys them, have them more often. The switch doesn't have to be immediate.
As for the cooking thing, vegetables are really easy and fast to cook. Roasting and sauteeing are my go-to methods, and add in other ingredients to a sautee like mushrooms too.2 -
My family loves meat. I served them a vegetarian diet for about a year, but that was not a hit. Now the boys are teenagers and the husband works out a lot, and I serve plenty of meat.
I suggest making a salad and another easy vegetable with each 'meat meal.' You eat the two veg options, and hopefully your family eats them along with the meat.
Weeknights, I sear chicken/pork/steak -- super easy. Add a tossed salad and a roasted or microwaved veggie and some rolls. You're all set!
Roasted broccoli, roasted carrots, roasted cauliflower, roasted potatoes, roasted brussels sprouts -- they only need to be tossed with oil, salted and peppered, and roasted in a 400 degree oven. That hardly counts as cooking in my book -- super easy and really tasty.
My family have never once been unhappy with seared meat, veggies, and rolls. You could just eat the veggies. Everyone happy with one meal!7 -
I recently found steamer bags of rissoto and veggies and quinoa and veggies in the store. Try heating those up and serving them by themselves or mixing in some beans or veggie sausage for extra protein. Have a simple salad on the side.3
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Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
^^^ This
Steamers are a lifesaver for me. I eat them most days of the week a's the main bulk of my meal, usually alongside a slice of two of pizza (as I did this evening), or frozen Morningstar Farms black bean burgers.
Rice is great, too, because it's cheap and you can make a ton of it in 30 minutes or so. Sear some chicken..you're good to go!4 -
I have a freezer full of bags of frozen veggies. Plus some baby carrots in the fridge. And cans of beans in the pantry. Any fresh veggies I buy, I clean and prep them as soon as I get home. Sure they might go bad sooner, but there's a better chance I'll eat them if they're ready to go. And veggies cook quick. Honestly I'm far more likely to get takeout because I don't have time to cook the chicken, or I forgot to take the fish out to thaw!3
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eque_price wrote: »Not to mention my sweet tooth! I have always had a terrible sweet tooth...
carrots are unbelievably sweet. so are bell peppers, the red ones especially.
both raw. although when i'm in the mood i like to grate a bushel of them into a bowl and mix in a whole can of pineapple chunks with the juice.
eta: snow/snap peas with the edible pods. zomg how could i forget.
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Most meats are easily complemented by vegetables. Frozen does reduce waste. But don't bother buying any you don't like just because it's healthy. Stick to what you enjoy. Also, most vegetrian and vegan meals can have meat added to them. I do a lot of meatless recipes. Those who want ground beef, chicken, or sausage generally add theirs to their own meal. We usually keep those precooked and on hand in the fridge.4
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I make the same meals for everyone, tough cookie if they don't like it, they can make their own.13
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Yep veggie steamers here too. I stock up when they're $1 a bag or under. It's really easier and cheaper than fresh most of the time.
And I absolutely love soup. I bought big bags of frozen cauliflower, carrot, broccoli, and onion and dumped it all in 8 cups of broth, let them steam/simmer until soft, then blended. I've been eating it for almost a week now. So good, filling, and low cal.
I second roasted veggies too but typically it's the cost that stops me (and it still takes 25-30 minutes).4 -
Roasting veggies takes a bit of time but very little effort. I often buy pre-chopped, which saves time but not money of course, toss them on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt and pepper, and walk away and do something else for those 25 minutes or so.
Here's what I do - come home, turn oven on to preheat. Do something for a few minutes (feed dog, change clothes, etc.). Throw together the veggies on a baking sheet. Toss it in. Go do something - walk the dog, take a shower, unload the dishwasher, workout, whatever. Get out some meat if I want it and cook that up. Also google sheet pan dinners - you can roast meat and veggies together on one pan.
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katharmonic wrote: »Roasting veggies takes a bit of time but very little effort. I often buy pre-chopped, which saves time but not money of course, toss them on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt and pepper, and walk away and do something else for those 25 minutes or so.
Here's what I do - come home, turn oven on to preheat. Do something for a few minutes (feed dog, change clothes, etc.). Throw together the veggies on a baking sheet. Toss it in. Go do something - walk the dog, take a shower, unload the dishwasher, workout, whatever. Get out some meat if I want it and cook that up. Also google sheet pan dinners - you can roast meat and veggies together on one pan.
This. If you roast it, they will eat it. There are numerous veggies my kids hated until I started roasting them. Now they'll eat any veggie if it's roasted.5 -
dinner doesn't have to be a three course, lovely foodie experience every single night. Nothing wrong with fixing scrambled eggs (or omlets) for the family dinner. It's a good way to use up leftovers. Mine can be more veggie centric then theirs.
Grilled cheese & tomato soup is popular at my house.
Bean and cheese burritos are my daughters favorite. We've also had a lot of quesadillas over the years. These are also a good way to use up leftovers and make my salad centric dinner more satisfying.
We also like spaghetti w/ marinara sauce. I buy the cans of marinara from trader joes since we all like it and that and some pasta are great things to have in the pantry. I usually throw some veggies into mine (I like the added crunch so I don't cook them) but the kids will skip that.
Find one or two things that are flexible or veggie centric that your family does like and put them into regular rotation. Then try a couple of more things that are similar to expand on this.4 -
microwave frozen veg in microwave takes 4 minutes, top with seasonings and eat!2
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making everyone different meals? My parents were of the train of thought,' if you don't like it make yourself a sandwich' If hubby doesn't like it, then he gets to cook every other day!
Time wise, do you have a crock pot? Food magic. Toss it in before you go to work, get home and dinner is ready.
https://www.bustle.com/articles/142927-18-vegetarian-crock-pot-recipes-even-meat-eaters-will-love
these are some good ones that don't take a ton of prep time.5 -
You should check out the starch solution diet. I've been on it for a long time now, and after about a week my cravings for sugary/processed foods went away and haven't been back. To think i used to be a binge eater... I would even wake up in the middle of the night to stuff my face.
Anyways, my rice cooker is the love of my life because i'm lazy af. I put whatever veggies i want in the steamer basket and dinner is done in 15 mins. I'll wrap it all in seaweed sheets because sushi is amazing. I also make huge batches of lentil stew and chickpea curry in my instant pot, and freeze it in portions. Makes meals easy because i just have to defrost it, reheat and serve with rice.7 -
Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
I second this. There are weeks where I'll go through many many pounds of frozen brocolli, cauliflower, asparagus, and brussel sprouts. Unfortunately my favorite, which is asparagus, is stupid expensive. I swear, frozen chicken breast and tilapia costs less. It's senseless.3 -
Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
^ Yep. Requires just about zero time, patience or energy. Not too hard to throw a bag in the microwave, push "5 0 0" and "Start". Our refrigerator is always stocked with them.5 -
Right now I'm eating dinner consisting of 2.5 oz each baked chicken breast & ham, 7 oz red microwaved potato,1 m/lg squash, butter, all under 500 calories. I love squash. got a good buy on zucchini & the lite green ones. I cut in half, microwave for 2 minutes, cut up & put some butter & Parmesan cheese. followed by large hot cup of tea with 1 tbs honey4
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It takes me about 5 minutes to boil broccoli or cauliflower in a pot, sprinkle a little salt on, maybe a little bit of melted or shredded cheese and that's that. Or you can get bags in the frozen dept that can be steam cooked in the microwave, which takes, literally, zero effort. And they have a very large variety of different kinds for microwave steaming.
Excellent comment. Where there's a will, there's a way.1 -
Frozen vegetables save me so much time. I buy "Steamers" by the cartload. 5 minutes in the microwave and ready to eat. And they aren't that expensive.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Yes. Some well known brands are Dujardin, Emborg, Green Giant, Bird's Eye.1
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