Does anyone else eat raw veggies plain?

angiechimpanzee
angiechimpanzee Posts: 536 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Lately I've gotten into the habit of eating raw veggies like spinach, romaine or shredded carrot by themselves or on the side of a meal.

For example I'll have a grilled chicken sandwich and a cup of plain raw baby spinach leaves. & I'll stuff as much of the spinach into the sandwich as possible, then I'll just eat the rest of the spinach little by little between bites of the sandwich. I've found that doing this really helps increase my fullness with VERY little caloric sacrifice (10 calories for a cup of baby spinach leaves!) and the flavor of the chicken (or whatever my main course is) easily balances with the blandness of the plain veggie. In fact I've kind of grown to enjoy how fresh some veggies taste by themselves.

I just wanted to share this because I know a lot of people feel like if they eat vegetables it HAS to be dipped in ranch or have shredded cheese on top or boiled with butter or something. But I encourage you guys to try to simply eat them plain sometimes to accompany your main course, and see if you like it. You can get the nutritional benefit of the veggie but save a LOT of calories, 'cause usually those dips & cheeses have more calories than the veggies themselves.
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Replies

  • MoniMoni2u
    MoniMoni2u Posts: 211 Member
    I've been known to eat my swiss chard in the car, right out of the bag when leaving the CSA! If the veggies are fresh it's no problem at all and quite tastey!
  • lyttlewon
    lyttlewon Posts: 1,118 Member
    I usually eat my veggies plain. Every once in a while I will dip them in hummus.
  • rawhidenadz
    rawhidenadz Posts: 254 Member
    All the time!
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
    Yes, but some times I use lemon juice on celery and other greens like lettuce. I use pepper on cucumbers and occasionally i use hummus on carrots. But plain is fine too.
  • karenwill2
    karenwill2 Posts: 604 Member
    oh man! If it is veggies, I will eat them. Preferably plain.
  • anaboneana
    anaboneana Posts: 195 Member
    i don't like ranch very much.. the only time i'll get it is when i have cheese fries from a diner in my hometown (which is a veryyyy rare occasion for me, thank goodness. those fries are dripping with grease and soaked in that awesome nacho "cheese" - cheese that's not really cheese but tastes amazing. heart attack on a plate, pretty much.)

    i feel inclined to have anything on my raw veggies, i'll sprinkle a little vinegar for extra zing. but that's it. i actually enjoy the taste of veggies by themselves.
  • TheNEWMonicaB
    TheNEWMonicaB Posts: 129 Member
    Bell peppers are the BEST just sliced and eaten raw with no dips. YUM!!!
  • acuratlsd
    acuratlsd Posts: 228
    I love my veggies raw....

    especially when I make salads. I don't even use dressing. If I use a lot of spinach, especially of the bitterness. I will just put some pepper and squeeze some lemon juice. That dilutes it.

    I have a problem using dressing. If I am going to pour gobs of dressing over my salad, based on the fat and calories, I might as well have a nice juicy hamburger. Some people will go for the lite dressing or fat free but what makes up for the calories and fat is the sodium that is in those dressings.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    If I could, I would. Unfortunately they taste like I'm being poisoned.
  • scrapfrfun
    scrapfrfun Posts: 47
    Bell peppers are the BEST just sliced and eaten raw with no dips. YUM!!!

    this^^ I also like cauliflower, cucumbers and carrots just plain too!!
  • amnsetie
    amnsetie Posts: 666 Member
    Plain is lovely, especially carrot.
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    I eat lots of plain, raw veg. It's delicious!

    Tomatoes + a few basil leaves from my garden is my favorite snack.

    I munch on carrots, cucumbers, and peppers too.
  • Enigmatica
    Enigmatica Posts: 879 Member
    I prefer to eat raw veggies plain. Even salads. =)
  • DrJanet98
    DrJanet98 Posts: 138 Member
    I'm not that big on vegetables, but I mostly don't like gooey sauces and dips and such, so when I do eat them, it's usually plain. I love eating spinach and other greens with my fingers, like potato chips! If they didn't go bad so quickly I'd happily have a bowl of 'em to snack on next to me while watching TV or surfing online. :-)
  • sonyashine
    sonyashine Posts: 4 Member
    I notmally eat my plain or with hummus or even greek yogurt..yum. I reallly like the idea of haveing spinach as a side, as normally I'm not in the mood for a salad
  • Cricket09
    Cricket09 Posts: 41 Member
    The veggies I love to eat plain are red bell peppers, grape or cherry tomatoes, zucchini, bibb lettuce, endive, and cauliflower. :happy: Great topic!
  • verptwerp
    verptwerp Posts: 3,639 Member
    Every single day ....... almost every meal :drinker:
  • joeamendiola
    joeamendiola Posts: 54
    Does carrots and celery count?
  • RubySinclair
    RubySinclair Posts: 90 Member
    If I could, I would. Unfortunately they taste like I'm being poisoned.
    LOL! you sound like my brother :laugh:
  • joeamendiola
    joeamendiola Posts: 54
    I buy my fruits and veggies almost everyday. To make sure they stay fresh.
  • lwagnitz
    lwagnitz Posts: 1,321 Member
    I love veggies raw and PLAIN. that's the best way. bell peppers, sugar snap peas, cucumbers, carrots, SPINACH I will eat like chips, zucchini, cabbage, celery, string green beans...oh the list goes on. My mom used to call me her little rabbit because all I ate were fresh veggeis and fruit. And would eat spinach, like I said, as if it was chips.
  • ShinyFuture
    ShinyFuture Posts: 314 Member
    Love bell peppers plain, likewise carrots, celery, cucumber, jicama, radish slices, romaine leaves, tomatoes, raw green beans, snap peas, really anything. I'm not opposed to hummus - in fact I love it, but I can happily eat the veggies without it. Even with salad, I hardly ever put salad dressing on it - sometimes a squirt of flax oil or lemon juice. If I steam 'em, just a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice is all I need.
  • hbm616
    hbm616 Posts: 377 Member
    I always munch on veggies plain when I'm chopping them up to use in a recipe...especially carrots, broccoli, bell peppers, green beans and snow peas! Usually if I am planning to eat raw vegetables I will have some hummus with them.
  • RubySinclair
    RubySinclair Posts: 90 Member
    I'm not that big on vegetables, but I mostly don't like gooey sauces and dips and such, so when I do eat them, it's usually plain. I love eating spinach and other greens with my fingers, like potato chips! If they didn't go bad so quickly I'd happily have a bowl of 'em to snack on next to me while watching TV or surfing online. :-)

    I found an awesome way to keep lettuces and such fresh... I think it was on here! As soon as I get them home, I layer them in thin layers between paper towels in a tupperware container. The lettuce mix I buy lasts two weeks this way!!!! The key is to reduce moisture and air that get to them.
  • wham55
    wham55 Posts: 44
    always!!! its the onnly way i eat lettuce, pepper, etc!!
  • angiechimpanzee
    angiechimpanzee Posts: 536 Member
    Yes, but some times I use lemon juice on celery and other greens like lettuce. I use pepper on cucumbers and occasionally i use hummus on carrots. But plain is fine too.
    Lemon juice! That actually sounds really good, I've never thought of that.
  • buzzcogs
    buzzcogs Posts: 296 Member
    I do a lot of different things to get my veggies in (including cooking them because I tend to like cooked veggies better than raw). I've dipped them in lowfat ranch, peanut butter, and hummus. I make a salad and use low-cal dressing on them and I've chopped them small and mixed them with tuna and low-cal dressing. I'm not a big fan of plain veggies though I try. I probably eat too many baby carrots (although I don't really enjoy them unless I dip them in something) because they are so readily available and are nutritious and easy to pack for lunch.

    I like your idea of "sneaking" in extra bites of raw veggies. I will try it. The next couple of weeks are really stressful until I finish my school but once school is done and before Christmas I'd like to try a week of "eating raw" and eat mostly raw vegetables and fruits for a week to sort of "reset" my tastebuds and get used to raw.

    I grew up not realizing that you didn't have to smother veggies with cheese sauce! (Although I've taught my children differently it's been hard for me to unlearn this!)
  • cma17
    cma17 Posts: 56 Member
    My Bf drives me crazy I buy a 1 kilo bag of carrots and the entire bag is gone before the weeks end and before I use any for cooking. I should be grateful carrots are cheaper than chocolate. He will also eat raw onions, mixed veg, broccoli, cabbage, parsnips occasionally potatoes and Kumara (the last two I find a bit strange) but carrots are is fav.
  • myth4ever
    myth4ever Posts: 372
    I love my veggies raw....

    especially when I make salads. I don't even use dressing. If I use a lot of spinach, especially of the bitterness. I will just put some pepper and squeeze some lemon juice. That dilutes it.

    I have a problem using dressing. If I am going to pour gobs of dressing over my salad, based on the fat and calories, I might as well have a nice juicy hamburger. Some people will go for the lite dressing or fat free but what makes up for the calories and fat is the sodium that is in those dressings.


    this^^^^^
  • Awkward30
    Awkward30 Posts: 1,927 Member
    I ate an entire bag of baby carrots, plain, in one sitting, once. I have to admit I didn't really want to eat the last serving, but it was more a point of pride at that point...

    I like some veggies plain and raw: carrots, celery, broccoli... my salads typically involve an obscene amount of veggies, some meat, and vinegar/vinaigrette if I need more fats. I like veggies :)

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