Vegans, esp. males, need your input on what (non-soy?) to fe

BlueLikeJazz · August 2010

I've finally come to the conclusion that I can no longer purchase or prepare animal foods for my husband (I've already stopped eating them myself). When I first switched over and my husband thought I was ridiculous for doing so, I knew he wouldn't touch a lot of my vegan foods. Now he's getting used to the idea and likes to sample from my meals.

My guilty conscience is weighing heavy on me for continuing to buy him the (meaty) foods that he enjoys, so I've decided that after we use up what's already in the house, I'm no longer going to buy or prepare any meats. I would also like to completely stop buying eggs/dairy, but my problem is the whole soy issue: I feel like there are so many mixed messages regarding males and the consumption of soy products. We plan on trying for a baby within the next 4 years, and I don't want to be pumping him full of soy if it's going to lower his sperm counts.

-Does anybody have a reliable, impartial source that either confirms or debunks this information?
-Vegan males, do you still eat soy? How much? If not, do you have any non-soy meat-like suggestions? I think beans, lentils, and seitan as the main source of protein will probably run my husband down pretty quickly. He's going to want some sort of meat substitute. Maybe I'll just have to be a more creative chef?

CorinneH · August 2010

I'm vegan and I'm always looking for more ways to get protein that isn't from soy to be more balanced, there are so many different combinations you can come up with that can give you a lot of variety. You should check out some good cook books for inspiration and information - "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Bittman has a really decent high protein section, you should check it out! My boyfriend isn't a vegan but we do not have meat in the house and he loves all the recipes I've tried out of that so far.

Good luck!!!

kickitlarson · August 2010

I recently switched my husband over to vegan (in-house...his work sucks so right now there isn't an option in that department). My husband loves salads so that makes it a bit easier. I don't serve a lot of soy...soy milk here & there for some recipes and tofu scrambles every once in a while. Instead of trying to replace the meat - feature the wonderful fruits & veggies! Quinoa is an excellent source of protein & your body can actually break it all down. Portabello mushrooms and eggplant add bulk and a meaty texture. Bulgar is great for chili & veggie burgers. Beans are good...his most recent favorite is a mexican pizza....homemade tortilla with refried beans spread over top, taco sauce, red/green bell peppers, and onions baked in the oven and topped with avocado. Nutritional yeast for cheezy sauces. Hemp seeds & pine nuts are also nice replacements for a cheese topping.

Some meal ideas...
Breakfast: Fruit smoothie, waffles w/ fruit topping, blueberry muffins, cinnamon apple oatmeal
Lunch: Roasted veggie sandwich, quinoa & bean burrito, taco salad
Dinner: start with salad or veggie soup so you get a head start & fill up early instead of wondering whats missing when the main course comes without meat.
spaghetti squash w/ sauce, mexican pizzas, veggie enchiladas, veggie burgers & spicy fries, CURRY!!
Snacks: hummus w/ veggie sticks, nuts, chips & salsa, fruit popsicles, granola/fruit & nut bars

here are some of my recipes: http://www.food.com/cookbook/vegan-yum-yums-278123
And some of his favorites so far: http://www.food.com/cookbook/tried-tasty-vegan-raw-278121?bookid=278121&ls=h

BlueLikeJazz · August 2010

Thank you both for the suggestions. I think the reason I get a little hung up on the protein thing is because I do not cook grains for myself. I eat 2-3 servings of vegetables and 1-2 servings of tofu, tempeh, seitan, beans, lentils, etc. at my main meals. I kind of forget that since I'll be cooking grains for him, he'll be getting protein from those, so getting enough protein without soy products probably won't be as big of an issue as it would be for me, since I don't eat a lot of grains (except on sushi day, love me some vegan sushi).

I have the Veganomicon cookbook, which has soy-free recipes, so that should help me get started. Once I get some good staple recipes mastered, we should be smooth sailing. That Mexican pizza sounds awesome, he'll love that! This all will help me to be a more creative chef and break out of my own personal routine of just steaming/sauteeing vegetables and throwing a slab of seitan or tofu on my plate lol.

Also, I checked out your site, lots of great recipes! For the Thai coconut curry, could one use a can of coconut milk instead?

kickitlarson · August 2010

Oh sure canned coconut milk could be substituted. A lot of my recipes are adapted for Raw vegans so if your not raw reverting back is no problem! Also if you interested we have a Veggie Swap on food.com....its kind of a social recipe swap & its really a lot of fun....here is this months....http://www.food.com/bb/viewtopic.zsp?t=339710 August already started but you can check out what everyone is making & loving and get a couple recipes in your cook book to play next month!!

sgcorrie · August 2010

Hello! My husband isn't vegan, but he gladly eats what I make. I guess you could say he's vegan at home? Anyways, we rarely have soy based products due to an extreme budget and so far, no complaints!

That being said - some daily meal (protein!) components:

Seitan in ANYTHING
beans (chili, bowls, stirfries)
Hummus anything.
Lentils. He's type 1 diabetic and apparently lentils are amazing for blood sugar control, so we've been eating them a lot and he hasn't tired of it yet.
Peanut butter.

Some of his favorite meals:

Red Lentil Dal from the Bittersweet blog (I would link, but I can't find it right now. I can PM you the recipe if you'd like!)
Get Sconed! lower fat version of New Farm Mac (can easily be made soy free!). I always always add broccoli. http://letsgetsconed.blogspot.com/2007/03/new-farm-mac-and-cheez.html
Bowls that include a grain, a protein and veggies. He's very adaptable.
Chickpea cutlets from Veganomicon
Black Bean Burgers from V'Con
Joanna's nuggets http://www.joannavaught.com/2009/08/27/nuggets/

Also the magic loaf studio is AMAZING, and you can use up odds and ends. http://www.veganlunchbox.com/loaf_studio.html

While I'm happy to eat the same thing over and over again, he gets bored easy, so I try something new each week.

Vegans, esp. males, need your input on what (non-soy?) to fe

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