trying to go vegetarian, what are your favorite dishes?

Hi everybody!!

so ive never been a HUGE fan of meat to start with, so i thought i really wanna get my butt in gear and get healthy, working out, eating better etc. I have always thought about being a vegetarian and i feel nows the time for me!

looking for some fun and tasty recipes to try out, can you tell me what your favorites are? :)

thanks so much,

Vikki

Replies

  • lilalief
    lilalief Posts: 76 Member
    there are tonnes. I love grilled veggies, several pastas (my fav: cannelloni with eggplants), quiches, burritos. The list is never ending :) There are so many vegetarian meat varieties that you can basically eat all the meat dishes you love and replace the meat with the vegetarian 'meat'.
  • Tofu stir fry! It's AMAZING.
    You can also buy ready made vegetarian products (Quorn, veggie burgers etc). I like adding roasted/boiled veggies as a side, or adding "chicken" pieces in place of real chicken c:
    There's lots of healthy, vegetarian websites that do a lot of dishes/recipes too.
  • PartyKardy
    PartyKardy Posts: 172 Member
    BURRITOS! I honestly just add beans (black beans, kidney beans, vegetarian refried beans, etc) and salsa and maybe some lettuce on top and viola delicious!

    I also really love breakfast pizza and how I make mine is I take...another tortilla haha, I scramble an egg, and then I buy those steamer packs with veggies and cheese and put that on top and maybe a little tomato or salsa to add some taste...it is devine!

    I'm a vegetarian, so you can add me or go look at my diary if you want :)
    Happy cooking!
  • hazeljordan1974
    hazeljordan1974 Posts: 107 Member
    Fajitas! I make mine with Quorn steak strips (although if you really do hate anything even mimicking meat you can use mushrooms instead).

    For 2 fajitas (which is filling enough for me and comes in at 547 kcals):-
    2 x Mission foods Deli Wrap original (although you can probably find lower calorie wraps)
    5 squirts of 1 cal sunflower oil spray
    10g chilis
    59g Quorn steak strips (or mushrooms)
    175g peppers (I use a mix of colors because it looks more appetizing)
    75g Onion
    a sprinkling of Schwartz Perfect shake season all*
    a sprinkling of red chili powder*
    a few drops of Tabasco* (add more if you like them hot, less if you don't)

    Chop the onions, chilis and peppers
    Heat up a big pan or wok - add the oil spray
    First add the Quorn (if you are using mushrooms add them last)
    Then add the onion, then the chilis and then the peppers. Keep stirring them and then add the seasoning. I like my peppers a little al dente, keep cooking them until they are the way you like.
    Put the fajitas in the microwave for about 20 seconds.
    The whole thing including prep takes about 30 minutes.
  • AHHH! you've asked in the right time. I just became vegetarian 2 weeks ago , because i was so inspired by my mom and my bestfriend. and you'll see progress just in two weeks! i normally eat grilled veggies, soup, salads, falafel and so on! the sad part is that u will still have like 500 calories left at the end of the day...because all foods are low-calorie..:) except for sandwiches /sauces and so on..

    add me if u want to know more.
  • hazeljordan1974
    hazeljordan1974 Posts: 107 Member
    Another of my absolute favorites is noodle and Quorn stir fry. This comes in at 298 kcals when I do it.

    Veggie stock cube (I use Sainsbury's basics)
    45g medium egg noodles
    5 squirts of 1 cal Sunflower oil spray
    68g lamb style Quorn strips (again you can use mushrooms instead)
    140g frozen stir fry veg
    a sprinkling of Sczhwartz Perfect shake season all or whatever you want to season with.

    Boil water - add stock cube and noodles - simmer (they will take about 15 minutes to cook)
    Heat up large pan or wok - spray the oil then add the Quorn strips and 3-4 minutes later the stir fry veg
    Once the noodles have cooked strain away the water and add to the pan/wok and then cook for another few minutes.
  • mmddwechanged
    mmddwechanged Posts: 1,687 Member
    I like this thread because it gives me ideas.

    I often make baked seitan on the weekend then I eat it in Stirfrys, sandwiches, with my husbands steak side dishes( scalloped potatoes, fried onions and mushrooms, etc.

    I have the 21 day vegan kickstart app on my phone that has a delicious lentil cous cous curried soup recipe that I also make about once a week. I use cous cous or quinoa.

    I love curry and often make Chana masala or lentil curry. I also have a butter chicken recipe that I love that gas peanut or almond butter in it (from Canadian Living magazine).
    I serve curry with brown basmati rice usually.
    Roasted veggies, ratatouille, Mac and cheese ( made with cheese or with a nutritional yeast recipe)

    Kale or broccoli with cashews.
  • romyhorse
    romyhorse Posts: 694 Member
    My favourite meal is risotto with cumin roasted butternut squash. Delish!
  • pittbullgirl
    pittbullgirl Posts: 341 Member
    I'll be watchng this thread since i dont eat alot of meat :)
    I LOVE blackbean burgers, chilli, soups and grilled veggies as my favs.
  • emily_ebooks
    emily_ebooks Posts: 55 Member
    Caprese salad, tofu stir fry, and basically any kind of vegetarian meat substitute (like grilled chick'n or whatever) on salads.
  • painauxraisin
    painauxraisin Posts: 299 Member
    Any veggies (I use broccoli, cauli; peas beans) boiled until softish then add some coconut cream (you can get low fat) and a couple of tablespoons of any spicy marinade. Toss together and serve with rice.
  • feebz36
    feebz36 Posts: 32 Member
    chilli...

    Green lentils
    onion
    garlic
    chilli
    chili powder, cayenne pepper, wee bit of cumin ground up, smoked paprika, oregano, salt and pepper.
    tomatoes, canned, fresh or what ever you fancy plus a wee bit of tomato puree (makes it richer)
    kidney beans ( i use canned, rinse before use)
    baby corns
    peppers

    I have not put down measurements as you can make as much as you like.

    1.The idea is you cook the onions with the lid on to make them sweat, untill softened.

    2.Add the garlic and fresh chilli, cook untill the garlic is softened and the onions are a bit browned.

    3.Chuck in the spices, you should be heaviest with the chilli, then cumin, then oregano, smoked paprika, cayenne then salt and pepper... you will get the hang of how much heat and smoke you like over time.

    4.Give the spices a wee toast with the onion mix, then chuck in the green lentils.

    5. if you are using a can of tomatoes I would use a cup of lentils. Then add in the tomatoes, tomato puree and about 2 cans of water. It will look really watery, but you boil the lentils in there and they absorb all the water and flavour.

    6.Boil it until the lentils are just about done, and the sauce is thickened (you might need to add more water if it is too thick).

    7.Check you are happy with the flavour, adding more chilli/salt etc as required.

    8.Add in your veggies and kidney beans, they really just need a warm through.

    I usually make a giant pot of this as it freezes really well (and tastes better the next day as the spices have time to work their magic!
    You can have this with brown rice, or in a wrap... or tortilla bake, which is like a lasagne made out of the chilli and tortilla breads, baked in the oven with some cheese on top, great for after a long run!!!
    I weighed and calculated everything I put into mine and it comes out at 107 calories per serving, (not including rice or breads that you would have with it) and is very satisfying!
  • vikki_barthe
    vikki_barthe Posts: 6 Member
    thats so awesome!! ^_^ i was kind of inspired by a good friend of mine too!
  • vikki_barthe
    vikki_barthe Posts: 6 Member
    oh my gosh you guys, thank you so much for all the extremly tasty ideas! haha i cant wait to go grocery shopping now ^_^ Mmmmm <3