vegetarian

bhelmreich
bhelmreich Posts: 254 Member
edited September 22 in Food and Nutrition
I was vegetarian for 9 months my senior year of high school but it became too hard when i moved for college and ate at a dining hall. I've had a full kitchen for the past semester but just did not think about being vegetarian. Then I watched Food Inc., my friend in biology was talking about it and got me curious. I usually only ate chicken or turkey when I was not vegetarian but no its hard to even consume that!

Anyway, fellow vegetarians...I was wondering how you keep your meals healthy (french fries do not count?!?) and get all the vitamins and nutrients you need?

Replies

  • beethedreamer
    beethedreamer Posts: 465 Member
    bump!

    i've only been veggie for a week (have to start somewhere :p), but I'm still trying to get ideas. the past week all i've eaten is quinoa with veggies and black bean burgers. definitely healthy, but so freaking boring. haha.
  • MariaATX
    MariaATX Posts: 14
    Hi,

    Shop at a whole foods type store and buy bulk grains/ beans and lentils.
    Every meal should have a grain, protein (bean, lentil, soy etc.) and a vegetable. Eat lots of fruit for a snack, free range eggs and you will get all the nutrients you need and then some.

    I would drink soy milk for B vitamins or you could take a multivitamin.
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    Basically, we try to include a wide variety of vegetables and make a lot of "peasant foods" which are primarily vegetarian. Many of the things we make are "ethnic" dishes, like lentil soups, curries and roasted or mashed vegetables.

    We consume dairy, so it helps keep everything nice and even. You're welcome to browse my diary - you'll see we're not food purists to the extreme, but keep a nice, balanced diet.

    (edit: i'm not a vegetarian, but my bf is, so there is occasional meat on my diary... just fyi)
  • MardellD
    MardellD Posts: 42
    hey... I am a vegan so if you want you can message me any questions and I will do my best to help you. I get tonnes of nutrients and my food is never boring!
  • lab_goddess
    lab_goddess Posts: 170 Member
    Hi,
    i eat lots of whole grains (quinoa--recent discovery, oatmeal) fruits, nuts, egg whites, and lots of leafy green veggies. If i am having oatmeal or a soup, I add a scoop of protein powder to it. I make my own soy milk and tofu, and i take a multivitamin, at night. I mostly try to eat whole, unprocessed foods. After 1 year of being vegetarian, my triglycerides dropped by almost 100 points. I've been vegetarian now for almost two years, and my doctor is really impressed with how improved all my indicators are...
    Good luck! Feel free to message me if you want to chat or swap recipes, etc.!
    :smile: :flowerforyou:
  • srcurran
    srcurran Posts: 208 Member
    I was a vegetarian for 18 years and my daughter is one now.

    She's in college and she cooks big batches of curry or other meals that are loaded with veggies, potatoes and other filling items with lots of nutrients, and packs lunch and/or dinner every day (things that can be reheated or eaten cold). She supplements with cooked whole what pasta and also brings fruit and nuts. She's actually trying to gain weight (unlike her mother). She sometimes packs whole wheat English muffins and peanut butter, too.

    She's a much healthier vegetarian eater than I ever was. She puts tofu in her curry to give it the needed protein.

    It takes some worth, but she feels it's worth it.
  • srcurran
    srcurran Posts: 208 Member
    I mean it takes some WORK! (sorry)
  • ClaireElanB
    ClaireElanB Posts: 94 Member
    Hi! I've been vegetarian for 26 years, vegan for over 2.

    The main advice I would say is the thing thats easiest to get is protein!!!! The harder things to obtain are Iron, Calcium (if vegan) and B-12.

    If you are eating a variety of beans, whole grains, vegetables & fruit with some nuts (1 brazil nut gives you your daily selenium, walnuts give you your omegas, pumpkin seeds have many vitamins in them - awesome snack) you will be good.

    Quinoa is a super grain - its a complete protein - and easy to make. If you make a batch you can throw it cold into salads or warm in place of pasta.

    Snack on things like edamame for even more protein. I buy packs of frozen edamame in their shell and boil them for 5 mins at night. Even non-veg fiance loves them.

    B12 - a good source for this is nutritional yeast, which I sprinkle on breakfast tofu scrambles or fat free popcorn.

    I also recommend making a smoothie per day with some rice, pea or hemp protein powder, and adding a scoop of green powder (Trader Joes 'Very Green' powder pretty cheap). Just blend with fruit and some water -berries are a superfood and are potent in smoothies. Sometimes I also add Kale for a super green smoothie, and chia or flax for more omegas.

    If you cook in a cast iron pan your iron intake will increase. I buy bags of pre-washed spinach and add handfuls to everything to get more iron.

    I also recommend Almond Breeze - it tastes so much better to me than Soy Milk, the unsweeteened plain type is only 40 cals, and is fortified with your B's, calcium & D etc. It also comes vanilla or chocolate flavored. Heated up the chocolate flavor tastes like hot chocolate.

    In addition Rainbow Light Womens Formula Just Once is an awesome whole food multi, and Amazon has the best price (through a sub company called Netrition).
  • shannonichole
    shannonichole Posts: 126
    I've been a vegetarian for 10 years and a vegan for 8 of those years. I usually end up eating my dinner at work (I'm a chef) and supplement my meals with a diet protein drink when I feel like it is needed.

    If you are eating out (which I unfortunately do a lot), try ordering foods that have more vegetables and grains. For example, if you eat at a mexican restaurant, order a vegetable burrito versus just a plain cheese and bean. At other restaurants request a side of lentils, fresh fruit, or vegetables instead of french fries. Most places have a vegetarian option that is not always listed on the menu.

    If you eat mostly at home try to buy bulk lentils and grains. Try out different "milks" to find one that you enjoy. Shop at farmers markets and discount produce stores to save lots of money.

    Or course, you need to make it less of a a chore and more fun. So buy a good cookbook and try taking trips to local farms to get inspiration.
    :flowerforyou:
  • HealthyChanges2010
    HealthyChanges2010 Posts: 5,831 Member
    bump:flowerforyou:
  • bhelmreich
    bhelmreich Posts: 254 Member
    thank you all :) im so lucky to live in san luis obispo where we have a wonderful farmers market that I will be hitting up more often. I bought more beans and now just need to stock up on veggies.
  • california_peach
    california_peach Posts: 1,809 Member
    My husband has been a vegetarian for the past 23 years and while I occasionally eat meat, I primarily eat a meat free diet. I have a vegetarian cooking blog, http://www.myveggietable.com. I have all kinds of recipes on there. They are mostly lacto-ovo recipes, but there are some vegan goodies on there too. I have never felt that we have not been getting all our needed nutrients or protein.
  • Distancelizzie
    Distancelizzie Posts: 2
    I'm vegetarian and I've found that it's not boring, it's WAY cheaper, and it's easier to lose weight.

    Here are a few "magic bullets" that help me stay on track with being vegetarian, being healthy and saving time and money:

    1. Moosewood Cooks at Home - I cannot stress enough how GREAT this cookbook is. There's a fish section but otherwise it's all veggie, and delicious, and all the meals can be done in a half hour or less!

    2. Trader Joe's Soy Chorizo - or fauxrizo, as I like to call it. This stuff is YUMMY. And it's brilliant in my favorite recipe from the cookbook mentioned above, the North African Couscous Paella. (That recipe isn't the cheapest of the bunch but it IS the tastiest. It's what I always make first for a new boyfriend.)

    3. Some healthy frozen options to keep on hand when you're feeling lazy: Morningstar Spicy Black Bean Burger and Morningstar Chik'n nuggets (Boca burgers are boring, and their nuggets are subpar too.)

    4. V8 soups - delicious, under 100 calories, and a cup gives you a serving of veggies. The butternut squash soup is amazing.

    5. Soymilk - now, not everyone likes soymilk. I get that. But if you're ok with it on your cereal, that's a really easy way to boost your protein first thing in the morning. Just make sure you don't go overboard on soy products throughout the day.

    6. Sweet potatoes - some people in the forum complained that veggie food is bland, and I can see where you can get tired of the same old grain-centered recipes. So.....I always add sweet potatoes, at least when it's chilly outside I do. They taste good steamed and tossed into a cold quinoa salad, or baked (in the microwave) with a little bitter and brown sugar obviously, or grilled. Actually my most recent successful experiment was grilled sweet potatoes and shallots (tossed in olive oil, thyme, sea salt and a little cayenne).
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Feel free to look at my menus. And invest in a good multivitamin (make sure it's vegan -- no gelatin) and cook in cast iron.
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