Meatless Meat Question

i cant eat meat for heath reasons as well .. gi issues. i use to do the fake meats when i first converted to mostly plant based, its a way for people to transition over. now i make all my own foods. i occasionally will have a vegan cheese or something. but to me most of the fake meat substitutes dont substitute well for the real thing. morning star does have some good tasting meat substitutes, but i would rather make my own foods like black bean burger, or lentil loaf which is a vegetarian meat loaf.. if you look at the ingredients on fake meats the list is bigger than my arm.. i have a thing if i eat a processed food i have to be able to read and understand the ingredients which most processed foods i don't. so i stick with making my own that way i know whats in it and I don't end up having a bad flare. gluten is poison to me.. i dont have a choice. it was hard at first, but i have come to love the way i eat. i get to be really creative in the kitchen..

I am a vegetarian for ethical reasons but I still eat the fake meat out of convenience. It's mainly because I am a very bad (and lazy) cook. I love things like tofu, falafel and what-not but I just do not have the first clue how to cook it. While I don't think fake meat tastes very much like real meat (and I wouldn't really care if it didn't), I like the convenience of having something ready made that I can whack in the microwave and use as a main component in food. The high protein with less calories is an added bonus too, plus if I am going to a family BBQ or something I can just take a pack of meat substitute with me so the host doesn't need to cater especially for me.

That being said, I used to LOVE bacon sandwiches. I think the pretend bacon is the only meat substitute I choose for the meaty taste. Some hangovers just won't go away without a good bacon sarnie. :laugh: