Vegetarian advice!

chelso0o · January 2012

Hi folks,
I have decided that over the next couple of weeks that I am going to try out an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet (not diet as in crash diet... but diet as in way of eating, ya dig?). I feel that on the whole, that I am not incorporating enough fruits and vegetables in my diet, and this would be the *perfect* opportunity for me to leave my comfort zone and really get creative with my food.

What I need is help. I need to know what you guys eat on the regular? What are your staples and go-to foods? What do you avoid like the plague? I'm not averse to anything "veggie" or "vegetarian friendly" like tofu, quinoa, textured soy protein, lentils etc. So, any recipes or product recommendations would be a HUGE help! Also, any websites or cookbooks would also help! Thank you!!!!

mschold · January 2012

It's great that you are thinking of going veggie! I'm not a vegetarian anymore, but was for ten years and really felt healthy. I would take some time to read through vegetarian nutrition sites to make sure that you're not substituting simple carbs and cheese for meat. Make sure you are eating a lot of fresh veggies, complex carbs and getting enough protien from a variety of sources, including beans, grains, nuts, seeds, eggs, etc.

There are great meat "substitutes" out there, but I would advise steering clear of them until you've lost the taste for "real" meat.

The best advice I ever got was that just because it doesn't have meat doesn't mean it is healthy. Nachos, onion rings, and french fries are all vegetarian, but they are not your best choices.

Good luck!

Alisi1234 · January 2012

I was a vegan for awhile and felt amazing!
I found a 12 bean mix at Costco. I make it like directions say but I add WAYYYY more veggies, plus carrots and whatever else I have laying around and I use vegetable broth. I actually made it tonite! Soooo great and super healthy!

mamagooskie · January 2012

I eat lots of different stuff......I'm vegan and there is too many things to list for meal ideas and recipies that I like to make, but if you want to friend me and peek at my diary feel free!!

LoniS · January 2012

Recipe website: http://vegweb.com/index.php?action=recipecategories

hollowdoll · January 2012

Hello there!
I'm a vegetarian and former vegan. I have several vegan cookbooks but this won't help as you are lacto-ovo... a good idea would be to ask and find out who on your friend list is a veg-head, then dig into their food diaries... I am the only vegetarian in my house (plus I have school and work) so I don't find myself cooking too many grand recipes... people wonder how I get all my protein without meat, but I meet my requirement every day without it. Greek yogurt is a great source of protein for vegetarians, it has about 15 grams in a 6 ounce serving... plus you eat eggs, too.. and you can make almost any recipe that calls for meat with firm tofu or wheat protein chunks... (health food stores and fancier grocery stores are great for having this stuff, as well as entire aisles dedicated to vegetarian / vegan fare)... although shopping in a regular super-market works for me... as far as "meat" substitutes go, boca burger, morningstar farms chik'n patties, and smart dogs (hot dogs) are my personal favorites... boca even makes "meat crumbles" that are great for spaghetti sauces, sloppy joes, tacos, hamburger helper, and anything else that calls for ground beef... and it has wayyy less fat and calories than the real thing! and morningstar farms makes everything you could want, from corn dogs to bacon to frozen dinners (I like the riblets and sweet 'n sour chik'n) amy's kitchen makes great frozen stuff too, like pizzas and burritos and non-college-student sounding fare..... obviously I don't have time to cook a lot, so I depend on some of these things several times a week... not very creative, but its good to know you have easy options available should you need a quick meal... but don't forget the mainstay of the vegetarian diet: vegetables! oh yeah, mushrooms are a great meat sub, too... trust me: you will find a million and one ways to cook a vegetable!
I ordered all my veg. cookbooks off of amazon... they have a great selection and if you go with the lowest price option instead of getting them direct from amazon, the deals are awesome... I got a $15 cookbook for about $1.80...
I think what you're doing is a great idea not only for your health, but did you know by going vegetarian you alone will save about 100 animals in a year's time? I think they would think its a great idea, too!!
I hope my little 2 cents helps, and if you ever have a question about anything, message me (we are MFP pals, after all) ...I think I have tried about every vegetarian product on the market!! ...told you I don't cook much

p.s. many meat substitutes are really good, some carnivores would have you think otherwise- but I have fooled more than one meateater with a meat sub....
congrats on your great desicion to be a trial-vegetarian, I think you will love it! ...your colon will too...ha!

chelso0o · January 2012

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!!!

I'ma have to check out your diary and whatnot.

calliope_music · January 2012

i eat a lot of:

tofu
beans/lentils
quinoa
brown rice
egg whites
cheese
cottage cheese
greek yogurt
meat substitutes for when i'm lazy

gingerb85 · January 2012

I've been vegan for two years and have never felt better. One of my favorite websites is http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/ and http://ohsheglows.com/.

When I first switched my diet, I totally avoided meat and cheese substitutes for months. I still don't like any of the cheese substitutes that I've tried and would just rather not have them (they taste to "strong" for me - I've never been a lover of the stronger tasting or smelling cheeses). I do love Field Roast brand sausages and their "roast" for slicing and simmering in mushroom gravy for when I need comfort food. I eat this very rarely, though.

My diet consists of beans and grains and veggies with perhaps tofu thrown in one day a week for good measure - and because I love it so.

If you'd like to send me a friend request, my diary can be viewed by my friends. I mainly eat a whole foods type vegan diet with very little processed foods. I love to cook and have started a vegan recipe blog. http://vegancajun.blogspot.com.

caramelbaloney · January 2012

Great news! You'll also greatly reduce your carbon footprint during that time. There's plenty of great advice here, but for cookbooks, I strongly recommend Appetite for Reduction by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. She's a vegan punk cookbook guru (so yes, it is a vegan cookbook), and everything I've made from her books has been yummy. The others are a bit more complicated and less healthy, but this book contains many fairly easy, affordable, and filling meals with plenty of veggies and 100-300 calorie servings. You can view many of the recipes for free on Amazon. Recommended for everyone, not just vegans.

fatwar · January 2012

I would recommend a bit of reading before you embark on a Long term veg diet. There are some necessary nutients that are more difficult to get enough of as a veg such as vitamin b12 and iron. I have been a veg my whole life. The past couple of years I have struggled with anemia. Though there is plenty of iron in veg it isn't as easily absorbed by our body. Iron supplements are hard on my system. Instead, i take a fairly large dose of vitamin c (about 500 2x per day) in addition to making sure I add a lot of vitamin c to my diet to help with the uptake of iron. I have found this helps more than anything else. I would also rcommend combining foods to make complete protiens (foods that together containall11essential amino acids) such as rice and beans, pasta and peas, peanut butter and whole wheat bread. I Eat a lot of salads but I love them. I make it really easy on myself and purchase pre washed and packaged greens, radishes, matchstick carrots, sugar snap peas. I love to add dried cherries or raisins and nuts. I also add a little cheese sometimes or if I have left over asparagus, green beans or beets I add that too. I have found that my favorite dressings (and lowest cal dressings)are home made. I love to add honey, rice vinegar and lime or Lemmon juice with salt, pepper, ginger, garlic, Dijon...any combo that suits me that day. I try to avoid oil based dressings just because I'd rather get my fat elsewhere....like chocolat! I wish you luck. Friend me if you want.

robotabot · January 2012

i've been vegetarian for about a year and a half, and vegan for about a month... here's a few go-to's:

SOUP. i make vegetable stew all the time, or modify tom kha soup: http://www.food.com/recipe/tom-kha-gai-8575 with veggie broth and tofu instead of chicken stock and chicken, and i make my own vegan fish sauce: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-vegan-fish-sauce-130535

a hot dog bun, a veggie hot dog or tofurky italian sausage with some chili beans and onions on top.

tofu scramble with lots of veggies and hot sauce (tastes just like scrambled eggs, but drastically less cholesterol)

homemade croutons! either on salads/soups or as a snack. they're wayyy less calories than store-bought ones if you use lower-cal bread and then you can make them vegan without butter or cheese: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/2648

i made these stuffed quinoa peppers last week and they were delicious: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/1767
i added a bit of pasta sauce on the side too, because i like things saucy.

kale chips: http://kblog.lunchboxbunch.com/2011/08/cheezy-spicy-kale-chips-vegan.html

i love all the recipes on this site: http://kblog.lunchboxbunch.com/2000/02/recipes-list.html although they are all vegan. there are a lot of good vegetarian recipes on the whole foods site and peta site as well. let me know if you have any other questions

it_be_asin · January 2012

I've been a lacto ovo vego for nearly 16 years. Feel free to pick through my diary for ideas. If you ask nicely, I'll even send you some of my recipes.

LoveMyArmyMedic · January 2012

Thank you for posting this! I'm also a new vegetarian and am always looking for new ideas and support. :flowerforyou:

it_be_asin · January 2012

My cooking style is a lot of stir frys, pasta and pasta bakes, salads, mexican, curries... lots of one pot meals with lots of flavour. Some of my favorite dinners are:

Burritos
Enchiladas
Nachos (you can make em with toasted mountain bread, cut down on the cheese and up the salsa to make em healthy)
Lasagne - tomato and spinach, pea and broad bean
Eggplant pasta bake
Spicy pastas - tomato, zucchini, broccoli
Italian spinach and ricotta dumplings in tomato sauce
Italian stuffed mushrooms with tomato sauce
Japanese curry
Thai Yellow / Massaman Curries
Vegetarian oyster sauce noodle and vege stir frys
and I made a new good meal for the rotation last night - Vegan Japchae!

There are so many awesome vegetarian recipe books and sources, I love How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman - it's my basic vegetarian cookbook. I also have found the Australian Women's Weekly to be a great recipe source - a lot of their recipes have calorie counts. So much great vegetarian food to cook, so little time!

Hurricane_C · January 2012

I'm a lacto-ovo... have been for several years. My new favorite dish is curried couscous with a bunch of mixed veggies. I've been thinking of trying it with quinoa.

fix couscous according to package directions using spicy vegetable juice instead of water
sautee vegetables and add curry powder. Mix together. Delicious!

I'm also a fan of egg whites. I have them every night for breakfast. And Quorn brand has an amazing stuffed "chicken" breast.

There are a bunch of great cookbooks out there or just surf the net

gdonewar · January 2012

Chels', Linda and I have used the Morningstar brand for some things, breakfast sausage, corn dogs, boneless buffalo wings. Yeah, I know not health food but much better for those times when you want to fill the craving. The Morningstar ground beef crumbles, I didn't care for. We went with soy milk for the longest time and I love it as a milk substitute (I thinks its better than milk)but it really increases gas, and that doesn't seem to go away over time. We're not vegans but meat minimalists I'd say, we use meat for flavoring but generally it does not dominate a dish. We frequently fix things like red beans and rice with 1/4 lb of browned ham (4 servings), or we've made pita pizzas with black olives and pineapple. I've also enjoy for a quick meal, northern white beans heated with a little carmelized onion and about a tablespoon of bacon bits, served over rice. Linda can't eat eggs and I'm not a fan so we don't cook much with that. We've not tried the almond milk because LInda is allergic to tree nuts. I'm not a fan of tofu; I think it tastes like window putty. I like tempeh but it contributes to gas like the soy milk. This weekend we had chile verde which can very easily be made meatless and would likely taste just as good-jalepenos, serrranos, tomatoes, onion, pinto beans.

mm3898 · January 2012

I'm ovo-lacto, and I also eat fish. I eat eggs for breakfast like it is my JOB! My advice would be to maybe have a two-egg omelet with veggies like tomatoes, onions, and peppers. You can also make mini egg quiches in a muffin tin with veggies in them. You can refrigerate them and heat them up for breakfast with some fruit.

Pinterest.com has a lot of recipes in the food section, many of which are more health conscious, veggie friendly, and easily altered to be healthier.

I find that I have trouble incorporating fruit and veggies into a meal if I'm trying to get whole grains and protein, I just feel full. Instead, I snack on oranges and baby carrots, etc during the day to keep me feeling full and not deprived. Just a suggestion! Best wishes!

Vegetarian advice!

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