My husband and I love documentaries. This year we seem to have focused in on food related ones such as Forks Over Knives and Vegucated. After we watched them we cut back our meat/fish/poultry consumption at least by half. Food Inc prompted my husband to give up red meat almost entirely a few years ago too – with the exception of a Hero Burger here or there. We already follow a gluten free & dairy free diet for the most part (with a few exceptions for the kids) and my husband can’t tolerate corn.
In other news: 3 of my friends and their loved ones have gone vegan this year.
Aside from the kindness to animals (and truly I can’t even get into some of what I saw – seeing the pig in Vegucated get stunned in the head and writhe around on the floor filled my eyes with tears instantly and I had to turn away) the health benefits make it worth it. Everyone I’ve seen or spoken to feels like a million bucks after going vegan. They lose weight, their energy levels rise, their risk of certain diseases diminishes, they no longer require medications and the list goes on.
I can deal with the adjustment period as I know there will be one, it takes time to re-train the mind. BUT I don’t want cooking to be a chore or take forever. How do you make meatless entrees that don’t taste like side dishes? We love fruits and vegetables and want to go all the way but we are really struggling with recipes for dinner. Truly that is the hardest part. Its not the giving up of any one item… it’s the … “errr, what shall we have for supper today? I don’t know, what do you think?”
We’ve been discussing this for months. Scaling back slowly. Now we’re at the crossroads.
Vegetarian? Vegan? Stay as is?
I need direction. I am overwhelmed. Someone help me!
May I recommend you check out http://www.ohsheglows.com for recipe/meal ideas? She is full out vegan and everything she posts is 100% vegan. I’m interested to see how you guys make out with this challenge! You better document it!
I love meat/mlk/eggs waaay too much to go vegetarian or vegan, but it’s neat to see so many people making a switch lately.
healthy eating requires planning. I plan my meals a week ahead and then go shopping based on what i plan on preparing. when i go shopping, before i pop things in the fridge, i wash and chop my veggies so i just have to grab and cook. I portion out my meats before they go in the fridge, i some times lable the day of the week i plan on making that meal. helps to keep me on track. you get use to it.
I enjoy eating meat but I do like to give it a break once in awhile and feel great when I eat veggie meals so for me its up in the air.
We have been cutting down on red meats more and more, Bacon is a birthday treat. We eat chicken way too much but love it. Need variation, glad you posted this.
Thanks Laura, I saved that site link loved the recipe that came up on the fist page!! Gotta make it over the weekend. (Pasta)
I went vegan for a couple of months (got super crazy sick, but that’s another story), and I wish I could remember which vegan food blog said this, but it became my motto: always be soaking. Cashews for cream sauces, and always beans – lots of beans! It helped me prepare ahead of time, since it meant there was always something that only needed a little more help to become a meal, rather than starting from scratch.
Get yourself a GOOD vegetarian or vegan cookbook. I was vegetarian for a year and it really helped. One that’s not just recipes that don’t contain meat, but that REPLACE the meat with a nutritious supplement. My book also includes a big section on where people sometimes go wrong on this kind of diet and how to avoid that. Tip: Anything that contains ground beef can be made with cooked, mashed red lentils and a little extra liquid.
) Hope this helps!
thanks for the comments so far everyone! we are trying to cut back slowly and be reasonable not overly harsh or critical of ourselves or others. One day at a time!
2 of my fav Vegan cookbooks which I use often are: Everyday Happy Herbivore by Lindsay Nixon, she has 3 but this one is my fav of all 3. Chloe’s Kitchen by Chloe Coscarelli as well is fantastic!!
One thing I had to retrain my brain was to stop trying to make my meals like before…where I would have a main (meat), side (potatoes, veggies) and then a veggie..now a big bowl of salad and spring rolls, or rice and beans with salad is my whole meal. One of the best books I read on going Vegan was by Alicia Silverstone called The Kind Diet – she explains stuff well, how yo should take B12 supplements etc and she has some really tasty recipes. Good Luck
My mom is vegan.. to the point that she wont even eat something if it has TOUCHED meat.. (spoon from one pot to the next) She manages to cook both meat and meatless meals for our family. I personally could not give up meat. But I can also sit down and enjoy a vegan meal.
I’m in the same boat as you! I LOVE meat but wish I could add more fruit/veggies in my diet. Plus I loathe cooking more than anything in the world. I don’t think there is any quick-fix to this…it’ll take time and lots of discipline…it might be worth looking into buying some cookbooks. I think Veganomicon is a great one!
I don’t buy packaged foods, but planning for a week of fresh meals overwhelms me so I always buy for 3 days at a time. We eat at least 2 meatless meals per week, spaghetti or meatless chili are always big hits! I just discovered a new bean that has a smokey flavor, and cooked just with salt & rice is amazing! It’s called frijol de palo, gotta figure out the english name. I don’t know if you guys like spicy stuff but hot sauce always gives a layer of flavor to a simple veggie stir fry.
Funny, I remember a few months ago you saying you could neeeeever go vegan
Well, get used to lots if beans and lentils! But there are lots of ways to cook them that are satisfying as a meal. The other day we sautéed red, yellow and orange peppers with garlic and onions, chickpeas and a quinoa/brown rice/red rice blend and stuck it in a wrap – yum!
I have a great recipe for brown lentils that can replace ground meat anywhere (it’s all in the seasoning!). We do vegetarian chili, veggie filled enchiladas etc. And there are some great veggie curries that you can make, especially with chickpeas and served over brown rice. Lots of possibilities!
i am still not entirely sure i/we can do it. it will involve so much extra work as i don’t think it’s the best option for the kids … and i am SO stressed out to no end!!! Food has lost ALL appeal at the moment. le sigh
Next time I see you I will lend you my book ‘The Veganist’. Its very encouraging and helps you to not put so much pressure on yourself and to not stress out. Baby steps! Sounds like you are on the right track already. Remember, you can be ‘vegan-ish’, nothing wrong with that.
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