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Post by lmtengs on Mar 29, 2011 20:46:53 GMT -8
Hey, all. Life's been feeling kinda flat lately, everything's just more of the same, nothing new, so I've decided that the day I return from my trip to Cuba on April 19th, I'm going to start on a 6-week trial; I'm going to become a Vegetarian. So that's until May 31st. This is a big thing for me, considering that my family lives on meat, meat, and more meat. I made my first test-run tonight, and I cooked up about 4 gallons of stir-fry. It contains about 8 different varieties of vegetables, not including about 3 to 4 cups of peanuts and a big block of tofu for protein. I'm going to have to put some spinach in next time though, for iron. So, are there any existing vegetarians out there who can give me tips, and maybe some more unusual healthy meal ideas for me to try out? Thanks!  PS: Keep in mind this has nothing to do with a 'love for animals', as seems to be the reason for many young people who become vegetarians. This is merely me challenging myself for awhile, and maybe lose 5 pounds while I'm at it. I'm going to do more running too, to see if that helps with that... |
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Post by Northern Exploration on Mar 30, 2011 7:50:42 GMT -8
Are you going totally vegetarian or still having some chicken and fish? How about eggs?
A friend of mine is vegetarian. We were chatting recently about restaurants and the increasing veggie options. The problem often is the meals in order to still be flavourful often have high salt and fat. So vegetarian doesn't always mean totally healthy and some are really high in calories. This whole thing came up as a Veggielicious promotion is on in area restaurants. Patterned after the Winter and Summerlicious promotions where restaurants develop special menus for a set reasonable amount.
If you are making the meals yourself, it is easier to keep them healthy. Whole grains, beans and nuts become very important to keep as much protein in your diet.
My friend gets some blood test done regularly to measure her health and to check how balanced her diet is. so she can adjust whatever supplements she needs. For a woman, iron is a big concern, and she needs an iron supplement.
After 10 years she still gets meat cravings. Steak being one. Her biggest craving though is for Montreal Smoked meat of all things.
Planet Organic, Whole Foods and other stores have recipes on their websites.
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Neil
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Posts: 7,177
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Post by Neil on Mar 30, 2011 9:51:20 GMT -8
I made my first test-run tonight, and I cooked up about 4 gallons of stir-fry. The very last thing you want to do is cook up "about 4 gallons of stir fry." Left over, re-heated mushy vegetables are nasty. This can't be bulk food. This could be rather irritating, not to mention expensive, for your parents if one person is going vegetarian and needing the ingredients and seasonings required to make it work. It's a lot more work for someone having to accommodate two menus. Some quick tips... Roasting. Root vegetables and non-leafy ones, cooked at fairly high heat in the oven, become somewhat caramelized and very tasty. Toss all with oil and seasonings first, along with fresh sliced ginger and whole garlic cloves. Barbecue. Again, coated with enough oil to drip and flare a bit, most vegetables barbecue very well. We really like lightly scorched broccoli. It's better than it sounds. Dips. Essential, and easy. Find some recipes for things like hummus, pesto, and artichoke/asiago type dips, and eat with whole grain pitas or other healthier breads. Salads. Get adventurous, and combine fruits, nuts, seeds, blanched sweet onion, and tofu, along with vegetables. Not all together, necessarily- one of the most common mistakes veggie newbies make is thinking you have to have a hundred things thrown in. Meat substitutes. Be careful- a lot of this stuff is really rude. Alcoholics shouldn't switch to near-beer, and if you're going to forego meat, it's best to do it without illusions. A common brand is Yves, most of whose products are awful, unless they've improved since I stopped buying them. There are some that are better; Save-On Foods sells a white chicken meat substitute in their meat area that, when barbecued properly, is indistinguishable from real chicken, but I can't remember the name. Some frozen veggie patties are okay, but be careful to coat the low or non-fat ones with oil when barbecuing or they'll stick. Investigate simple East Indian non-meat recipes. Many start with a canned, diced tomato base, to which you add ginger, sauted garlic and pan-fried vegetables such as eggplant. Good seasonings are essential; a masala mix, whole cumin seeds, things like coriander, amchur, ajwain seeds, fenugreek. Simple and very flavorful, but again, your mom might not like the expenditure if she doesn't have all those things, but they are cheaper at decent sized Indo-Canadian markets. We no longer have to cook vegetarian at my house, but the experience broadened my horizons a bit as a cook. |
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Quatchi
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Engineering Officer - CCG
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Post by Quatchi on Mar 30, 2011 17:27:14 GMT -8
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Post by lmtengs on Mar 30, 2011 19:32:27 GMT -8
Are you going totally vegetarian or still having some chicken and fish? How about eggs? Chicken: no. Fish: I was going to, but decided no. Eggs: Yes. Dairy: Yes. The very last thing you want to do is cook up "about 4 gallons of stir fry." Left over, re-heated mushy vegetables are nasty. This can't be bulk food. That's exactly what I did, and I reheated it for lunch and supper today; it was great, not mushy. Luckily, I managed to convince my Mom to join in too. No 'irritations' now. Thanks for those. I've tried Yves' Veggie Ground Round, and in Chili, it actually tastes great. 'No longer'? Was one of your children (I'm assuming about children, here) vegetarian, then left the house? PETA = People Eating Tasty Animals. Veggies are good for fibre and helps keep you regular, but nothing beats a medium rare steak of Cariboo beef barbequed to perfection and smoked on a charcoal bbq. Served with big white mushrooms and Chilliwack Sweet Corn and accompanied with a good Calona Wine from the Okanagan (not Andres Baby Duck). Your backdrop is a sunset overlooking The Salish Sea framed by velvet purple Island and Coast Mountains. Your ambience is the low rumble of a ship sailing northwest towards Campbell River and the far away mournful cry of a seagull. Dinner.. is served... This is what I'm trying to NOT think of... but for me, medium well, not medium rare. The blood's a turnoff  One word: ew. ;D Thanks for the tips so far to everyone |
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Post by Northern Exploration on Mar 31, 2011 9:37:31 GMT -8
I have a natural gas bbq so grill all year as its under a covered porch. No schlepping of propane tanks. If I am firing up the grill I often cook almost everything out there. I agree with Neil about the slight charing on veggies. Partially nuke potatoes, sweet potatoes/yams (both cut in rounds and oil the rack), and even squash rings, and the browning/charing is great. Asparagus is great with lime or lemon, oil and spices then flash grilled. Portabello mushrooms when grilled are kind of meatish. To keep variety up, change the spices and marinades. Use curry and corriander for Indian, cumin and chili powder for Mexican, five spice and ginger with soy for Chinese, etc. Veggie brochettes are great with peppers, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes. Bean burritos with all the usual toppings taste great. Try some new cooked grains like farrow or Quinoa. I mentioned the post to my veggie friend. She laughed and suggested if your system reacts to all the beans and other gaseous substances, get Beano and chewable papaya pills (enzyme in there helps digestion). Not something I would have thunk of . I am not going veggie but have consciously limited my meat intake and have increased vegetables/salads. So I will have an 6 or 8 oz steak instead of 10 or 12  . Also more fish also. Palm of your hand is a good measure but I admit I go thicker than my hand. I also have eliminated anything white and highly processed like sugar, white flours and processed grains. Having colorectal cancer scares with my dad and mom's brother, both help me keep eating cleaner and a focus for me. I am a foodie with many friends in the restaurant industry, so I refuse to accept heathly eating is any less gourmet or tasty. |
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D'Elete BC in NJ
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Post by D'Elete BC in NJ on Apr 1, 2011 6:35:51 GMT -8
...I also have eliminated anything white and highly processed like sugar, white flours and processed grains... hahahahahaha...not ALL white and processed fruits and grains... ;D |
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Post by Northern Exploration on Apr 1, 2011 9:04:15 GMT -8
...I also have eliminated anything white and highly processed like sugar, white flours and processed grains... hahahahahaha...not ALL white and processed fruits and grains... ;D LOL I wasn't talking liquids. I used the LOL at the risk of the wrath of a certain moderator who isn't particularly enamoured with internet speak. However IMHO since the Oxford dictionary has now recongnized some of these new terms, I thought I would try them out in the glow of the QKB trip and see if a smackdown ensues. ;D |
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D'Elete BC in NJ
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Post by D'Elete BC in NJ on Apr 1, 2011 10:13:24 GMT -8
hahahahahaha...not ALL white and processed fruits and grains... ;D LOL I wasn't talking liquids. I used the LOL at the risk of the wrath of a certain moderator who isn't particularly enamoured with internet speak. However IMHO since the Oxford dictionary has now recongnized some of these new terms, I thought I would try them out in the glow of the QKB trip and see if a smackdown ensues. ;D careful...he relocates posts that have said abreviations...I remember a particular Seinfeld episode... |
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Post by lmtengs on Apr 22, 2011 11:54:28 GMT -8
I'm in on my third day of the vegetarian thing now. It's not been too hard, yet, but I must say I've had a few meat cravings... Yesterday in Vancouver I stopped in at the A&W in Waterfront Station and tried for the first time the Swiss Veggie Deluxe burger. It's actually pretty good. The 'meat' has a good flavour to it. I can't say it tastes like meat, but it has the meaty texture that one expects in a burger. I had to stop myself from ordering my usual Italian BMT sandwich from Subway on that same trip. It's a hard thing to do, but I'll get used to it. I've been eating eggs, drinking soy milk (in addition to regular milk), and putting protein powder in smoothies to get my protein supplements, and I've made a few other subtle (and not-so-subtle sometimes) changes to my meal patterns. Being Norwegian, fish is a staple in my diet, and this morning my finger was literally an inch away from grabbing a filet of sockeye out of the freezer when I remembered that I'm no longer allowed to eat it. Other than those few little nuisances, I'm doing well on the veggie-trial so far. |
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Post by lmtengs on Jun 1, 2011 20:29:27 GMT -8
Well, the veggie trial had its last day on May 31st, and I'm proud to announce it was a success  Over the six weeks, I discovered countless new meal options, healthy alternatives, and learned a lot about a popular way of life. I started a new habit of eating 3 carrots daily. (the full-length ones, not baby carrots ) That pretty much replaced my not-as-good habit of chowing down on a hot-dog after school every day. I've started running again, and I try to do an 11km run at least twice a week now. I usually average between 50 and 56 minutes for the entire run. I lost a few belly-rolls, dropping from 175 pounds to 150 as of midway through last week. I'm comfortable at my current weight, and I'm belly-roll free for the first time in 3 years. At Red Robin, you can actually order any of their burgers and ask for a vegetarian patty instead of the meat one, and the taste difference is barely noticeable. A good alternative if you're watching your weight but have a restaurant craving. I've improved my cooking skills, having delved into many different areas, ranging from Chinese to Indian cuisine, French to American. And tofu is actually quite good, if cooked properly. This morning, I woke up, and really wasn't craving meat, but just for the sake of it, since I can now, I made myself some breakfast sausages and a salmon sandwich for lunch. Very satisfying after over a month without them! I definitely recommend the veggie trial to anyone who wants to try something new and drop a few pounds while they're at it. Vegetarian = success! So, what big change should I try out next? |
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. Also more fish also. Palm of your hand is a good measure but I admit I go thicker than my hand.
