Becoming a vegetarian
 

Hi all

I want to become a vegetarian and want to slowly convert to a vegetarian but i have a few problems doing it. I have been researching but it's still so overwhelming and i have no clue what to eat for lunch.

Do any of you have some very easy recipes for lunch, something easy to make and maybe something for a 3pm snack too PLEASE??

Also, i have heard about Spirulina and Chia seeds for breakfast, was wondering how do you use them??

Thank you in advance. :smile:

Right now, I am eating a bowl of tofu stir fry. Fabulous, tasty, hits all your food groups.

Any veggies that you love (cook in the order of hardness i.e. carrots first, finish off with the peppers, etc)
Season it with 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp turmeric
1/3 tsp pepper & salt to taste
Use one block of organic tofu, crumbled to bite size chunks

You might find that adding a wee bit of water as you are sautéing it will help spread your seasonings more evenly.

And just before serving, drizzle with sesame oil and mix in thoroughly

(also keeps beautifully, reheats well or you can eat it cold like a salad for work the next day)

For a snack, a small handful of almonds and walnuts (will give you both your omega 3's and some calcium) Add a bit of favourite fruit to that and you're good to go till supper.

Another snack that my husband and I love is a protein smoothie. Here's how we make it using the Vega brand of chocolate protein powder.

one large orange, peeled and tossed into the blender
handful of raw kale, spinach or even a large romaine lettuce leaf
one frozen banana
1 scoop of Vega chocolate protein powder
1/3 tsp turmeric powder & 1/3 tsp pepper
1/3 tsp ginger powder
squirt of hemp oil or flax seed oil
enough soy milk to blend to your preferred thickness
-This is absolutely delicious and will make enough smoothie for two large drinks so you can share!

You will notice that I mentioned turmeric and pepper twice and if you've never heard of them, TOGETHER they are a wonderful anti-inflammatory. I try to include them anywhere and everywhere that I can because I have read that inflammation at the cellular level is a scourge in our society today.


I've never used spirulina so no advice there, but I always add a teaspoon of chia seeds to my cereal just before I pour the almond milk or soy milk on. Chia seeds can also be used to make a sort of mousse or pudding with the addition of fruit and pureed. But that you'd have to look up a recipe for. Chia seeds add omega 3's and protein to your diet.

And congrats on taking a stand for compassion! It's not as hard as it sounds and there are hundreds if not thousands of recipes available now, from simple to complex and the market place is providing more and more options to help you out in the transition and to simply add interesting variety to your food choices.

I was a vegetarian for about ten years and then I made the move to vegan which I did over a weekend pretty much. That was ten years ago and last spring, I had a complete blood work up done and everything was perfect. Perfect protein levels, perfect omega 3's, perfect weight for my height, perfect inflammation levels and B12 levels, perfect. Which reminds me, make sure you start taking a B12 supplement. It's inexpensive and absolutely necessary now that you aren't supplementing your needs by eating animals.

Good luck and if you have any questions, you can always ask here and I'm sure one of us old timers will be more than pleased to help you out. I know I sure would.

For good measure, I dug up this link to a great web site by a vegan lady who does great recipes that will help you get started.

http://ohsheglows.com/2017/02/23/adr...omment-1978180

Thanks Kris and Debrah

Debrah those recipes sound great thanks. I have not converted yet as i can't stop drinking Soda(Coke cola)

Any tips how to convert to a vegetarian?? What is the best advice you can give someone to convert??
What can i drink instead of soda and i do drink water but want to drink something else too, any suggestions??

Thanks

Take your time to convert. Your body needs to get used to it too. Especially the bacteries in your intestins need to build up a new balance between animal and plant based food.

Hummus is very good for lunch. I put it on bread. I make my own. It's much cheaper to make it yourself and then you are free to follow your own taste.

A freezer helps a lot. You can easily freeze hummus in small portions.
I also make bean burgers that I use for lunch. I make them in a batch and freeze those too. At lunch I just warm them up in the micro wave.

You could make a batch of legumes with some easy veggies for the afternoon snack. Freeze that in small portions too. That's what I started some weeks ago. Works great. Kidney beans, lentils, split peas. Stuff like that. Combine that with a baked onion and paprika bell, some tahini and spices to your own flavor. I like Indian curry spices a lot.

Learn to work ahead for your food and freeze it in single portions. Saves time and money.

My husband drinks real fruit juices but he waters them down a lot. Start off by adding only a bit of water and increase that over time. I think the average person is so used to so much sugar that you don't realize how sweet your drink is, but if you work on it like that, there will come a day when your taste buds become more sensitive again and you'd find that straight juice is disgustingly sweet. At least that's been my experience.

Me too. It took a few years, but over time my food started to taste much and much better. I really enjoy my food now.
When I still used meat and dairy it tasted like nothing. It was pretty boring to eat.

Thanks for your reply's

Still converging but it's going good. Thanks will do that with the juice sounds like a good idea!!

Why don't Vegetarians and Vegans dont eat and drink dairy like milk, butter, etc...

What about coffee and yogurt, can i drink coffee and eat yogurt??

Filtered coffee is no problem at all.

Dairy is a matter of choice. Do you do it for ethical reasons or for health reasons.

I do it for health reasons. My butter is mostly plant based. I replaced cow milk for soy milk because of the B12 and added calcium.

Cheese was very hard for me to let go. Very addictive. I had a weight problem. When I skipped cheese my fat dropped off like snow for the sun. Had hardly any need to eat at all. It was like magic in broad daylight.

I decided to make my own soymilk after a while. That is much better then what you buy in any shop. Whether it's organic or where ever. That made it necessary for me to supplement with B12 and calcium. Turned out to be the best for me after all. I had built up a calcium shortage over the years when I still used dairy. By supplementing I was able to solve that. I use a soymilk machine. Started on my second half a year ago.

It's up to you but don't do everything at once. Might be overkill if you try that.

Hey

I'm cutting out fish and becoming fully vegetarian. I can't eat dairy so that isn't a problem.

Chia seeds can be used on porridge or raw soaked oats with a teaspoon of cocoa powder and whatever toppings you desire.

A cookbook The New Vegan by Aine Carlin gives you some ideas for sandwiches if you eat those, mainly based around beans, lemon and other spices. They are delicious!

I've found a recipe to make my own pesto which I can put on spelt pasta and/r potatoes, with added green beans. I will add the link if you're interested.

Spicy bean wraps for lunch go down a treat.

Hummus is also great for wraps and sandwiches.

A basic bean/pea risotto can be taken to work for lunch and heated up (be careful with keeping rice in fridge before heating),

Eggs, if you eat them, provide a good lunch in salad or sandwiches or whatever.

For a decent snack I eat chopped fruit with sunflower or pumpkin seeds and a small amount of coconut or soya cream
Also hummus on rice cakes or gluten free crackers
Nuts
Other biscuits
Dried fruit especially dates

Hope this helps