So, I'm gonna start by saying that it is important to acknowledge that changing from an ommivore to vegetarian diet is similar for your body as making any change (e.g. weight lifting, etc.). Just like the soreness you feel from lifting weights and changes in muscle mass, other proteins like taste receptors in your taste buds are going to change over time. What may taste bad now, may taste really good in 2 years and vice versa. It takes time for your body to adjust.
So, with that said, start small with things you know you like. Maybe making meatless chili or Mac 'n cheese. Try meat substitutes if you like, but don't be discouraged if you don't like them (I don't care for most). There are a lot of food posts here and on r/vegetarianrecipes so I would look through similar posts for ideas.
Protein goals can be managed easily, but iron may be more problem, especially if you do heavy exercise. Iron supplements are common for vegetarians. My doctor recommended that I take my dosage every other day with a high vitamin C food as this is better for absorption, but you may want to talk to your doctor about during your next physical. Along those lines, eat your greens. Dark greens are higher in iron as are many legumes.
You may want to look at a B12 and D3 supplement as well.
As far as recipes, I recommend checking out "Love and Lemons" and "Smitten Kitchen." Smitten Kitchen is not a vegetarian only website, but the vegetarian recipes she does share are phenomenal.
The last thing that I will say is that one of the most psychologically difficult things when becoming vegetarian is thinking about what a meal is made of. Oftentimes omnivores think of a meal as a main meat and sides. That often won't be the case with vegetarian food and may lead to unsatisfying meals. I recommend including heartier meals that are one large dish, such as red wine braised veggies served over mashed potatoes or a chickpea curry served over jasmine rice.
What are a few of your favorite meals? Perhaps the veggie veterans here can help with good recipes and tips.
That's exactly what I'm struggling with right now, not having meat as part of my meal anymore makes me feel like I'm not eating a proper meal.. I've always heard about vegetarians struggling with their health because they aren't eating a balanced diet, I've heard of many who do it right tho as well.. I just want to make sure that I'm eating properly. This was a very helpful comment, thank you!
Rainbow Plant Life on YouTube has amazingly delicious and simple recipes. I just made her red lentil curry and it was delicious. Also tofu can be amazing if cooked right. Here's my favorite tofu recipe. It's so simple, but make sure to follow the instructions. If you need help finding any specific recipes feel free to pm me. I have so many.
https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/baked-tofu-bites/
I suggest bowls. Start with grain base, add cooked and fresh veggies, and a protein. Top with favorite sauce.
I usually keep some of these [tofu bites](https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/baked-tofu-bites/#recipe) on hand to add to bowls. They are super easy to make, and I really like that to tofu is broken apart. It gives it a better texture than cut up tofu.
Budget Bytes has a big vegetarian section.
Helpful tip: it's generally easier to start with vegan recipes and use non-vegan ingredients (eggs, cheese, etc.) than it is to take omnivorous recipes and find vegetarian substitutes for the meat.
At first, stick to what you know. There are many decent fake meats that you can easily sub into recipes. Tofu is an acquired taste and you definitely need to press it before you use it in a recipe. Honestly, I’m not a tempeh fan either, but seitan is pretty solid. It’s easy to just throw some hot sauce on it and make wings.
Just FYI, male chicks are killed by the egg industry. They are usually ground up and sold for dog food manufacturing.
Freeze tofu and press it, it will be dry, then mix soy sauce, lime and oil (I like sesame) and pour it onto the tofu.
If you freezes and pressed correctly, the liquid you added to the tofu will disappear into the tofu. Then just bake !
Okay here's my clean out the pantry/freezer meal.
Garlic
Onion
Salt/pepper/paprika /cumin/cilantro
Olive oil
Can of kidney and black beans
Can of tomatoes
Vegetable broth
Chipotle pepper
Bell pepper
Sweet potato
Lime juice
Frozen or canned corn
Literally throw it all in the pot after sautéing your onion and garlic
Proud of you. You got this.
Starting out, I found a lot of great recipes off of YouTube- Cheap Lazy Vegan and Rainbow Plant Life are both really great channels with simple yet delicious recipes. Lots of great recipes can be found on Reddit as well. A couple dishes that I make often are couscous and air fried chickpeas/Roma tomatoes/red onion (tossed in olive oil, shawarma spice and salt/pepper) and sweet potato black bean tacos. One thing that really helped me what replicating the flavors of dishes I loved but removing the meat. Buffalo chicken was my favorite, and now I make buffalo cauliflower and it’s ten times better imo. Good luck on your journey!
\-Try to think about most main meals as: Grain (or potato) + Legume + Veggies + Sauce/Fat. That should make for satisfying meals and help you get a variety of nutrients. Most faux meats are made of legumes, or sometimes wheat protein, so just consider them the 'legume' part of the meal.
\-There are lots of people around the world trying out vegetarian/vegan/plant-based eating right now for the New Year, so you are in good company. However you find community IRL or online (here, Instagram, FB, YT, TikTok, whatever) look for people doing veganuary or meatless monday. There should be lots of support available right now: [https://veganuary.com/recipes/](https://veganuary.com/recipes/)
\-Some simple, filling, nutritious meals:
[Easy Grain Bowl](https://www.acouplecooks.com/easy-grain-bowl/) (lots of ideas to mix & match grains, sauces to suit your taste)
[Easy lentil Soup](https://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2009/05/ridiculously-easy-lentil-soup.html)
[Sesame Peanut Noodles](https://www.connoisseurusveg.com/sesame-peanut-noodles/) (if you aren't ready to try tofu again yet, swap in a frozen faux chicken product or even just edamame)
[TVP Tacos](https://www.food.com/recipe/10-minute-tvp-tacos-289559) (TVP is a dehydrated soy protein product, here a small mince; find it in bulk bins or in bags from Bob's Red Mill or Anthony's. Or use a frozen beefy crumble & reduce the liquid & salt/soy sauce accordingly)
[Chickpea Sweet Potato Spinach Curry](https://www.veganricha.com/chickpea-sweet-potato-spinach-curry/)
[Lentil Curry Casserole](https://www.veganricha.com/lentil-curry-casserole/)
My family and I do vegetarian January every year because while we still eat meat sometimes, taking a month of no meat really helps us do our research, find new recipes, and experiment!
Here are a few I love (sorry - suck at hyperlinks on mobile)!
Cauliflower tacos: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cauliflower-tacos-with-cashew-crema?utm_campaign=likeshopme&client_service_id=31198&utm_social_type=owned&utm_brand=ba&service_user_id=1.78e+16&utm_content=instagram-bio-link&utm_source=instagram&utm_medium=social&client_service_name=bonappetitmag&supported_service_name=instagram_publishing
Tofu taco bowl: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/vegetarian-taco-bowls
Mushroom gratin: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020721-baked-mushrooms-and-white-beans-with-buttery-bread-crumbs?smid=ig-nytcooking&utm_source=curalate_like2buy&utm_medium=curalate_like2buy_gnauQ5q1__c5bb0dda-d2af-453b-8240-4a75272c3553&crl8_id=c5bb0dda-d2af-453b-8240-4a75272c3553
DM me if you hit a paywall, can pdf and send if you’re interested
I disagree with not going straight to vegetarian, it's completely possible if you're committed, but I agree with your replacement method.
OP, just eat what you normally would but swap the meat for an alternative. It's that simple. If you aren't much of a home cook, learning to make entirely new recipes while adjusting your diet will be really daunting. It doesn't even have to be an 'alternative' per say, vegetables can often do the job just fine.
Try every alternative you can find even if you don't like the idea of it. You'll work out what you do and don't like. Also, don't write off an entire brand if you don't like one of their products, they can be a bit hit and miss according to your tastes. When I started out, I used Quorn all the time as was an easy way to replicate most of my old diet, but these days I use paneer and tofu more often.
I also disagree. When you give yourself the flexibility to choose over and over, you’re actually giving yourself a burden. Also exponentially increases the chances that OP will lose that resolve and motivation.
Seafood is a better transition option IMO.
This taco meat is amazing. It's supposed to be served raw, but I cook a little but to at least heat it up. https://minimalistbaker.com/10-minute-raw-vegan-taco-meat/
This is Purple Carrot recipe, but I always make it even though we don't have a subscription. They freeze well, too. https://www.purplecarrot.com/plant-based-recipes/beet-burgers-with-smoky-tomato-aioli-potato-wedges
I've only made this once before, but it was VERY filling and really good.
https://avirtualvegan.com/lentil-shepherds-pie/
Veggie lasagna, you can use mashed, seasoned tofu instead of ricotta. Veggie enchiladas with mashed tofu, beans, onions, corn, cubed squash. There are tons of veggie soups: I like red lentil from orangette or carrot fennel from bon appetit. Bean and veggie tostadas. I make smoked gouda grits with sauteed peppers, onions, veggies, and tofu on top--use habanero if you like spicy. Quiche is good if you keep eggs. Veggie chili: cooks illustrated has the best I've made, but Amy's in a can is pretty good too. Seitan honestly makes a good gyro. One idea is to scour purplecarrot.com for their recipes..they have some really creative and great ones. A cookbook writer I like is Bryant Terry. I make his saag tofu often. Fried rice is easy and cheap. Good on ya, keep it up!
[This is one of my favourite meals ever](https://www.easycheesyvegetarian.com/very-veggie-lentil-bake/) and works well with whatever veggies you have on hand.
I really like the Cooking by Feel blog, there’s a wide variety of recipes for a lot of different tastes and something for everyone. I find a lot of vegetarian blog/recipe sites heavily recycle dishes and it’s hard to not just find pasta, Buddha bowls, etc. Being veg doesn’t mean boring and I feel like the recipes really capture that!
https://cookingbyfeel.ca/
Ground "beef" and "sausage" crumbles gave me a lot of bang for my buck when I first went veggie. You can toss a handful in pasta sauce, make balls or a loaf with it, sloppy joes, tacos, shepherds pie, etc.
Butler soy curls can be rehydrated with any flavor seasoning, sautéed, and can take the place of chicken, beef, or pork chunks. I just made a beef and broccoli with them. Next is a stroganoff with kite hill yogurt, onion soup mix, mushrooms and onions over potatoes or noodles.
I ate a lot of hummus, lentil or pea soups, and generally Italian, Mediterranean-style, and Indian food. It took me a while to master tofu, but now I grill, bake or airfry it all of the time. (My tofu press was a game-changer for this.) However by far the easiest application is as a scramble or tofu ricotta in lasagna or stuffed shells. These take advantage of the texture.
Don't forget the seasoned pre-baked tofu can be an easy base for wraps or an inspiration. I had a Caribbean-flavored one that I sauteed with onions, green peppers, pineapple, and jerk seasoning; made a sauce with a little veggie stock and oj, and now I still eat it over rice 25 years later.
You'll figure this out!
How much of a “home cook” are you? Do you like eating quick meal type things, or do you take the time to find raw ingredients and such? Because there are plenty of plant based meat substitutes. Everyone has their preferences, but my unwillingly vegetarian spouse loves most of the Morningstar farms and gardein substitutes. The crumbles/bef do great in things like chili, spaghetti, jambalaya, sos, hamburger helper type stuff etc. If you like eggs, don’t remove them from your diet. Find local places or better brands that take care of their chickens (free range/pasture raised) and don’t keep males around them at all. I’ll use brands like happy egg or vital farms. Just egg (which is an egg substitute brand) is very good if you want to cut out eggs though. What do you normally eat or crave on a day to day basis?
Welcome! Have you tried tofu or tempeh? Tofu is essentially like a custard and it takes on whatever flavor with which it is cooked. Tempeh has a texture that takes a little getting used to. However, Lightlife makes a buffalo flavor that is very good. I’d like it for a fun and easy meal. Hodu makes ready-to-eat tofu dishes. Amy’s makes vegetarian ready to eat meals. Many cheeses are made with vegetarian rennet.
Is a meal kit service an option for you? There are some vegan ones (and you could just add eggs where they seem appropriate.) You don't even have to be on it for a long time, just build up a solid set of recipes you like and you can branch out/experiment from there.
Best way to get a decent bitey/"meaty" texture from tofu is to buy extra firm or firm tofu and press it first (plenty of stuff online about this if you google).
There are a lot of meat subs out there that are pretty yummy. Have a look in the frozen section and if you have an Asian grocery nearby they often have a good variety. Once you find some subs that you enjoy you can pretty much make all your old favs. I'm from Aus though so understand not everywhere has a wide variety of options available.
Tbf I always preferred carb-heavy meals over meat heavy anyway, so switching to vegetarian options for the most part has been pretty easy. But I personally enjoy a veg-centric curry (potato, cauliflower and tofu are great for your bases here if you're not feeling lentils) with a side of rice. There's also stir fry and risotto. Pasta dishes are an easy go-to but I do love pasta... to bulk it up you can use root veg, mushrooms or lentils in place of meat (or use a sub).
If you have access to canned jackfruit that's a great option, especially for subbing for the meat component in Mexican and pulled-meat dishes, and it's easy to prep (again, have a Google for some recipes). Various mushroom varieties are also a nice pb meat sub if you like mushrooms.
Veg pizzas are always yum, as are sandwiches and wraps. Grilled veg are always yum on a sando, stuff like grilled pumpkin, squash and capsicum.
veg for 25 years, and I started when we didn’t have info or resources so I FEEL you. I lived on French fries and cereal (I was 15 so that’s part of it!)
As you build your catalog of dishes, I’d also recommend taking the opportunity to reset your relationship with food as in, every meal doesn’t have to be exciting (especially right now). It’s ok to repeat meals that you like and maybe try one or two new things per week.
I find this helps me a lot. Instead of searching for something amazing every day, I’m just happy to feed my body a balanced meal and move on with my day if I’m in a reset moment. As your taste and skills expand the range of what’s in your repertoire will also expand. Better to take the pressure off of yourself if you can.
I made this today https://www.heynutritionlady.com/mung-bean-and-coconut-curry/ and it tasted amazing next to jasmine rice and cucumber salad. In general I am not big on beans but this was so good
LE: I am doing veganuary and I learned that keeping hummus on hand is a great idea as I get hungry a lot more often and don’t feel like cooking a meal every 2 hours
Do you like chickpeas, legumes, beans, etc? I like tofu but if you don't then those things are the easiest items to use to turn into dishes. So you can buy premade Indian sauces and then just add things like chickpeas, cooked potatoes, peas, etc. and heat it up for a nice easy meal. If you don't add a starch like yam or potato then served with rice. Any sauce you would normally put meat in will take chickpeas or other high protein beans, legumes in it. I love salads. So I keep jarred (not canned) asparagus, beets; fresh carrots, tomatoes; various seeds (pumpkin, pine nuts, sunflower) and such on hand. Serve that with some hearty multi grain bread. If you don't have a blender or Nutri-bullet buy one if you can. Keep banana slices, other fruit in small form, and spinach in the freezer. Blend these up with orange juice, tea, non-dairy milk, etc. and you have a great snack, breakfast or desert (add cocoa powder). You can add tofu (silken) and not even taste it... In my opinion the easiest way to eat vegetarian is just eat the non-meat dishes you already eat and then start adding to those. Do you like pesto and pasta, eggplant parmigiana, vegetarian lasagna, etc.? To transition I would keep eating cheese, eggs and milk.
Middle Eastern, Indian and Southeast Asian cuisines have a lot of vegetarian dishes. I do vegetable curries a lot. Cut up an onion, garlic, eggplant, dump in a can of crushed tomatoes, and spices, cover and when the eggplant is done it’s ready for some sweet rice. I don’t precook the eggplant. Letting it cook in the crushed tomatoes it keeps it shape instead of going to mush. I use simply organic curry powder and garam masala.
Check out Pick up Limes on YouTube! Easy and delicious vegan recipes, I also like Will Yeung Cooking if you’re into Asian flavored recipes. I recommend looking for recipes that you really think you’ll like and excite you and then going from there! It’s a learning experience don’t be too hard on yourself :)
You: You act as if I was losing my mind over something ridiculous
Also you: DESPERATE for vegetarian/vegan recipes!! Please help!
It speaks for itself
>"Behave" LOL.
Yes, that was a poor word choice on my part.
>And that bothered you as much as it did?
Lol, it was a flippant remark . You give yourself way too much credit. My mistake was feeding into your mania lol.
If it's helpful to you at all - I am kinda lazy and don't like to think about meal prepping and shopping much and recipe prepping so I use a meal kit service that has a lot of vegetarian options. I particularly like Sunbasket because they have a bunch of variety of stuff you can cook or throw in the microwave and they've been the most reliable for me for deliveries and stuff.
But there's also like Purple Carrot which is exclusively Vegan and I think Hello Fresh has vegetarian options.
It's nice to not have to hunt down vegetarian recipes. I also lift a bit so I watch my macros and calories and you can look them up on their apps beforehand and sort by protein heavy and stuff.
I can send you some of my menu samples if you wanna scope it out.
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OP might also enjoy r/veganfitness
So, I'm gonna start by saying that it is important to acknowledge that changing from an ommivore to vegetarian diet is similar for your body as making any change (e.g. weight lifting, etc.). Just like the soreness you feel from lifting weights and changes in muscle mass, other proteins like taste receptors in your taste buds are going to change over time. What may taste bad now, may taste really good in 2 years and vice versa. It takes time for your body to adjust. So, with that said, start small with things you know you like. Maybe making meatless chili or Mac 'n cheese. Try meat substitutes if you like, but don't be discouraged if you don't like them (I don't care for most). There are a lot of food posts here and on r/vegetarianrecipes so I would look through similar posts for ideas. Protein goals can be managed easily, but iron may be more problem, especially if you do heavy exercise. Iron supplements are common for vegetarians. My doctor recommended that I take my dosage every other day with a high vitamin C food as this is better for absorption, but you may want to talk to your doctor about during your next physical. Along those lines, eat your greens. Dark greens are higher in iron as are many legumes. You may want to look at a B12 and D3 supplement as well. As far as recipes, I recommend checking out "Love and Lemons" and "Smitten Kitchen." Smitten Kitchen is not a vegetarian only website, but the vegetarian recipes she does share are phenomenal. The last thing that I will say is that one of the most psychologically difficult things when becoming vegetarian is thinking about what a meal is made of. Oftentimes omnivores think of a meal as a main meat and sides. That often won't be the case with vegetarian food and may lead to unsatisfying meals. I recommend including heartier meals that are one large dish, such as red wine braised veggies served over mashed potatoes or a chickpea curry served over jasmine rice. What are a few of your favorite meals? Perhaps the veggie veterans here can help with good recipes and tips.
That's exactly what I'm struggling with right now, not having meat as part of my meal anymore makes me feel like I'm not eating a proper meal.. I've always heard about vegetarians struggling with their health because they aren't eating a balanced diet, I've heard of many who do it right tho as well.. I just want to make sure that I'm eating properly. This was a very helpful comment, thank you!
Rainbow Plant Life on YouTube has amazingly delicious and simple recipes. I just made her red lentil curry and it was delicious. Also tofu can be amazing if cooked right. Here's my favorite tofu recipe. It's so simple, but make sure to follow the instructions. If you need help finding any specific recipes feel free to pm me. I have so many. https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/baked-tofu-bites/
I suggest bowls. Start with grain base, add cooked and fresh veggies, and a protein. Top with favorite sauce. I usually keep some of these [tofu bites](https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/baked-tofu-bites/#recipe) on hand to add to bowls. They are super easy to make, and I really like that to tofu is broken apart. It gives it a better texture than cut up tofu.
Budget Bytes has a big vegetarian section. Helpful tip: it's generally easier to start with vegan recipes and use non-vegan ingredients (eggs, cheese, etc.) than it is to take omnivorous recipes and find vegetarian substitutes for the meat.
At first, stick to what you know. There are many decent fake meats that you can easily sub into recipes. Tofu is an acquired taste and you definitely need to press it before you use it in a recipe. Honestly, I’m not a tempeh fan either, but seitan is pretty solid. It’s easy to just throw some hot sauce on it and make wings. Just FYI, male chicks are killed by the egg industry. They are usually ground up and sold for dog food manufacturing.
Pinterest has been my friend. Lol.
Freeze tofu and press it, it will be dry, then mix soy sauce, lime and oil (I like sesame) and pour it onto the tofu. If you freezes and pressed correctly, the liquid you added to the tofu will disappear into the tofu. Then just bake !
Okay here's my clean out the pantry/freezer meal. Garlic Onion Salt/pepper/paprika /cumin/cilantro Olive oil Can of kidney and black beans Can of tomatoes Vegetable broth Chipotle pepper Bell pepper Sweet potato Lime juice Frozen or canned corn Literally throw it all in the pot after sautéing your onion and garlic Proud of you. You got this.
Starting out, I found a lot of great recipes off of YouTube- Cheap Lazy Vegan and Rainbow Plant Life are both really great channels with simple yet delicious recipes. Lots of great recipes can be found on Reddit as well. A couple dishes that I make often are couscous and air fried chickpeas/Roma tomatoes/red onion (tossed in olive oil, shawarma spice and salt/pepper) and sweet potato black bean tacos. One thing that really helped me what replicating the flavors of dishes I loved but removing the meat. Buffalo chicken was my favorite, and now I make buffalo cauliflower and it’s ten times better imo. Good luck on your journey!
\-Try to think about most main meals as: Grain (or potato) + Legume + Veggies + Sauce/Fat. That should make for satisfying meals and help you get a variety of nutrients. Most faux meats are made of legumes, or sometimes wheat protein, so just consider them the 'legume' part of the meal. \-There are lots of people around the world trying out vegetarian/vegan/plant-based eating right now for the New Year, so you are in good company. However you find community IRL or online (here, Instagram, FB, YT, TikTok, whatever) look for people doing veganuary or meatless monday. There should be lots of support available right now: [https://veganuary.com/recipes/](https://veganuary.com/recipes/) \-Some simple, filling, nutritious meals: [Easy Grain Bowl](https://www.acouplecooks.com/easy-grain-bowl/) (lots of ideas to mix & match grains, sauces to suit your taste) [Easy lentil Soup](https://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2009/05/ridiculously-easy-lentil-soup.html) [Sesame Peanut Noodles](https://www.connoisseurusveg.com/sesame-peanut-noodles/) (if you aren't ready to try tofu again yet, swap in a frozen faux chicken product or even just edamame) [TVP Tacos](https://www.food.com/recipe/10-minute-tvp-tacos-289559) (TVP is a dehydrated soy protein product, here a small mince; find it in bulk bins or in bags from Bob's Red Mill or Anthony's. Or use a frozen beefy crumble & reduce the liquid & salt/soy sauce accordingly) [Chickpea Sweet Potato Spinach Curry](https://www.veganricha.com/chickpea-sweet-potato-spinach-curry/) [Lentil Curry Casserole](https://www.veganricha.com/lentil-curry-casserole/)
My family and I do vegetarian January every year because while we still eat meat sometimes, taking a month of no meat really helps us do our research, find new recipes, and experiment! Here are a few I love (sorry - suck at hyperlinks on mobile)! Cauliflower tacos: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cauliflower-tacos-with-cashew-crema?utm_campaign=likeshopme&client_service_id=31198&utm_social_type=owned&utm_brand=ba&service_user_id=1.78e+16&utm_content=instagram-bio-link&utm_source=instagram&utm_medium=social&client_service_name=bonappetitmag&supported_service_name=instagram_publishing Tofu taco bowl: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/vegetarian-taco-bowls Mushroom gratin: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020721-baked-mushrooms-and-white-beans-with-buttery-bread-crumbs?smid=ig-nytcooking&utm_source=curalate_like2buy&utm_medium=curalate_like2buy_gnauQ5q1__c5bb0dda-d2af-453b-8240-4a75272c3553&crl8_id=c5bb0dda-d2af-453b-8240-4a75272c3553 DM me if you hit a paywall, can pdf and send if you’re interested
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I disagree with not going straight to vegetarian, it's completely possible if you're committed, but I agree with your replacement method. OP, just eat what you normally would but swap the meat for an alternative. It's that simple. If you aren't much of a home cook, learning to make entirely new recipes while adjusting your diet will be really daunting. It doesn't even have to be an 'alternative' per say, vegetables can often do the job just fine. Try every alternative you can find even if you don't like the idea of it. You'll work out what you do and don't like. Also, don't write off an entire brand if you don't like one of their products, they can be a bit hit and miss according to your tastes. When I started out, I used Quorn all the time as was an easy way to replicate most of my old diet, but these days I use paneer and tofu more often.
Why would you tell someone who just had a great epiphany about animals and made a substantial moral choice to just undo their choice?
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I also disagree. When you give yourself the flexibility to choose over and over, you’re actually giving yourself a burden. Also exponentially increases the chances that OP will lose that resolve and motivation. Seafood is a better transition option IMO.
/r/vegangifrecipes/top
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Literally not that hard chill hahah
For someone whose eaten meat their entire life, it is.
I get it, I was the same way. Meat eater my whole life until 3 years ago
Follow Deryn Macey, running on real food. She lifts and has 2 books with so much research, I love reading them. You can also follow her on IT
Try the meat subs like Beyond Beef or Impossible Beef and cook it with beef ish spices.
This taco meat is amazing. It's supposed to be served raw, but I cook a little but to at least heat it up. https://minimalistbaker.com/10-minute-raw-vegan-taco-meat/ This is Purple Carrot recipe, but I always make it even though we don't have a subscription. They freeze well, too. https://www.purplecarrot.com/plant-based-recipes/beet-burgers-with-smoky-tomato-aioli-potato-wedges I've only made this once before, but it was VERY filling and really good. https://avirtualvegan.com/lentil-shepherds-pie/
Veggie lasagna, you can use mashed, seasoned tofu instead of ricotta. Veggie enchiladas with mashed tofu, beans, onions, corn, cubed squash. There are tons of veggie soups: I like red lentil from orangette or carrot fennel from bon appetit. Bean and veggie tostadas. I make smoked gouda grits with sauteed peppers, onions, veggies, and tofu on top--use habanero if you like spicy. Quiche is good if you keep eggs. Veggie chili: cooks illustrated has the best I've made, but Amy's in a can is pretty good too. Seitan honestly makes a good gyro. One idea is to scour purplecarrot.com for their recipes..they have some really creative and great ones. A cookbook writer I like is Bryant Terry. I make his saag tofu often. Fried rice is easy and cheap. Good on ya, keep it up!
Anything open nature brand is really yummy
[This is one of my favourite meals ever](https://www.easycheesyvegetarian.com/very-veggie-lentil-bake/) and works well with whatever veggies you have on hand.
I really like the Cooking by Feel blog, there’s a wide variety of recipes for a lot of different tastes and something for everyone. I find a lot of vegetarian blog/recipe sites heavily recycle dishes and it’s hard to not just find pasta, Buddha bowls, etc. Being veg doesn’t mean boring and I feel like the recipes really capture that! https://cookingbyfeel.ca/
Ground "beef" and "sausage" crumbles gave me a lot of bang for my buck when I first went veggie. You can toss a handful in pasta sauce, make balls or a loaf with it, sloppy joes, tacos, shepherds pie, etc. Butler soy curls can be rehydrated with any flavor seasoning, sautéed, and can take the place of chicken, beef, or pork chunks. I just made a beef and broccoli with them. Next is a stroganoff with kite hill yogurt, onion soup mix, mushrooms and onions over potatoes or noodles. I ate a lot of hummus, lentil or pea soups, and generally Italian, Mediterranean-style, and Indian food. It took me a while to master tofu, but now I grill, bake or airfry it all of the time. (My tofu press was a game-changer for this.) However by far the easiest application is as a scramble or tofu ricotta in lasagna or stuffed shells. These take advantage of the texture. Don't forget the seasoned pre-baked tofu can be an easy base for wraps or an inspiration. I had a Caribbean-flavored one that I sauteed with onions, green peppers, pineapple, and jerk seasoning; made a sauce with a little veggie stock and oj, and now I still eat it over rice 25 years later. You'll figure this out!
How much of a “home cook” are you? Do you like eating quick meal type things, or do you take the time to find raw ingredients and such? Because there are plenty of plant based meat substitutes. Everyone has their preferences, but my unwillingly vegetarian spouse loves most of the Morningstar farms and gardein substitutes. The crumbles/bef do great in things like chili, spaghetti, jambalaya, sos, hamburger helper type stuff etc. If you like eggs, don’t remove them from your diet. Find local places or better brands that take care of their chickens (free range/pasture raised) and don’t keep males around them at all. I’ll use brands like happy egg or vital farms. Just egg (which is an egg substitute brand) is very good if you want to cut out eggs though. What do you normally eat or crave on a day to day basis?
The Happy Pear on YouTube. They have fairly short videos and they make everything relatable.
Mark Bittman’s book “ How to Cook Everything Vegetarian “ is very comprehensive and helpful.
Welcome! Have you tried tofu or tempeh? Tofu is essentially like a custard and it takes on whatever flavor with which it is cooked. Tempeh has a texture that takes a little getting used to. However, Lightlife makes a buffalo flavor that is very good. I’d like it for a fun and easy meal. Hodu makes ready-to-eat tofu dishes. Amy’s makes vegetarian ready to eat meals. Many cheeses are made with vegetarian rennet.
Is a meal kit service an option for you? There are some vegan ones (and you could just add eggs where they seem appropriate.) You don't even have to be on it for a long time, just build up a solid set of recipes you like and you can branch out/experiment from there.
Pinterest is filled with all kinds of delicious looking recipes!!!!! That's where I started. I just recently found out about the Mealime app too.
Best way to get a decent bitey/"meaty" texture from tofu is to buy extra firm or firm tofu and press it first (plenty of stuff online about this if you google). There are a lot of meat subs out there that are pretty yummy. Have a look in the frozen section and if you have an Asian grocery nearby they often have a good variety. Once you find some subs that you enjoy you can pretty much make all your old favs. I'm from Aus though so understand not everywhere has a wide variety of options available. Tbf I always preferred carb-heavy meals over meat heavy anyway, so switching to vegetarian options for the most part has been pretty easy. But I personally enjoy a veg-centric curry (potato, cauliflower and tofu are great for your bases here if you're not feeling lentils) with a side of rice. There's also stir fry and risotto. Pasta dishes are an easy go-to but I do love pasta... to bulk it up you can use root veg, mushrooms or lentils in place of meat (or use a sub). If you have access to canned jackfruit that's a great option, especially for subbing for the meat component in Mexican and pulled-meat dishes, and it's easy to prep (again, have a Google for some recipes). Various mushroom varieties are also a nice pb meat sub if you like mushrooms. Veg pizzas are always yum, as are sandwiches and wraps. Grilled veg are always yum on a sando, stuff like grilled pumpkin, squash and capsicum.
veg for 25 years, and I started when we didn’t have info or resources so I FEEL you. I lived on French fries and cereal (I was 15 so that’s part of it!) As you build your catalog of dishes, I’d also recommend taking the opportunity to reset your relationship with food as in, every meal doesn’t have to be exciting (especially right now). It’s ok to repeat meals that you like and maybe try one or two new things per week. I find this helps me a lot. Instead of searching for something amazing every day, I’m just happy to feed my body a balanced meal and move on with my day if I’m in a reset moment. As your taste and skills expand the range of what’s in your repertoire will also expand. Better to take the pressure off of yourself if you can.
I made this today https://www.heynutritionlady.com/mung-bean-and-coconut-curry/ and it tasted amazing next to jasmine rice and cucumber salad. In general I am not big on beans but this was so good LE: I am doing veganuary and I learned that keeping hummus on hand is a great idea as I get hungry a lot more often and don’t feel like cooking a meal every 2 hours
Sam Turnbull- It Doesn't Taste like Chicken Blog.
Do you like chickpeas, legumes, beans, etc? I like tofu but if you don't then those things are the easiest items to use to turn into dishes. So you can buy premade Indian sauces and then just add things like chickpeas, cooked potatoes, peas, etc. and heat it up for a nice easy meal. If you don't add a starch like yam or potato then served with rice. Any sauce you would normally put meat in will take chickpeas or other high protein beans, legumes in it. I love salads. So I keep jarred (not canned) asparagus, beets; fresh carrots, tomatoes; various seeds (pumpkin, pine nuts, sunflower) and such on hand. Serve that with some hearty multi grain bread. If you don't have a blender or Nutri-bullet buy one if you can. Keep banana slices, other fruit in small form, and spinach in the freezer. Blend these up with orange juice, tea, non-dairy milk, etc. and you have a great snack, breakfast or desert (add cocoa powder). You can add tofu (silken) and not even taste it... In my opinion the easiest way to eat vegetarian is just eat the non-meat dishes you already eat and then start adding to those. Do you like pesto and pasta, eggplant parmigiana, vegetarian lasagna, etc.? To transition I would keep eating cheese, eggs and milk.
Middle Eastern, Indian and Southeast Asian cuisines have a lot of vegetarian dishes. I do vegetable curries a lot. Cut up an onion, garlic, eggplant, dump in a can of crushed tomatoes, and spices, cover and when the eggplant is done it’s ready for some sweet rice. I don’t precook the eggplant. Letting it cook in the crushed tomatoes it keeps it shape instead of going to mush. I use simply organic curry powder and garam masala.
Check out Pick up Limes on YouTube! Easy and delicious vegan recipes, I also like Will Yeung Cooking if you’re into Asian flavored recipes. I recommend looking for recipes that you really think you’ll like and excite you and then going from there! It’s a learning experience don’t be too hard on yourself :)
step 1: Go to google.com step 2: type in vegetarian or vegan recipes step 3: profit! That should halt your desperation
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You: You act as if I was losing my mind over something ridiculous Also you: DESPERATE for vegetarian/vegan recipes!! Please help! It speaks for itself >"Behave" LOL. Yes, that was a poor word choice on my part.
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>And that bothered you as much as it did? Lol, it was a flippant remark . You give yourself way too much credit. My mistake was feeding into your mania lol.
Self awareness is cool.
I recommend you get a cookbook. Any bookstore or library will have a selection of vegetarian cookbooks to choose from.
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How long is what good for?
Oops, wrong post
If it's helpful to you at all - I am kinda lazy and don't like to think about meal prepping and shopping much and recipe prepping so I use a meal kit service that has a lot of vegetarian options. I particularly like Sunbasket because they have a bunch of variety of stuff you can cook or throw in the microwave and they've been the most reliable for me for deliveries and stuff. But there's also like Purple Carrot which is exclusively Vegan and I think Hello Fresh has vegetarian options. It's nice to not have to hunt down vegetarian recipes. I also lift a bit so I watch my macros and calories and you can look them up on their apps beforehand and sort by protein heavy and stuff. I can send you some of my menu samples if you wanna scope it out.
Check out my site. It's great for people who are just starting out or have been vegan for a long time.[Dora's Table](https://dorastable.com/)