VEGANS!

[noxious.sunshine]

Have you ever tried going vegan!? Like eating crap like Soyrizo and Tofurkey?

Today, I made totally vegetarian eggplant lasagna (using sliced eggplant for the noodles instead of actual noodles) and on a whim I bout the "ground beef" tofurkey (omg that word needs to be illegal)... I sauteed it according to package directions, tasted it like I do with everything else, and holy chuck was it bad. It tasted like Begg'n Strips dog treats (yes, I've tried Begg'n Strips. When I was little. My brother dared me. I still remember it) or something else related to dog food.

But my sauce was so chock full of a ton of veggies, I threw it in anyway. Thank goodness it was a minimal amount compared to the other components so we couldn't even really taste the whateverthefuhhhhhh that ground up soy by-product was.

Also... The lasagna turned out ok, but I dried out the eggplant slices as best as I could and the whole she-bang still turned out hella watery. It actually tastes pretty good ('cuz I used real cheeses instead of that crazy Vegan cheese), but I think I'd have been better off just using regular tofu for added substance.

And I had planned on making a meatless 3-bean chili tomorrow, but it's not gonna happen 'cuz he likes meat too much and actually -does- need it to fill him up 'cuz of his issues with keeping weight on.

I actually am making a conscious effort to have at least 2 days/nights a week eating meat-free. Not vegan 'cuz that's just pushin' it. I mean, I -do- love veggies a lot and I like grabbing stuff from the produce section that I've never cooked with and experimenting and trying new things, but it's also kind of an effort to get my boyfriend to eat more veggies too. Which isn't too much of a problem 'cuz he eats whatever I put in front of him, but whatever.

So do y'all ever go meat-free for like dinner as a main course? If so, what do you make? And then the vegan question. XD

[Shorty]

I was a pescetarian for a while a few years ago (I began classifying myself as a vegetarian because I got tired of explaining what it was all the time). If you're eating meat all the time, every day, it can be hard to cut it out. I went cold turkey and didn't bother with a transitional phase like some people do but my god, I got cheeseburger cravings so badly. Boca burgers are just not the same.

I did start transitioning out of pescetarianism, though, because eating meat would make me absolutely sick to my stomach, and I didn't eat much of it or eat it often at all because of how sick it made me. Eventually I went to a sort of plan where I would eat vegetarian breakfast and lunch and include some meat with my dinner, which was what I came here to suggest if you are trying to be more veg-conscious.

There are some vegan/vegetarian members on this forum who probably have some great ideas, but everything about the world of veg is at your fingertips with google! There are so many damn good vegetarian recipes, and two of the biggest things I was introduced to that I had never used before was polenta and couscous. They fill you up and are so workable with any sort of dish. I would suggest playing around with recipes for stuffed mushrooms, stuffed peppers, stuffed tomatoes, pitas, sandwiches, pizzas, pies. I know how much you love Mexican - you can totally tailor Mexican recipes to be vegetarian-specific and still taste amazing.

It's all really about just making small tweaks to your meal and substituting things for the meat, forcing you to get a little more creative with your meals. This is the first search that I did and some of the recipes look absolutely wonderful - 100 Vegetarian Meals - Cooking Light.

[Chris]

Once, I purposefully lied to a friend about using any kind of meat in my lasagne. Naturally, he got meat every time he visited.

[Shorty]

Are you making a gay joke? I can't tell.

[Chris]

How cocky of you.

[noxious.sunshine]

Hehe I'm not totally phasing out meat, just going meatless a couple nights a week. I do cheese and onion enchiladas fairly often, actually.

[Shlup]

Tofu meats are nasty. Textured vegetable protein is a far better substitute for ground beef.

Here's my own recipe for vegan chili:
2c beans (either canned or, if you get dry, you have to soak them for 24 hours--I get a mix of beans, but mostly kidney because I like them)
1 tbs olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped,
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 oz diced green chili peppers (I get canned)
6oz tomato paste
28oz diced tomatoes
2tbs vegetarian bouillon mix
1/2c lentils
1c textured vegetable protein
1tsp cumin
1.5tsp paprika
1/2tsp thyme
1/2tsp sage
1tsp oregano
cayenne pepper to taste

1) Saute onion and bell pepper in olive oil for about 3 minutes.
2) Add all the spices; stir over med-low heat for about 3 minutes.
3) Put everything in the crock pot with about 5c water; cook on high 5 hours.

[Mirage]

I'm vegetarian about 2-3 times a day. Breakfast, lunch, and whatever I eat right before going to bed.

[Spuuky]

There are a lot of vegan meat substitutes that have nothing to do with the pre-packaged "big name" vegan brands like Tofurky. Try just cooking seitan or tempeh next time instead of getting that garbage.

[noxious.sunshine]

I did the vegetarian chili yeusterday! ^_^ I made it with kidney, pinto, and black beans. Soooo yummy. And I made it with shredded buffalo chicken sliders. Teh bf was very happy . XD

[Miriel]

I don't think I would ever become a vegan.

That's not to say that I don't eat food that could be classified as vegan and enjoy it. I'd actually say that a lot of the food I eat is either very close to vegan, or can be made vegan with minimal changes. It's just that I really really love lots of non-vegan stuff and I would hate to cut that stuff out completely.

I do really really love tofu. It's one of my favorite things.

I generally have a better time with foods that happen to be vegan, rather than foods specifically made for vegans to imitate non-vegan food. Like, kale salad? YUM! Fake chicken meat? Noooooo.

[noxious.sunshine]

Hahaha yeah I agree

I'm on day 4 of not eating meat, actually (aside from a chicken slider on Sunday) & I've already lost 7 lbs. And that's also not eating bread.

[Pete for President]

I started thinking about becoming vegetarian about 7 months ago. After 2 months of cutting down the meat-consumption (first 3 days a week vegetarian, then 4, then 5) I moved to New Zealand and losing the last two days came easy with a change as big as this one.

Been pretty much meat-free since then. Well, a few friends' diners aside since I don't like being the guy other people have to go out of their way for when they offer me to cook me food. People who've known me for a while make sure they cook vegi stuff though.

One of my favourites:

Get pesto, pasta, broccoli, walnuts and cheese.

Boil the pasta and broccoli, chuck it in a frying pan afterwards. Add the rest. Stir. Salt and pepper the whole thing. Supereasy, done in 15 minutes and it's awesome

[noxious.sunshine]

XD

My bf told me this morning that he can't wait for tomorrow to get paid so that he can go eat something with meat in it ... And I was like ".... Dude... I have chicken and ground beef and chorizo in the fridge."

He nearly died.

[Shiny]

I eat vegan pizza since it's non-dairy cheese. I can't deal with real dairy products in bulk. The pizza is called V for Vegan and you can get it at some hipster place on 45th and 9th in New York.