# Vegetarians...



## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

I want to become a vegetarian because, honestly, I hate meat. It's taken me way too long to realize this but, yes, I hate all meat. Including fish. On the other hand, I really love vegetables and fruits... I'm the only kid I know who liked broccoli before he could spell it.  

That said.. can you guys recommend good vegetarian products?

If I do this I'd especially need microwave stuff.. to bring to school and probably for dinner... plus other things maybe to actually cook (gasp) myself for dinner. 

Is it feasible for a high school kid to make this switch with carnivorous parents?


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## ABetterTomorrow (May 17, 2005)

If you hate meat then switching to vegetarian should be easy. Your meat eating parents wont tempt you the way someone who was having a harder time without meat would be tempted.

Beyond just regular veggies and fruit there are alot of soy and tofu products. The garden brand such as garden burgers have alot of easy to make dinner and lunch options. They are in the frozen food section in your grocery store.

give an update how you like the switch after a month or so for us.


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## Mork (Apr 11, 2005)

I had microwave vegetarian lasanga for dinner tonight. I'm not a vegetarian, but that is good.

Veggie burgers are good as long as your aren't expecting them to taste like meat. Garden burger is a good brand. You can add any topping you might put on a burger.

Falafel is also tasty and something different. There are falafel mixes at super markets although I haven't tried them much, I had it several times at greek resturants and like it.


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## sansd (Mar 22, 2006)

hmm. i'm not sure exactly what you're looking for. meat replacements, convenience foods, low-effort meal ideas, just general food suggestions?

if you're looking for meat replacements, i don't eat many, but i probably eat tofurky deli slices more than any other. i can't say it tastes like turkey, but it can be pretty good on sandwiches.

soy deli hickory baked tofu is also really good for sandwiches (with barbecue sauce).


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

No, not really meat replacements. I don't like meat, but it's my main source of food right now.. I'm just wondering what to replace it with. (As in other foods, not vegetables posing as meats.) Convenience/low-effort foods would be really helpful.

I'll tag along and browse around the supermarket next time my dad goes... just don't wanna end up buying a lot of crap food or ending up eating nothing but lettuce and going insane in the corner of a room weak from lack of nutrients and then drowning myself in a river while singing about my dead father Polonius and other themes completely unrelated to the regicide at hand. You know I think I went off on a tangent there.

To help with changing my diet so that I still am healthy/don't starve, i'll probably get a book like Becoming Vegetarian. Just wanted to see if you guys had any additional advice.

Thanks guys.


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## archaic (Jan 16, 2006)

Mork said:


> I had microwave vegetarian lasanga for dinner tonight. I'm not a vegetarian, but that is good.
> 
> Veggie burgers are good as long as your aren't expecting them to taste like meat. Garden burger is a good brand. You can add any topping you might put on a burger.
> 
> Falafel is also tasty and something different. There are falafel mixes at super markets although I haven't tried them much, I had it several times at greek resturants and like it.


I agree about Garden Burger. Very yummy.  Boca Burgers, on the other hand, stink like there's no tomorrow. I avoid them at all costs.
Amy's is a really good brand for frozen organic veggie meals. They have all sorts of foods, from basic staples to ethnic meals.


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## katie82 (Mar 5, 2006)

my suggestion is go to a health food store and check it out (is there a whole foods nearby?). they usually have huge selections of ready-made (packaged, frozen, microwavable, etc) meals. many have delis too. just make sure you don't eat too much vegetarian junk food - there's a lot of it out there! :lol check out http://www.tryveg.org, http://www.vrg.org, http://www.veganoutreach.org, and http://www.goveg.com for more ideas. a cookbook is a good idea, too - 'how it all vegan' and 'the garden of vegan' by tanya barnard & sarah kramer are two good ones that are geared toward younger people.

for moral support, check out the message boards at http://www.peta2.com. i've been vegan for 8 years - if you have any q's, feel free to email me. good luck! :b


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Okay, well I guess I switched two days ago. 

My dad's screaming mad at me for doing it. Haha. Finally something my parents can't control... as an added benefit.

Thanks for the advice, guys. I'm gonna go shopping and see what I can find. There's no Whole Foods near me katie, but it says one's being built eventually... 

I looked around peta and saw some of the slaughterhouse videos, heh, but more convincing are the health benefits they point out.


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Side note.

What's the general vegetarian (not vegan) feeling on gelatin?


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## katie82 (Mar 5, 2006)

most vegetarians (that i've met anyway) consider gelatin a no-no since it is from animal hooves. vegans definitely stay away from it.


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## BMSMA1A2B3 (Apr 7, 2006)

katie82 said:


> (is there a whole foods nearby?).


Whole Foods = expensive!  I'm too poor to be ethical!


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Right, that's what I figured.

Okay.. day 6 of the vegetarian diet.. i'm starving!! 

My appetite has definitely increased. (This is good, because before I would never feel like eating anything.)

After I eat a meal now, if it's a big enough meal, I feel "full" -- which I haven't really been feeling much the past few years -- but it only lasts a few hours and then I'm really hungry again. Probably need to eat more calories or something... and still trying to figure out exactly what constitutes a "meal." I mean, can you have actual meals without eating veggie burgers and other meat replacements or lookalikes? but also without becoming a pasta junkie?

I'm hoping that book I just ordered from Amazon, Becoming Vegetarian, can help me with this. It seems ilke a great book, anyway, from the reviews and the contents..


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## omgnoudidnt (Jan 8, 2005)

Sure you can have a meal! There's meatless lasagna, pizza, veggie sandwiches (like subway...yum!)... I could go on... but reallly, there's a lot out there. Oh yeah, mac n cheese...mmm. Toasted cheese sandwich with tomoto soup...mmm. Okay, now I'm hungry! :lol


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## lostsockmonkey (Oct 7, 2005)

I've been a vegetarian since high school. Here's a list of some of my favorite easy and cheap veggie foods:

Veggie Quiche (freezes and reheats well.) 
"Beanie-Weenies" (Vegetarian baked beans with cut up Morningstar Farms not dogs)
Salads with chickpeas, boiled eggs, cheese, or nuts for protein.
Black bean burritos with rice, lettuce, tomato, cheese, sour cream, salsa
Eggplant parmesan
Progresso brand lentil soup. 
Microwave cheese lasagnas, and mac and cheese.
Veggie stir fry with rice and tofu, or tempeh. 

If you are worried you're not getting enough nutrition, you might want to get some multivitamins that have B-complex and iron.


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## omgnoudidnt (Jan 8, 2005)

Oh, I forgot about rice. *drools* mmm, yes... white rice with mushrooms, peppers and soy sauce. It's da bomb! :lol


mmmmm freaking drool. :fall


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## omgnoudidnt (Jan 8, 2005)

mmmm


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## Drella (Dec 4, 2004)

I used to be a vegan, and I used to make a really good cabbage and rice casserole. Those are great. I love cabbage and rice, though.

If you're just vegitarian, you could use cream of mushroom soup, mushrooms, rice, and cheese to make a good oven bake.

There is a brand of lemon pepper steamed vegitables that I love. I can't remember who makes them, but they're found in the frozen food sections of grocery stores.

I _hate_ meat substitutes, but the barbeque "ribs" are sooo good. I love making sandwiches with those.

If you buy the garden burger "meat" patty, you could top it with tomato sauce and rice, then bake it in the oven.


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## KimberlyK (Nov 11, 2004)

Drella's_Rock_Follies said:


> If you're just vegitarian, you could use cream of mushroom soup, mushrooms, rice, and cheese to make a good oven bake.


If you want to be a true vegetarian make sure that any soup you use is not animal based. A lot of the soups out there seem vegetarian but are made with a chicken or beef broth base.

Many products look vegetarian but have an animal ingredient. Gelatin for example is in yogurt like Yoplait and Lucerne. I have found gelatin in roasted sunflower seeds from Planters.

For more facts on Gelatin:
http://www.ivu.org/faq/gelatine.html


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## omgnoudidnt (Jan 8, 2005)

Kimberly69 said:


> Drella's_Rock_Follies said:
> 
> 
> > If you're just vegitarian, you could use cream of mushroom soup, mushrooms, rice, and cheese to make a good oven bake.
> ...


 :agree ALWAYS look through the ingredients! Really, the best thing (and healthiest) for you to do is get fresh vegetables, rice, fruits, etc. make your own dishes! They taste much better that way anyway.


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## Mads (May 8, 2006)

If you're going to eat meat substitutes, Chik patties/nuggets are pretty good. Most of those fake meat products are just a little too weird for me, but some of the "chicken" ones are okay because they just taste like herbs and grains. They're good.

I've also heard good things about tofu dogs, but I personally haven't tried them.

Everyone else's suggestions have been really good. Definitely learn to read the ingredients on EVERYTHING. It's amazing how the majority of the canned vegetable soups in your average grocery store contain some sort of meat broth or fat. It's really annoying. Progresso has some good veggie soups though. Some of the Campbell's Select soups are veggie friendly too. 

Also, make sure to buy as many whole grain products as you can, as opposed to the bleached white stuff. Wheat bread, brown rice, etc. 

I try to eat a lot of nuts for protein. Sometimes if I get an energy lull, I'll eat a handful of peanuts and it makes a huge difference. It's easy to develop a protein deficiency when you stop eating meat, so watch out for that. Iron is important too.

Yeah, good luck. I hope you're happy with your decision to go vegetarian. It was the best choice I ever made.


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Hey guys, wow, thanks for all the advice!

I'm definitely more vegetarian-aware now. Cheese - apparently most of it has rennen, which isn't vegetarian.. but the cheese I get usually just says "enzymes" and doesn't get too specific. And gelatin is everywhere.. i'm gonna look for non-gelatin yogurts.

And soup is SO annoying, almost all of it is chicken-broth-based or just randomly has one ingredient (bacon, beef fat, whatever) that makes in inedible. I've found some stuff that works though. It seems that soups called "Vegetable" or whatever tend to include non-vegetarian ingredients, but "Garden Vegetable" or whatever don't.

I switched over to whole grain bread and such a few days ago. It definitely seems to fill me up more and the energy from it lasts longer. Peanuts, yeah, are a lifesaver... 

The problem is I made this transition at a pretty bad time--i'm really busy now, i'll be going away for three days for a statewide junior science academy meeting (VJAS) and don't expect to find vegetarian food, i haven't had a chance to get out and really find good meals or meat substitutes or anything. But I don't think I can go back to eating meat and then switch again once things quiet down.. i'm disgusted by it now.

So I'll get back to you guys in a few weeks once I get a chance to really settle in, find better food. Thanks for all the help.

"Now I can at last look at you in peace; I don't eat you anymore." -Kafka


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## yellow53 (May 10, 2006)

--


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Okay.. I'm heating up these Quorn chicken nuggets. They're essentially chicken-style nuggest made from textured mold, mixed with eggs and such.

Er.. while it may not be too natural for humans to eat chickens, it's a little weirder I think to eat mold grown in big vats, or to harvest soy beans, turn them into tofu, add flavoring and texture and shape them. The main reason I became a vegetarian was because it seemed more natural and it made more sense, but most of the food I'm finding is imitating the old food, just with a lot more ingredients. What am I missing? Is it time to become a raw-foodist? Or fruitarian? Seems a little extreme for my third week..


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## michaelg (Jan 29, 2005)

Hey guys, thanks again for the advice. I was just a little freaked out, and kind of frustrated that I couldn't find vegetarian food anywhere.

Going down the aisles at Ukrop's, a huge majority of products contain meat - vegetable soups contain chicken broth, beans have bits of bacon or pork, plus things like gelatin, etc... but the organic section has a lot more than I thought it had, so that helps. Plus I found two natural food stores close by, yum... 

The next step, like dazeerae just said, is to figure out what to do with tofu.. heh.. wish me luck, i never cook anything.


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