best meat substitute for new vegetarians? (Whole Foods, goulash, food, tomato)
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I stopped eating red meat almost three years ago (Ok, I have had it about three or four times). For one month during the Summer of '06 I went completely vegetarian (never felt better). I replaced hamburgers with portabello mushrooms. Whole wheat bun or whole wheat toasted english muffin with a grilled portabello on it. I would use a bit of balsamic vinegar on the mushroom as well as roasted peppers on the sandwich.
sounds good. i like grilled PB then put into a marinade of fresh garlic, parsley , lemon and oil
I have been eating TVP for years. It's probably the closest to meat you can get. And you can use it in everything.
Reading this post reminds me of a little vegan place I go to, when I'm in Palm Springs, called "Native Foods", it has the best TVP tacos, portebello mushroom burgers, and banana rice. That's where I get some of my recipes.
Some of the Asian supermarkets have fake chicken made from tofu, it is irregular and textured like shredded chicken, and I find it very good in stir fry. It usually comes in small plastic wrapped packets, so look in the refrigerated section for it.
Boca products are great, I find that I like most, especially the lasagna, chili, crumbles (these make a great sloppy Joe - just add the bottled sauce) and breakfast wraps.
Legumes are a wonderful source of protein. A lot of the soy products are very high in protein as well. I use the pre-cubed tofu in my stir-fry, a whole package at a time. I love it, but I have to get it well-browned for my preferred texture.
If you want to get away from dairy, most of your leafy green vegetables have plenty of calcium.
A veggie diet in general will give you lots of vitamins and minerals.
If you like spaghetti, you can get the veggie burger crumbles and italian sausage to add to the sauce. I have done this and fooled people into thinking it had real meat in it. I would strongly suggest trying all the brands you can find. Tofurkey brand sausage doesn't appeal to me, I believe it is the Boca brand I much prefer over it. I slice and pan fry the sausage before putting it in the sauce. Add other veggies like sliced onions, bell peppers, several cloves of garlic, and season to taste with some pepper and sugar to cut the acidity down. I make enough to where I eat on the sauce for the next few days since I put lots of veggies and veggie meats.
It really is a trial and error for personal taste. The Boca italian sausage is good done up like you would a sausage dog, grilled onions and peppers on a bun.
You can use the veggie burger crumbles in things like hamburger helper as well. Usually add a bit of spice, like pepper or whatever taste appeals to you. You wouldn't believe how far that can go to changing the eating experience. Smell and texture are a major part of eating, more so than direct taste. If you have it looking like meat, smelling like meat, and feeling like meat ... chances are you can fool the person into thinking it is meat.
I have always been partial to soy burgers over real beef, even when I was carnivorous little boy. They were cheaper back then! Now with the 'health' kick people are on, soy patties have gone way up in price from the good old days. But I will take the price for all the variety, and better tasting products that we have today. Some of the veggie chicken and steak strips are quite good. Especially if cooked and served as you would the real thing. The steak strips seem to have a meat-texture to them, and dipped in A-1 sauce is quite good, but probably better served with something else for one who is more accustomed to the real thing. I have been an herbivore for nearly two years now.
I love the Boca grilled patties, and the crumbled meat substitute, but are really expensive! Also seitan (wheat product) if cooked correctly tastes very similar to meat. Just can't get used to tofu. My sister cooks it so is edible, she sautees it somehow (is strictly vegan). Also, want to try the mushrooms. Saw a good grilled recipe the other day on a cooking show.
Tempeh is soybean based and can be amazing---a little easier on the stomach than tofu. Watch out for fast food veggie bergers--can have lots of salt & weird fats, but Boca Burgers and grilled, marinated (firm) tofu are great vegan BBQ treats. Look for calcium in green leafys and have fun testing out with soy yogurts, cheeses and nut butters.
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