General Chat

HI
I have not eaten meat since the start of lent (a test of willpower more than for religious purposes) anyway i havent found it too bad and am now considering never to eat meat again
i do like cooking so not to bad at knocking stuff up but im wondering if anyone has any recipes for say for instance meatballs, burgers etc.?
Also i have suffered from iron deficient aneamia in the past and dont want to go through that again with not eating red meat any suggestions welcome
thankyou
Sharmala.

I eat quorn in things like, spaghetti bolognese, and chilli, curry etc.

Not meat - but quite nice and filling.

Sure must be loads of vegetarian recipes on net, for meat replacements etc. Also like tofu, in chinese stir frys.

Joy

Thanks for that joy i have eaten the quorn sausages and they are really nice, but i was hoping someone had homemade recipes for meat free stuff that i could try to make from scratch.

Veggie Burgers

1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 medium carrots, shredded
1 small zucchini, shredded
1 small summer squash, shredded
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
2 tablespoons wheat germ
1/4 cup shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
1 egg, slightly beaten
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
All-purpose flour
In a skillet heat olive oil over medium heat; add onion and garlic and cook until onion has softened, about 5 minutes.
Add carrots, squash, and zucchini to the skillet. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and add oats, wheat germ, cheese, egg, salt and pepper. Stir in soy sauce and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Put a little flour on a large plate. Make 3-inch round diameter patties with cooled veggie mixture. Dip both sides of patties in the flour. Refrigerate patties for 15 to 20 minutes.
Place patties on an greased broiling pan. Broil for 5 minutes on each side.
Serve on a toasted hamburger bun with all the fixings, if desired.

just got this from googling vegie burger recipe, have not tried it myself, but sounds quite easy to make, if you have food processor to shread all the vegetables, otherwise quite a faff I guess.

Curried Vegeburgers

2 tablespoons oil
2 onions, chopped
1 clove garlic crushed
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery sticks, chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1lb pots, boiled and mashed
salt and pepper
breadcrumbs for coating.

Heat oil in pan, add onions and fry till softened. Add garlic, carrots and celery and fry 5 mins. Mix in curry powder and cook for 1 min.
Add veges and parsley to potato and season to taste. Divide into 8 pieces, shape into rounds and coat with breadcrumbs. Press to flatten slightly and shallow fry for 2 mins.

Enjoy!

Karen x

Thanks for those recipes joy and karen shall try them out.

Sharmala, Went 'veggie' for a long time and I loved it. We did eat fish.

We slowly came off it because my husband loves meat.

We used QUORN in any recipe that would normally use mince, and I like it better than MINCE.... but as I said the men in the family like meat.

We had so many lovely dinners with the QUORN.
curries, cottage pies, pie, meat balls, spaghetti bolognaise.... anything you can make with mince.
AND, I have to admit I found it CLEANER to eat!!
Does that make any sense to any of you?

good luck with your Lent promise Sharmala.

Deanna X

Mac in my family we suffer from very high cholestrol although i havent as yet had mine checked out, but i reckon its high like my parents, so that was another thing that concerned me so cutting out meat seems a good option plus im hoping that ill lose weight i need to lose about a stone ive already lost about 6 pounds since the startt of lent so thats spurred me on lol.

Deanna yes youre right, it does seem cleaner less grease my hubby wont have anything to do with it same goes for the kids they like their meat! so i make their meals separtley.
my little girl gave up chocolate for lent, shes done very well im really proud of her.

hI sHARM,

iM NOT A STRICT VEGGIE BUT COOK A LOT OF VEGGIE RECIPES,


I like veggie lasagne, instead of meat use veggie mince or roasted veg and top with natural yoghurt and cheese,

also stuffed peppers, veggie shephards pie are lovely,


Caz xxx

If you follow a vege diet well and use pulses for protein it is very healthy. I am no longer a vegetarian but was one for nearly 10 years and still do cook lots of vege food now. i was healthy and was vege during my first pregnancy, had a healthy pregnancy and gave birth to a bouncing baby boy of almost 9 pounds. You can live healthly without meat. Good luck to you.

Karen x

Thanks for that Mac and well done. i will go and get it checked out but scared really, my dad wasnt overweight at all and his was still high im not very overweight im 5 foot 3 and a half and weighed 10 stone i need to lose about a stone ive already lost over 5 pounds since giving up meat! so its really given me confidence to carry on.

I'm a vegetarian and I never use quorn or those fake burger things because I don't like them (too similar to meat, which I hate).

To make sure you're getting enough protein, you'll need to eat eggs, cheese and milk (unless you're a vegan) and pulses (kidney beans, lentils and chick peas).

You can also use soya products, including tofu if you like it, but read the labels carefully if you're not keen on GM produce, because a lot of soya is GM. Buy organic fruit and veg if you can, or even better, grow it yourself.

I've been a vegetarian for 50-odd years, and never had anaemia.