Vegetarian meals for meat eaters

[meepmoop]

Hello,

I'm looking to save money on our weekly shop so I'm thinking of cutting out some of our meat intake.

We are a meat 2 x a day family so I'm not really sure where to start. We do eat all veg, beans etc

Any recipes would be great.

Thank you!

We’re having these refried bean quesadillas tonight, with avocado and salad. Quick, tasty and cheap. I aim for vegetarian meals at least every other night, and these are a regular.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/725645/refried-bean-quesadillas

Watching for more ideas.

I should add, I use a couple of tins of beans to make it a bit more substantial.

Veggie chilli with the trimmings
Any kind of veggie curry or stir fry

Easy mushroom and chickpea curry -
Fry an onion and a punnet of mushrooms (quartered) plus a couple of chopped garlic cloves.

Add a chopped red chilli, some coriander, teaspoon turmeric, teaspoon cumin or cumin seeds, teaspoon mustard seeds.
Add 3 or 4 finely chopped tomatoes and a drained tin of chickpeas.
Add a bit of water and cook until the tomatoes have softened and started to disappear.
Add a small pot of natural yoghurt, a good splash of lemon juice and a teaspoon of garam masala plus salt and pepper. Might need a bit more water. Cook it a bit on a low heat, to get it all melded together.
Fresh coriander to serve.

Quiche - can do lots of different kinds

Fajitas / quesadillas / burritos / tacos

Thai curry - fry vege, starting with the onion and stuff like carrots/red pepper, then putting in stuff like mange tout/green beans/baby corn
Thai paste / coconut milk
Add fried tofu, or cashew nuts or omelette strips for protein

Pie - mushroom and Stilton is good and quite 'meaty' / roasted vege with cheese in a big sausage roll style shape

Calzone

Macaroni Cheese, wedges and peas!

Bean burgers
Chickpea tagine
Falafel burgers in pitta bread
Egg fried rice www.bbc.com/food/recipes/egg_and_vegetable_fried_44022
Risotto www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/11194/summer-courgette-risotto
Lasagne www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4716/creamy-courgette-lasagne
Lentil bolognese www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1139652/lentil-rag
Mac and cheese
Veggie bean crumble www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/vegetable-and-butter-bean-crumble/
Moussaka www.bbc.com/food/recipes/red_lentil_and_aubergine_33187

Stuffed red peppers (there are loads of variations out there - we hollow them out and boil them for 5 mins and then stuff with rice, chopped tomatoes, herbs and a few kidney beans with cheese put on the top about 10 mins before the end - they take about 30 mins to bake at 180).

Lebanese mousakka

Fine herbes and omlette

Stuffed peppers/mushrooms/tomatoes/aubergines

Ratatouille

Nut roast/meatballs

Halloumi/aubergine burgers

I've found that halloumi has been a good alternative for my meat obsessed DH. Very much raised to think that if there isn't meat and two veg then it isn't a meal. I do a halloumi back where I chuck a load veg and new potatoes in the oven and then put halloumi on top 15 mins before serving. It goes well with flatbread or pitta breads. We also have falafel and flatbread with salad bits and bobs.

You can also supplement your meat dishes with veg or lentils to make it go further and reduce the meat content in each dish . So with anything with mince I add either lentils or grated carrots or similar to bulk it up. I also find chorizo to be a really useful resource as it lasts a long tine and gives great flavour without needing a lot of it. If I’m making a primarily veggie chilli I fry small chunks off before adding the rest of the ingredients ( you can boost the flavour with smoked paprika). I also use it in a one pot dish with celery, any veg you have hanging around ( carrots, leeks) , tons of butter beans or similar and tinned tomatoes and stock. If you want to add meat to that then chicken thighs are really more economical than breast. I do like to aim for one or two evening meals a week to be veggie though.

Agree with using meat as a flavouring rather than a main component of a meal, as well as eating some completely vegetarian meals, so make meals with small amounts of meat sliced up and mixed in with vegetables, pulses, grains etc rather than a whole chop, steak, chicken breast etc per person.

As your motivation is cost saving rather than ethical or environmental, also looking at using cheaper cuts of meat like pork cheeks, pork belly, liver, a gammon joint, pork or lamb shoulder or brisket. A slow cooker can be invaluable for cooking these types of meat - I got one for £7 from Asda, but this was during 'new student specials' week.

At the risk of mentioning the Mumsnet chicken etc, this really is the way to make your money go further and make healthier meals as they include less meat and more veg.

If you have a chicken - only serve the breasts as a roast, with lots of vegetables. Then use the legs and thighs in a pasta bake, curry, or pie, again with vegetables too. So two meals instead of one.

Similar for gammon - sliced up with either vegetables or egg and chips. Keep some leftover to chop up and put in a macaroni cheese, with broccoli and/or green beans too.

Leftover lamb shoulder or brisket can go into shepherds or cottage pie. This is the traditional way of making a joint last most of the week. Serve less meat with lots of veg, and then plan to have leftovers for the next day or two.

Sicilian Spaghetti a la Norma
www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/sicilian-spaghetti-alla-norma/