Do people really eat meat for every meal?

[CurlewKate]

There seems to be a post every day about the difficulties of catering for a vegetarian guest. I'm an omnivore and I do love meat, but probably only eat it 3-sometimes 4 times a week. And if a guest was a vegetarian I would have no trouble cooking a nice meal without meat-either a family staple or something posher. So do people really eat meat for every meal? And if so-why? Apart from anything else, meat costs a fortune!

My parents do. Could be ham omelette or bacon in a pasta dish but there is meat there. It wouldn't necessarily be a chunnk of meat (unless sunday) but using some of that again in a soup or as part of another dish.

We are mainly veggie so don't but aware a lot of people mostly do.

"Fish fridays" was the day you went without meat.... and had fish instead!

We eat meat pretty much every day, but not for every meal.
Saying that, I wouldn't find it difficult at all to cater for a vegetarian.
If they were staying for a few weeks I might run out of ideas but I'd enjoy choosing and making meals for them - well it wouldn't be just for them we would all eat it.

Just to add-I don't know anyone who does since the death of my FIL who ate meat and potatoes and regarded any vegetable but cabbage and carrots and a kind of garnish...

Well not every meal, most meals I'd say.

*as a kind of garnish..

I eat meat only on Sunday now, tend to eat soup the rest of the time, watching me figure see

Most meals, yes. The reason why I’d because I like it and I want to. Why don’t you eat meat for every meal?

If it's just the two of us, it's unusual to eat meat for our main meal during the week, though chicken or fish will feature on at least a few nights. Sometimes we will have steak at the weekend. We actually eat everything.

My husband will probably have ham at lunch.

I really don't care whether a meal has meat or not. But the problem in our family is that gatherings also involve a vegetarian, a coeliac, a lactose-intolerant and an elderly person who is accustomed to meat for celebrations. Fish is about the only thing everyone eats so if it's just one meal, it's easy.

Generally I now just cook one main dish that will suit the largest number of people at any sitting, or the meal I most enjoy cooking, and buy-in from Forman & Forest/Cook/M&S/Waitrose for the others. Otherwise it's just too much, especially over Christmas when they're all here for multiple meals.

My parents do unless they have fish.
We have red meat once or twice a week, poultry usually twice, fish once or twice, meat free twice.

When you have guests you are usually thinking about what you can do that isn't going to trap you in the kitchen and something that everyone will enjoy as well.

It's often not the same sort of meal that you would produce on a Wednesday night after swimming.

No but i do find catering a bit tiresome when veggie DS comes home for a long time. We love veggie food and eat it at least 50% of the time, but the other 50% I really crave meat or fish, and always having to do a separate tofu dish or bean dish etc sounds simple but always involves twice as many pans, extra prep and cooking time and the frazzlement of trying to get lal the dishes ready at the same time.

I eat meat most days, not very often for lunch, it’s usually something like tuna salad or soup, but dinner more often than not involves meat. I try to limit carbs, so for me eating meat is just easier.

If they do eat it for every meal (which I doubt - lots of performance posts) then they are not doing their health any good.

Ha, this.
Free range meat is very good for humans and the environment, despite what lobbyists say.

@Aylestone "Most meals, yes. The reason why I’d because I like it and I want to. Why don’t you eat meat for every meal?"
Because I like variety. Because it's expensive. Because it's healthier not to. Because I like cooking. Because the way I shop and cook it's more sustainable not to. Because I often have people who don't eat meat to feed.

I do, yes, if it's a proper meal rather than a snack. Occasionally, I might make something like mushroom risotto, or vegetable soup, but I'd still use cheese in those meals. I find it easier to use meat or fish as the main source of protein, and it's easier to please everyone if it's a meat based meal.

We eat a lot of fish and seafood, even just adding some anchovies for flavour in a pasta dish. I used to be vegetarian though, so have no issue cooking vegetarian or vegan. Tacos are always a good bet as people can just choose what they put in them!

My DH and teens don’t think it’s a proper meal without meat or fish.

I only manage it 3-4 times a week, and I only eat chicken or fish. I can’t digest meat every day, it makes me feel ill. I eat eggs, lentils, chickpeas and other beans or /pulses instead.

I don’t think vegetarian meals are necessarily healthier though. It depends what you cook. Grilled fish and vegetables would be healthier than a Glamorgan sausage for example.

Is meat more expensive than other sources of protein? Not sure it is if you work out cost per gram of protein or cost per calorie? Can't be much in it I'd have thought. Regardless, I don't find it unaffordable as I cook quite a large variety of meals using different types and cuts of meat and fish, some cheaper than others.

I don't think it's unhealthy either. We're all healthy weight, physically fit, and I've just had a well woman check (because I'm old) and apparently am in excellent shape despite drinking and smoking far too much. I eat full fat butter, yoghurt, cheese and milk too!

@Fallenangelofthenorth More expensive for me because I only buy organic free range meat.

@Fallenangelofthenorth yes-I count many cheeses in my vegetarian meals. I do have to think a bit harder to to vegan!

@CurlewKate I buy whole organic lambs which I order and pay for up to a year in advance. Could you try this? It works out a lot more affordable as you use the entire animal including offal. Hogget is even better as the flavour is stronger and the meat is leaner.

You can do the same for pork - either a whole or half a pig - and often get a choice on how it's butchered.

We are 90% veggie...no ethical reason, I just am not keen on meat.