Vegetarian dinners

[RedMoon111]

I would like to reduce our meat consumption. We are currently eating meat most evenings. Kids aren't into spicy foods and not too excited about vegetables either. Any vegetarian meal ideas?

This book has loads of really easy veggie dinners- www.amazon.co.uk/Green-Roasting-Tin-Vegetarian-Dinners/dp/1910931896

Will they eat any spice @RedMoon111?

I suppose the easiest way is to tweak some of the dishes they eat now? So for instance if they like sausages, you could swap to vegetarian sausages?

My DC weren’t keen on veggies either but used to enjoy

lasagne made with cheese sauce and tomato sauce layers
Spanish omelette made with potatoes, onion, sweetcorn and peas
Quesadillas with cheese and veg sticks
tomato and lentil soup
macaroni cheese

I was going to recommend that too.

Pasta bake. Make a tray of roasted vegetables, blend the vegetables up into the tomato sauce and they won't even notice them. Add cheese and part cooked pasta and finish in the oven.

Mash with peas and sweetcorn mixed in. Then progress to bits of cooked and chopped broccoli or cauliflower.

Soups.

Vegetable korma with little/no chilli and coconut milk.

Mix of fish fingers and breaded vegetable fingers in a 'fish finger' sandwich.

Cut some raw veg / fruit up on a sharing plate and serve with hummus or runny peanut butter as an optional starter (no drama if they don't try anything, just make it the norm to have it out to pick at before dinner is served) eventually they get curious and have a taste.

Do they like halloumi? Use it where you might use bacon. I make a risotto with honey chilli halloumi which is popular.

I didn’t eat meat for years, do again now, but these were some of the meals we had very often/ these or some version of them. I can’t eat lentils or chickpeas anymore but they were delicious whilst I could!

https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/vegetable-and-lentil-cottage-pie/

Quesadillas with cheese, some kind of veg and some kind of bean in eg https://www.hellofresh.co.uk/recipes/cheesy-sweet-potato-quesadillas-63f500e6b6ae9e66039dd74b

Chilli - https://georgieeats.co.uk/mixed-bean-veggie-chilli/

Falafel with flatbreads, some kind of dip/ sauce - usually made a garlicky/ herby yoghurt type. Used shop bought falafel I liked the cauldron ones. Serve with salad and/ or chips.

Ones we still have a fair bit are -

Creamy leek pasta - finely slice leeks, soften them in mix of butter and oil with some garlic, meanwhile cook pasta and every so often splash some of the pasta water in with the leeks to help them soften. By the time the pasta is cooked hopefully the leeks will be really soft. Take off the heat and add a little cream, or cream cheese works too. Combine with the pasta and bit more of the pasta water, and you can add Parmesan/ vegetarian alternative and lots of black pepper.

Roast selection of veg - peppers, red onion, sweet potato and butternut squash work well but whatever you want to use, with garlic, oil and some balsamic vinegar. Add cherry tomatoes for the last 10/15 mins or so. When all roasted combine with cooked pasta and crumble over feta cheese.

If you’re ok with fake meat sometimes, this is nice - I prefer it with cauldron sausages and I put extra in usually - https://www.tesco.com/shop/en-GB/buylists/food-love-stories/carls_all-change-casserole?srsltid=AfmBOoqA0T7LY1qf8zclzE2vRxr-jQyb8lyhHXlgYpzN5ECZjONwneqh

Soups with crusty bread, or cheese on toast alongside if you prefer. Lentils are good for bulking out, since I can’t have them I add bulgur wheat to chunky/ thick veg soups. Or another one I really like is roasted red pepper and tomato, no real protein to speak of in that one though but it is tasty and ok for the odd meal!

I do fajitas with halloumi sometimes, or paneer curries - actually once used feta when I couldn’t get paneer in a curry and DH preferred it.

Also do a vegetable stir fry and noodles with peanuts or make a peanut sauce.

Plus lots of omelettes/ frittatas, good old beans on toast or in jacket potato, mac and cheese with hidden veg if I can get away with it.

Chilli w rice;
pasta with sautéed veg and a bit of pesto stirred through;
Channa masala, rice and naan.

Delia’s vegetarian book is good.

Marry me chickpea

Fish fingers aren't vegetarian.

@SnowDaysAndBadLays (great name btw!) FF obvs not vegetarian but OP did say they wanted to reduce (not eliminate) meat consumption rather than becoming vegetarian and was struggling to get kids to eat vegetables!

This is a Mumsnet favourite, and you can raise or lower the spice to suit your taste
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/burnt-aubergine-veggie-chilli

@Ilovemyshed That was my go to for years ! Esp cooking for my son at home. Fabulous range of receeps and very clear instructions.

My kids eat this because I call it ‘chocolate chilli’ and make sure they see me or help melt the chocolate into it!! I serve with tacos or nachos, rice, sweetcorn, grated carrot etc. Quesedillas also good for veg acceptance - neither like peppers but will accept finely chopped ones in quesadilla.

I also make my own pesto and add a few handfuls of spinach and some raw broccoli, pesto is the main green contribution to their diet!

This is a constant battle in my house too. My kids will accept:
lentil soup with bread
mild coconutty curries - sweet potato daal, saag paneer (sauce blended and roasted paneer added at the end), chickpea masala
bean enchiladas (though not fajitas or quesadillas if veg in for some reason, maybe because it’s cooked till it’s really soft?)
we regularly do pasta/pesto or blended red sauce with roast veg but tbh I am the only one that eats the roast veg!

NOT a healthy option but quorn chicken nuggets taste (to my palate) exactly like a maccas chicken nuggets taste and are a favourite treat/lazy food in my house.

another way to reduce meat consumption is to cut the amount of meat in a normal recipe. So if you would make bolognese with a whole pack of mince make it with half the mince and bulk up with veg blitzed in the food processor (good way to use up broccoli stalks) and red lentils for protein (they sort of melt into the sauce). I usually add a teaspoon or two of marmite to give it a bit of a meaty heft.

A easy swap for mince is lentils. Pretty much anything you make with mince - spag Bol, lasagne, cotage pie you can use lentils in their place

Delia’s roast Mediterranean veg lasagne. This is so easy , just roast veg instead of making the ragu, and Delia’s method of making bechemel is quick and easy too. The creaminess and cheesiness heads off any veg aversion, IMO. I use less mozzarella.

www.deliaonline.com/recipes/type-of-dish/pasta-recipes/roasted-mediterranean-vegetable-lasagne

We do:

home made pizzas
pasta with roasted Mediterranean veg
veggie lasagna
tacos with a variety of veggie fillings (eg veggie chilli, cut up cucumber and pepper, cheese, salsa, guacamole etc)
jacket potatoes with cheese and beans
veggie stir fry with nuts

There are lots of good recipes on the Gusto website
https://www.gousto.co.uk/blog/gousto-recipes.

Agree with the Green Roasting Tin book. My favourite is chickpeas with pomegranate.

Easy recipes:
Stir fry
Risotto with mushroom/asparagus/pea/mix of the above
Homemade soups (currently having a delicious spicy sweet potato and carrot soup)
Chilli
Veg fajitas
Bolognase with lentils

I dont really eat meat substitutes but there are some ok veg sausages. Linda McCartney red onion ones (I think) are nice.

There is a huge range of fake chicken but I cant really comment on those. Look at Seitan as well.

Birds Eye have a Green Cuisine range which is ok for nights when you have to do something super quick.

What are your favourite recipes? Maybe we can suggest similar alternatives?

Oh some good stuff on here!!

I am veggie, my kids are not. But sometimes I will make just veggie meals for convenience.

They will eat:

Feta cheese pasta - get a roasting tray and bung in a block of Feta, plus some sliced cherry tomatoes, I add sliced mild red chillies but you can leave them out... Peas, spinach, whatever veg they will eat, some garlic and black pepper. Put in oven for about 20 mins while your pasta is cooking, then take it out and give it a good mix.

Stir fries

Baked potatoes with a variety of toppings

Cowboy pie is a favourite here, you can use veggie sausages

I’m veggie but my kids aren’t . They like:

Creamy paneer curry
tacos with vegetarian mince- very mild
fennel and veg sausage pasta
chickpea curry
enchiladas with black beans and butternut squash
butter bean stew with cheesy roast potatoes
baked gnocchi with veg and feta
breaded haloumi burgers