to wonder why ....

[HappyAgainOneDay]

.... vegetarian food like Linda McCartney sausages or Tofu mince are made to look like meat? My mother was on a flight some years ago and was booked to have vegetarian food. She couldn't eat the meal because it was vegetarian sausages.

your mother sounds like a woman with issues tbh.

My DP doesn't like the fake meat which looks like meat. He's fine to eat the mince in a chilli as you can't really see it but isn't a big fan of the sausages or chicken pieces. He says once he concentrates on the fact they aren't actually meat he likes the taste and texture tho!

So I can see why your mum wasn't a huge fan of veggie sausages, but she's a right odd one to reject the entire meal.

what if the were balls?
still cheating?

what was first... veggie ball or meatball...

I'm a long standing vegetarian, love my veggie food, and Ive had a few LM dishes in my time and they are scrummy.

I think you need to say to your DM "look mum its fine, it all comes out brown just tuck in!"

I'm so grateful for fake meat! DH and the DCs are veggie and I love that I can continue to make standard recipes that I know and love - I make a mean chicken and leek pie with quorn. They are all veggie for ethical reasons and really miss meat, so fake meat helps a lot.

Your mum doesn't like veggie food that looks like meat, so she couldn't eat the meal. I don't like various things that I sometimes get in aeroplane meals, so I don't eat that part of the meal. If you're fussy, you sometimes have to do without. It isn't anyone's fault.

I suspect the reason things are meat shaped is because " back in the day" vegetarianism was seen to be a bit odd, so they tried to make us all "normal" by making it look we had meat and two veg on our plate.

So terrible, I should be hiding in a cupboard really. Just as well I have never given a flying 4x and hey, the restaurant and food industry is just about dragging themselves out of the dark ages.

Oh and I'll polish my halo because I do cook DP bacon sarnies only so I can sniff that gaaaawwwwwjuf smell of bacon

Balls could never be cheating....unless the balls belong to someone else.

I love meat, but choose to be a vegetarian because I don't agree with killing animals. So, things like Linda McCartney and Quorn are fantastic as I can still eat the things I like, but without the guilt.

The whole point of those things is that they are meat substitutes. Everyone surely knows that there are plenty of meat-free foods which they can eat, but if you want something meat-like to take the place of meat, then having it shaped like meat makes sense. Your mother's approach, however, does not make sense and sounds more like an issue with food than a commitment to not eating meat.

That is completely abnormal. Whether it looks like a sausage or not - it is meat free. Craziness.

I'm beginning to think that she just saw sausages and didn't realise that they were vegetarian .....

Well not eating veg sausages was a bit odd but I do agree with you generally.

If you don't want to eat meat, eat something else delicious. I can't think why you'd want a meat substitute - veg that's been highly processed to make it look/feel/taste like meat

I have always been a veggie BECAUSE I DON'T LIKE MEAT so I do find it annoying when the only vegetarian food available is just fake meat.

In fact I was thinking of starting a thread about our local Tesco which has a section called "Vegetarian" which only has meat flavoured Quorn products and some far east noodle ready meals which have real meat in.

I do cook meat meals from scratch for the rest of the family and when I do I would love to be able to bung a veggie ready meal in the microwave for me. Unfortunately the range of veggie ready meals is very limited.

Having said that your DM does sound a bit barking if she wouldn't even eat the vegetable that had been next to the fake meat.

the only vegetarian food available is just fake meat

But it's not though - the only food specifically made for vegetarians might be meat substitutes for those who like meat and want something close. However, a quick browse through Tesco's website suggests that you need to stop looking for 'vegetarian' meals and just look for the type of meal you want - the other sections have Mediterranean vegetables, pies, macaroni cheese, asparagus filo parcels, cannelloni, risottos, pasta, moussaka, etc.

I guess it's because most people who eat meat wouldn't choose a meat substitute, but anyone might want a mushroom risotto, so they don't market that as 'vegetarian' food, it's just in the ready meals section with all the other options.