To help me go vegetarian?

[IsItMeOrThemBeingKnobs]

After an illuminating thread about leftovers recently, I’ve realised that I have a real issue with meat. The smell, texture, how well it’s cooked, all of these things can really turn my stomach and I think going vegetarian would really help my overall food aversion issues.

However, I have no idea where to start cooking the right kind of things (I don’t want to live off meat replacements) and DH is a massive meat eater too.

Does anyone have any advice for vegetarian recipes/the best things to cook to get all the protein etc I need - plus how to get DH on board or to make that part of things easier (I definitely don’t have time to cook multiple dinners every night).

Anything else I need to think about too? It’s all very new to me.

Thank you!

Meant to turn voting off, sorry!

YABU.

I'm going to follow this with interest as although I don't want to become vegetarian I wouldn't mind eating more veggie meals. My biggest problem is mushrooms make me very ill and seem to be in most veggie meals. I also can't eat lentils or chickpeas and I don't eat fruit.

One thing I would say though is if DH tried to get me 'on board' with something and I didn't want to I would start cooking my own meals so I could eat what I liked.

Extremely helpful input @WhoppingBigBackside thanks

Ahhh yeah mushrooms are a no go for me too @PinkSparklyPussyCat and tofu gives me stomach cramps - I think I’m going to struggle but at the moment I’m so limited as to what I can eat due to sensory issues so struggling with food full stop

Dd1 is a vegetarian. I tend to cook veggie meals and then cook some meat separately mainly for DH as he can’t do more than one veggie meal a week without a mountain of complaints.

so I’d cook say a lentil or chickpea curry and then take out dd1s portion before adding meat to the rest.

make veggie pasta and cook a bit if marinated chicken to add to DHs portion. Etc etc.

Going vegetarian is incredibly easy. There are 100s of recipes out there if you google. Many you can do and add the meat component at the end. Stir fry, chow mein, curry, bolognaise, lasagna any pasta dish all very simple. With things like curry I would be making up a batch of veggie ones and a batch of meat ones then freezing them.
It is a bit unfair to expect your DH to go veggie because you have chosen to although hopefully he may be open to the idea of few meat free meals.

Meal recipe box such as Hello Fresh or Gousto to get you kick-started with ideas, balanced meals and no waste?
I’m veggie and I order one of the above when I feel myself reverting back to eating cheese on toast every evening 😁

Two words: Yotam Ottolenghi.There are lots of his recipes posted on The Guardian website. I was completely unconvinced until I tried his black pepper tofu. (And I hate tofu... or did!) They do call for some rather obscure ingredients sometimes but the results are worth it.

p.s. greek yoghurt, cottage cheese and eggs are all high in protein.

So many good recipes. Hairy bikers have some good ones. There's a fab cauliflower and coconut curry.

I use pasta, rice, bulgar wheat, lentils, chick peas, cous cous to bulk meals out. I don't miss the meat element at all.

Veggie lasagne, roasted veg pasta bake, veg curry, risottos, stuffed veggies (aubergines, peppers) with couscous, omelettes, jacket potatoes, salads, soup, gardeners pie - sorry no actual recipes, just a 'first stuff that comes to mind' list!

Go to the BBC Good Food website and look up vegetarian meals. Most cook books will have a vegetarian chapter in them.

Im not a vegetarian but I often cook meals with no meat, loads of pasta sauces with just vegetables, loads of curries, use things like butternut squash to add texture, add nuts, pulses obviously. I also make quiches and flans with vegetable fillings.

The YABU was for posting in AIBU.
Cook normal meals that don't have meat in like egg, chips and beans, and the like.
Cook things that you can split into portions and add meat to one for your DH,

I went veggie for January just to see if I could commit to something and I actually found it really easy. Lots of halloumi was eaten lol. Good luck!

Make a list of the meals you like and search online for vegetarian versions - veg chilli, veg curry, veg shepherds pie, veg lasagne, etc.

Some people fail because they start off by trying to eat totally different things to what they're used to and find they don't like them. A lot of the packet mixes (Colman's shepherd pie, chilli, etc) don't contain meat and it's easier than buying loads of spices and herbs when you're trying to work out what you like.

I had stomach pains and cut out meat and fish, and later cut out dairy and feel so much better as a result. This is what I've eaten for dinner this week to give you an idea:
Fajitas made with mushrooms and peppers
Quorn chicken burger and sweet potato fries
Chickpea curry
Jacket potato and salad
Veg chilli and rice
Jacket potato, beans and veg sausages
Nut roast

For lunch I'll have things like hummus and pitta, or a wrap or salad
Breakfast, usually vegan yogurt and fruit, granola or toast and peanut butter

It's so easy once you start, and eating out is much easier these days too, most places have vegan and vegi options.

Hello Fresh have lots of good vegetarian recipes. You don't have to get the boxes, though it is convenient, but they've got their recipes online so you can have a look. One of the other good things about the boxes though it is that you might try something that you wouldn't choose yourself (though you can adjust the meals they send to an extent, e.g. if you don't want tofu).

I can recommend the tomato "orzotto", the chickpea curry, and the cauliflower nuggets!

www.hellofresh.co.uk/recipes/vegetarian-recipes

What do you currently eat? That’s the best place to start, really.

I’m sort of vegetarian by stealth 90% of the time - one of my DC is a pescatarian, and so we just end up eating more veggie based meals. I add meat like chicken as a separate ‘extra’ for the meat eaters. So rather than chicken stir fry we’d have vegetable stir fry with chicken to add if you want it.

Would that work for you?

Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian is a really good encompassing resource with tons of variants on every type of veggie food. Or try his Vegan Before Six if it's more about ideas to get you kickstarted.

Quorn mince. Start with that. In a bolognaise or chilli you almost can't tell its not meat. We are trying to eat less meat at the moment, without going veggie completely for various reasons.

I love 'easy cheesy vegetarian' recipes. I've not had a bad recipe from her yet.

Mince is indeed a good place to start but you may need to try a few different types before you find one you like. Personally I am not a fan of quorn mince but I like the Asda meat free mince and I also used to like the farm foods one if they still do it.

I agree with the pp who said to list the meals you usually make and then look for vegetarian alternatives.

I can highly recommend the latest Linda McCartney book. It's vegan but you can of course use dairy instead of vegan milk and cheese if you prefer.

Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen: Over 90 Plant-Based Recipes to Save the Planet and Nourish the Soul amzn.eu/d/cqFITVS

Risotto is a good one. You can cook some bacon or chicken separately to add to DHs.

bbcgoodfood do a great sweet potato and spinach Dahl.

Id find a burger patty recipe that you like and that can be frozen so you can have a patty while DH has meat and you both have veges.

My DD was vege for a while We would all eat 2 vege dinners a week and the rest of the time I would adapt meals as above. Another one I did was fried rice. I would cook the meat separately and add it to ours at the end. The main pot just had the egg in with the rice and veges