Self catering holiday with a veggie for a week

[Lorey]

Later in the year I have an air BnB booked in the lakes. DB will be bringing his new gf who is a veggie. We will be taking it in turns to make dinner. Whenever db and his gf come to stay with us for the weekend we make veggie food - not hard for a weekend with curries, pastas etc.

i can see how on a couple of nights we could cater for both ie we have burgers and the gf will have a halloumi burger. Or we’ll cook chicken separately and add to creamy pesto pasta for meat eaters in a separate pan

I’m just curious how your family would go about it. I reckon our meals will be mostly veggie including brekkie. Bit annoying. But thinking about it if I were the veggie I would say you guys crack on with non veggie meals and where I can’t easily be catered for I will sort myself out. As opposed to impacting everyone else for an entire week

what do you guys do?

Eh?

This is what I have learned in my life which I share with my vegan family members. What on earth qualifies you, a random on the internet, to say that this is absolute bollocks?

I didn't say that EVERYONE sharing a festive meal with ANYONE AT ALL who has a different diet MUST feel this way. I am sharing my experience of my life.

My kids are veggie and I am not - everyone’s free choice. However, I like to eat meat and often do the veggie and meat versions of dishes by making a common base/sauce and then making it into two dishes. Veggie and meat chilli, cottage pie, curry ect ect.

You shouldn’t be expected to only eat vegetarian dishes and there isn’t a need to.

That involves sacrificing her enjoyment of food (because I think some people really don't get how hungry / unfulfilled a veggie meal feels to some others) if done over the course of a week.

Of course it's possible, it's just not as fun as the alternative. I speak as someone with medical dietary requirements who never ever expects others to cater to me. I miss being able to partake in shared meals, and I'm the one with the requirements now.

@Lorey Support the local farmers in the Lakes by purchasing local meat. Booths is your friend for lots of veggie meals, fresh and frozen.

No you did - you said 'Food has to be just something people need to consume during the day to do other stuff'

Which is utter bollocks. Just because you can't cook good food, doesn't mean the rest of us can't.

Actually, thinking about it further, it IS possible to enjoy a shared experience around food with vegetarians. I've done it with two friends (one a vegetarian, one a pescatarian). We tend to eat in restaurants so all order what we want, and share the bits we can/want to eat with each other. Maybe it depends on the person. My vegan family members do things like wanting to cook first so that utensils/sink etc aren't contaminated (and therefore eat first as their food would get cold); move seats to be farthest from the bird/joint; insist on a separate shelf in the fridge for their vegan foods etc. The 'center of gravity' of the day is just missing when one entire family is sitting playing games during Christmas lunch because they've already eaten. Not everyone would be like this, though, perhaps there are vegans and vegetarians who aren't so anally retentive about it all. As I said, I personally wouldn't have a problem on holiday with a vegetarian for a week: I'd probably eat all veggie food all week bar one or two meals (probably the ones that are eaten out/takeaway).

Could you please back up your claim that genetics take a part in being "able" to be vegetarian, whatever that means?

@Commonsense22 I would cater for you. I do for all my friends that have medical dietary needs. Why wouldn't I? Why wouldn't anyone? It's just unfriendly and unkind to cook food that you know your friends can't eat and worse, expect them to bring their own food. Unlike any of the other guests.

You could make a mushroom and brie wellington. Just buy some big flat mushrooms and brie. Takes 5 minutes and means everyone gets a home cooked meal.

No, you have chosen to misunderstand my perfectly well phrased reply: for me, in my extended family, which I described in my post that started with "I've learned..." that this is about my experience. The OP is talking about hers. Every poster is talking about theirs. I'm not proscribing what everyone else must feel or think about their own experiences. How could I? (Although that doesn't seem to stop you, can't think why you feel qualified to comment on my cooking abilities for heaven's sake. People on the internet can be very weird sometimes...)

But it would be a faff for the OP.

Unlike 90 mins preparing a beef Wellington which is a joy

Thank you - If the friend offers I appreciate it but I would never ask unless I'mthe only guest. Ultimately, I know it's a pain. If it's an elderly relative cooking who doesn't get it I will eat the food and be ill. I just believe it's polite. Obviously it's not a nut allergy or something life threatening.

And at weddings etc I just eat what I can.

But yes, I'm grateful nobody in either of our families has moral qualms about food as we really enjoy cooking together.

What a strange comment. Plenty of people out there eat meat every day. Get ready to pass out - some of us eat it more than once a day - I kid you not!

YABVU

You are right that you are making a bigger deal over this than is necessary.

If you can make a beef wellington, you can make a mushroom wellington or the gf can make one beside you if she likes mushroom. The only difference is mushrooms instead of meat. SIL is a vegetarian. She made a mushroom wellington for Christmas and it tasted way better than any meat that was on the table and more flavourful.

A margherita pizza or a veggie pizza are not hard to make. Pizza base, tomato sauce, cheese, add veggies, oven, done.

It really isn’t hard. Many meals are vegetarian until you add meat to them.

Agree with this, can’t see what will satisfy the OP apart from the gf suddenly eating meat.

@Commonsense22 you would rather make yourself ill than tell people that you have a dietary requirement? Wow. Surely you'd just say that you can't eat whatever it is as it would make you ill, and then who would be so awful as to hold it against you?? So strange.

Exactly, does no one do tapas/mezze style meals where everyone has a bit of this and a bit of that and dips in here and there?

I know what you mean. We eat a lot of veggie but if you fancy a fish pie, that's what you fancy...

I find it hard to believe that in this day and age anyone eats meat for every single meal?! It’s so expensive.

OP if you are taking it in turns to cook then you will only be doing 3-4 evening meals anyway. I would suggest if you are really desperate to eat meat then do a ‘meat and 2 veg’ kid of meal and buy her a pack of quorn fillets or something similar. She can still have the veggies and sides etc.

If, as you suggested, she just ‘sorted herself out’ I imagine you would get annoyed with sharing your kitchen space with her trying to cook a completely separate meal every night!

I am a veggie and have generally always been catered really well for at family gatherings, either with everyone eating veggie or being bought a ready made but lovely
meat alternative to have along with the sides. I never realised I was such a hassle to people.

We are a family of 5, 4 carnivores and 1 vegetarian. We are all good cooks too and find it so easy to produce great meals that we all enjoy. I'm surprised you are so phased by this. Do you want meal suggestions?

I've lived on three continents and shared many, many meals with people whose culture/mores/languages/foods/vegetarianism/religious beliefs/whatnot were not closely aligned with my own approach to life/faith (or not)/food/whatnot. We all got along together just fine and we certainly were able to eat together happily and share in enjoyment of food!

I know I am being very annoying on the matter.

That about sums it up.

You don’t want the “chore” of cooking a vegetarian version of any of your meals. But you don’t want the vegetarian guest to have a ready-prepared alternative either. What DO you want? Basically for her to stop being “annoying” by daring to be vegetarian? Or for her not to be there at all?

Maybe you should just tell your brother you don’t want her there. He’ll probably be massively disappointed that you’re putting beef wellington before your own brother, but hey - at least you won’t have to chop a carrot.

Eating meat all the time is really unhealthy. I actually eat meat but live with vegetarians most of the time. I can't be doing with buying, storing and cooking meat. However we do holiday with carnivoures.

Meals which work well on holiday

1. Veggi lasange ( not quorn, proper vegetables or the lovely Ottelenghi ragu)
2. Rissotto either mushrooms or goats cheese and green veg- if they must the meat eaters can have chicken cooked separately.
3. Pizzas as suggested above 4)BBQ or bangers and mash ( no more trouble to cook 2 kinds of sausage)
4. Some sort of simple pasta or gnocchi dish a creamy sauce ( maybe blue cheese) with bacon bits done separately if needed.
5. Stir fry with eggs, nuts or tofu again chicken cooked separately if important.
6. Soup of all types, lovely local cheese and fresh bread
7. Curry again many varieties with lentils/ chick peas/ aubergines all the condiments- no one will miss the meat.

What is difficult is if you are keen on a 1950's meat 'n 2 veg style- that does not translate easily to veggi food.

Just get her a vegetarian pie/wellington when you have beef. Vegetarians are really very easy to cater for. There’s loads about…

But they can, really easily! The only person creating a problem is the OP!