I think if you only got these cravings in pregnancy then, it is possible that your body is craving the iron so checking iron levels seems sensible. I was a vegetarian for two years many eyars ago but around that time the cravings for meat got quite stroing. I gave in though and went back to eating meat.
However DH has been a non-meat eater for 20+ years (He used to be vegetarian until 2 years ago but now eats fish very occaionally) . He still gets meat cravings sometimes and looks longingly at the very occasional burger/steak I might order when we are in restaurants.
He has eaten meat exactly two times in that 20 years, both by accident and each time has said how good it tasted.
Once he was actually given meat in a curry a few years ago where the restaurant made a mistake and brought him lamb curry instead of the veg one he had ordered. He did actually taste the food as he didn't realise and thought the sauce tasted really really delicious. He had a couple of tastes but it wasn't until he actually picked up a piece of the meat that he realised so he sent it back. He was pretty sad actually as he said it had tasted fantastic. The restaurant were mortified, DH was just amused really, particularly by his own reaction.
The second time was in buger king when DS was eating meat (he is now vegetarian). We had ordered a meat burger and a vege burger . DH opened the wrong one and bit into the burger. His reaction at the time was, "this burger is the best burger I have had for ages" I was the one that time to say I thought he might have the wrong burger as he doesn't usually like many vege burgers generally, particulalry those frem McD and Burger King etc.
Anyway my point is that some vegetarians/non-meat eaters never lose the cravings completely, especially those who choise not to eat meat because of their concience etc rather tha because they find meat disgusting/don't like it etc.