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Teen new Veggie = Stress for mum...
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My stepdaughter became vegetarian when she was about 16 and annoyed me no end by sitting on her btm in front of the tv while I cooked two dinners (she was MASSIVELY fussy as well and wouldn't eat onion/leek/tomato/spice of any type, blah blah blah). While we were at the table she would lecture those of us eating meat about how disgusting we were... Not the way to win converts! She still takes zero responsibility for her own food but it sounds like the OP's son has a much more positive attitude towards his ethical decision and the responsibility that comes with it. Actually, I'm pretty much vegan these days, but I'm very careful to respect other people's right to eat what they choose.0
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juliapenguin, that is terrible behaviour, i would argue at 16 she should be helping with meals anyway, veggie or not, we often had to peel veg or whatever.
Also, I have never ever asked or "preached" anyone to be vegetarian, in fact, I give my son meat so he can make an informed choice when he is older what he wants to do. Its great you respect other peoples right to choose like me. I even make sure I cater for the meat eater at my own arties etc as I dont want to force vegetarianism onto anyone, it should be an informed choice.0 -
vegetarian student cook books are great, the meals in them are always cheap, easy and nutritious. We have a great one, that we use every week, to make chillis, currys, vege cottage pies.
Also if you aimed to make the entire families meals 3-4 times a week vege, i think you will notice a huge difference in your shopping budget. you can make a good spaghetti bolognese or lasagne with frozen vege mince, which im sure the family would love. I very rarely use meat substitutes, but when we do, i prefer to use the supermarket brand vegemince, i just prefer the texture to quorn. We use more often textured soya protein, a bag lasts forever. makes a great chilli in the slow cooker.
Nice easy vegetable pie- cook up lots of vegetables to fill a large oven proof dish, mix with mushroom soup, 1 tsp of mixed herbs, and cover in homemade pastry, bake in oven for 40 minutes until golden, this always goes down well!0 -
Barneysmom wrote: »If I were you I'd make it as boring as possible so he moves on to something else quickly :cool:
That is really unfair, and uncalled for.
I became a vegetarian when I was 7, because I knew for me it was the right thing to do, at the age of 14, I became a vegan. Both decisions were entirely my own, based on my own understandings and beliefs, and both required a fair bit of sacrifice - when I was 7 I loved bacon sarnies, and I was a cheeseaholic when I was a teenager. To dismiss going veggie as just being a fad is grossly unfair.
And my mum didn't like me being vegan. She tried everything she could to put me off, including making me the most awful food imaginable. It didn't make a blind bit of difference, I just had to learn to cook.
Fair play to the lad for making his own decision, it's never that easy in a family of meat eaters.0 -
pasta, quorn, eggs, everything except meat? It shouldn't cost you any more money really. quorn or linda mccartney food is almost always on offer at one of the big supermarkets (of course other food manufacturers are out there)
just make sure he gets enough vitamins etc etc
you should applaud his decision, he's obviously intelligent, and has decided that this is what he wants to do (for however long that may be). You should be proud of him.
I did the same at 16. I'm now 34.Remember the time he ate my goldfish? And you lied and said I never had goldfish. Then why did I have the bowl Bart? Why did I have the bowl?0 -
For what it's worth, my hubby eats veggie food at home because I can't stand to be in the same room where meat or fish are being cooked, and he likes us to prepare our food together. It's his choice, I told him he's welcome to meat whenever he wants, but he'd have to cook it himself with the kitchen door shut. He does eat meat if we go out for a meal; in fact I encourage him to do so if that's what he'd enjoy. When he recently had a "MoT" at the doctors and told them what his diet was, they were pleased, and said that it'd help his general long-term health.
Anyway, I digress..... one thing I keep in the freezer is HM nut loaf. I make a loaf that slices into eight portions, and once it's cooked and cold, slice it up, put a little greasproof paper between the slices to stop them sticking together, and freeze it. HTH.If your dog thinks you're the best, don't seek a second opinion.;)0 -
Doom_and_Gloom wrote: »Also your example is likely to be a very small percentage of people on a vegetarian diet.
As I've said before, I absolutely agree with you...Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants - Michael Pollan
48 down, 22 to go
Low carb, low oxalate Primal + dairy
From size 24 to 16 and now stuck...0 -
For what it's worth, my hubby eats veggie food at home because I can't stand to be in the same room where meat or fish are being cooked, and he likes us to prepare our food together. It's his choice, I told him he's welcome to meat whenever he wants, but he'd have to cook it himself with the kitchen door shut. He does eat meat if we go out for a meal; in fact I encourage him to do so if that's what he'd enjoy. When he recently had a "MoT" at the doctors and told them what his diet was, they were pleased, and said that it'd help his general long-term health.
Anyway, I digress..... one thing I keep in the freezer is HM nut loaf. I make a loaf that slices into eight portions, and once it's cooked and cold, slice it up, put a little greasproof paper between the slices to stop them sticking together, and freeze it. HTH.
Could you let me have the recipe for nut loaf please. My ds loves nut cutlets but I buy them as I have no idea how to make nut loaf. Thanks.Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination:beer:
Oscar Wilde0 -
Quorn mince, pieces, sausages etc are very often on offer (mince at Morrisons - 99p for 300g IIRC) and works out cheaper than meat any day!!!
Own brand veggie alternatives are probably cheaper still but I only know Quorn. Their 'fillets' (peppered steak, cheese n 'ham' etc) are very tasty and can be cooked very easily with a couple of spoonfuls of frozen mxed veg and some mash. Veg/potato's can (should!) be given to the whole family and the frozen stuff is easier (and sometimes cheaper) - no peeling, cleaning, chopping etc! Asda's baby carrots are lovely!
I also cooked a very nice chilli bean soup the other day (red kidney beans/chickpeas/chilli/red onion) - very filling with a wholemeal roll or slice of toast.0 -
Get some 'Henderson's relish' from Sheffield.
It's basically Worcester sauce without the anchovies in it. Wor lass is a veggie so it comes pre-approved :P
Mushroom Ketchup (basically a liquid rather than a thick sauce) is good for adding a splash of savouryness to things.
[Oops, sorry - epic post follows. I got carried away]
I went veggie at 14 and never looked back. It drove my mum up the wall, true, but we got around it. I wasn't great at cooking for myself til uni though, but I was away at school, which helped.
Quorn is expensive, and not all that nice, often. I get mine on offer and keep it in the freezer for the odd roast dinner/sausages&mash, etc.
At 16, he's definitely old enough to cook some of his meals (though telling him to make all of them from now on will feel like a punishment for being 'awkward'). The Veggie Grub on a Grant book is handy - I got it as a student, and still use some of the recipes. They're simple and unfussy, but interesting.
Get him his own recipe file/folder for meals found online!
Partner eats meat, sparingly, and while my family pretty much refused to have veggie meals, I think a previous poster's idea of 'side-dishes' with added meat is a good one. Sometimes, J will add tuna to pasta sauces, etc.
- BOGOF'd Quorn subs for meat'n'veg meals, sausages & mash, full English Breakfasts, etc. I much prefer Linda McCartney sausages - you can sometimes get them on good offers, and sometimes not get them at allSadly, gettting really nice veggie bacon is no longer easy, but Quorn's stuff is OK (grudging approval there - I liked Morningstar!) For roasts, etc, some gravy mixes are veggie - Bisto's Onion Granules serve me well. For a quick casserole, put a filet/quorn pieces in an oven dish, add a few bits of chopped onions, carrots, mushrooms, and pour a bit of gravy over with herbs, etc, and shove in next to the rest of the food. Easy Sunday lunch replacement.
- J and I eat a lot of curries, by which I mostly mean, we saute a vast selection of root veg, onions and leaves in spices and curry paste, add stock, lentils, and a tin of tomatoes, and then add a spoonful or two of 'jar sauce' if it needs a better taste... Batch cooking curry is easy enough.
- Chilli is the same! Beans, beans, beans. Buy tinned kidney beans though, even if you do make him soak and cook the others (builds character...). My mum nearly poisoned my Dad for good in the 70s with a badly-boiled bean.
- Stirfries. Get veg, slice, wok. As long as he can tell a burning smell from not, he'll be fine...Cheap (when stuff bought in big bags, I guess), easy one: I saute halved cashews, grated garlic and ginger in a bit of oil with 5-spice, then add large chopped onions, followed by sliced up veg - carrots, mushrooms, peppers - whatever's in the fridge really, we never bother with those boxes of stir-fry veg unless they're reduced. For the 'sauce', either a bit of a jar sauce, or get a small mug, and add a splash soy sauce, a drip or two of rice vinegar, a bit of veg stock powder/cube, dried ginger and a spoonful of honey, then add hot water. Stir up, dump in pan and simmer to cook the veg. Then lid off and reduce til nice. This is probably not something approved by actual Chinese people, but it makes a nice soupy noodle dish.
- You say nothing 'exotic' but also 'lots of lasagnes'! Lasagne is exotic to me because it's bloody fiddlyJ loves it though. Veg ones are easy enough - we use lentils instead of mince, and plenty of chopped-small veg. This makes spag bol too.
- Risotto! Which you can use to stuff peppers with (ha - like peppers are affordable anymore), and make 'Italian' (tomatoey, oregano and basil added) or 'Indian' (add curry spices and tumeric). Easy to add meat or fish to as well. And fills a plate nicely. Make a huge pan and there's enough to freeze.
- Pizza! Make or buy the bases, and top with whatever they want for any family member - I like mine stacked with veg and easy on the cheese, personally - and that should be a good halfway point between processed nasties and homecooked nutrition.
- Learn to love lentils and mushrooms. For him, that is. And root veg stews (batch cooked), beans, and cheese in everything whenever you want to buy him a meal out, unfortunately. Unless you live somewhere imaginative. And hope that he doesn't further develop a social conscience and start worrying about soy as a GM/mono-crop.
As for the health issue, I never had problems, but I went chicken/poultry-only for six months*, then cut that out completely later, which probably helped. An aquaintance who went strict vegan OVERNIGHT a few years ago did indeed get health problems, massive weight loss and aniemia included, but they gave their body a huge shock, and thier diet was probaly, uh...a bit dodgy, tbh. They're fine now. My mum worried about iron, etc too, but he's giving up meat, not brocolli, spinach and kale, cheese, eggs, etc, and isn't living on his own on red wine and cigarettes either (one assumes...)
* I claimed it was for health reasons, but it had a suspicious amount to do with the school's chicken-garlic-mayo-salad-stuffed pitta sandwiches every Wednesday...0
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