Healthy, Cheap and Vegitarian?

mee_2

Hi all

The recipes which have been posted to this forum have been fantastic, and I would really like to take advantage of them, but I am coming to the forum for a bit more help.

Most of the recipes are fairly heavy on either meat (or chicken) and / or some sort of starch.

In anticipation of summer, I have gone on a health kick, and am in desperate need of cheap, healthy and low-carb vegetarian meals, which will be diet-friendly. As a cheat I do eat fish, but that doesn't exactly help the cheap criterion.

Typical ones I do now are stir fries and fajitas, but in desperate need of variety or I end up relying on baked spuds and pasta (neither being diet friendly)

.... help please ??

-- Mike

crispeater

im not vegetarian but this is my absolute fav and its a ww recipe so low fat too

red lentil & aubergine curry.

this makes about 4 small portions

Ingredients

175g red lentils,
1 chopped aubergine 1 chopped onion
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp Mild/Medium curry poweder (dependent on taste)
600mls veg stock
100mls coconut milk (light stuff! left over can be put in ice cube trays and frozen)



lightly soften onion and garlic, add curry powder, add aubergine, veg stock and red lentils. Leave in fying pan for half an hour til lentils are mushy. Add coconut milk- warm through

lynzpower

chick pea & veg curry & boiled rice

1 tin chopped toms
1 tin drained chick peas
assorted veg peppers/courgetee/ mushrooms/ potato ( you can leave this!) onion/ leeks
tablespoon balti paste

fry onion in balti paste
Add veg & chopped toms & chick peas
simmer
serve with boiled rice

EASY!

eryn_kathleen

I'm making up a batch of French onion soup at the moment, and it can easily be made veggie. I don't really have a recipe, but it's a pretty versatile meal so can stand some substitutions and fiddling. Also, the recipe below makes a big batch for freezing!

onions - a whole bag, maybe 1kg(can be as cheap as you like)
veggie stock - 1.5 to 2 litres, i'd guess
(I normally mix home made and Oxo, but use what you like)
marmite (if you've got it)
Lea & Perrins (if you've got it)
Dark Soy Sauce (if you've got it - don't use light!)
pinch sugar
pinch salt (maybe not if using Oxo or Knorr - they can be salty)
small splash oil

The hardest part is prepping the onions. The easiest way is to top and tail them, remove the skin, then chuck them in a food processor. Next best is a mandolin grater (sp?), but otherwise it's a big of a slog slicing the onions as finely as you can (and trying not to cry).

Get the biggest soup pan you've got, add a little bit of oil to the onions, and warm them over a medium flame. You want them to go soft and then carmelize, so this part will take about 30minutes. Once they're soft, add a pinch of sugar and salt and whack the heat up, stirring constantly, until they start to go brown and smell really nice.

Add the stock and anything to make it go a bit darker and 'meatier' - marmite, soy sauce, lea & perrins, whatever you've got in your cupboard. Let it simmer. If it's too sweet, add some extra dry vermouth or dry white wine.

If you like cheese, add some emmental or gruyere on top. Serve with a loaf of crusty wholemeal bread - excellent winter warmer. Even half this recipe should make plentiful leftovers!

Pink.

Hi mee,

Have you seen Gingham Ribbon's vegetarian meal plan? There are lots of ideas on there that you could adapt to suit your diet.

Gingham's Vegetarian Meal Planner

Pink

Gingham_Ribbon

Thanks for linking to my menu planner, Pink Winged. That saves me looking it up!

I'd add that if you can get hold of copies of The Bean Book and Cheap and Easy by Rose Elliot they do exactly what they say on the cover! You will have lots of cheap, easy, quick meals at your disposal and very nutritious too.

eryn_kathleen

Another soup, this one is much quicker than the French Onion one. It's from Jamie Oliver originally, but has now passed through the hands of several friends so may have changed a bit.

3-5 leeks (depends on how much you like leeks)
tin or two of chickpeas (depends on how much you like chickpeas)
veggie stock

Chop the leeks roughly or finely - your preference. Sweat them in a big soup pot with just a little bit of butter or margarine. Once they're nice and soft, add the veggie stock.

Then add the chickpeas (drained) and serve. Top with fresh grated parmesan cheese - gives it just the right finish.

Again, serve with crusty wholewheat bread. Ten minute meal, and cheap!

Snow_Angel

Hi mee - I'm a pescetarian too (veggie who eats fish )

For cheap fish I'm lucky enough to live by the coast. I get up early sometimes and go to the fish market and buy fish direct from the fisherman as they come in from night fishing.

But other good ideas for cheap fish are : head to the supermarket at the end of the day as lots of fish seems to get marked down (I got a lovely 750g salmon steak the other day for £2 and a smoked salmon, trout and mackerel selection for 80p) ; also keep an eye out for canned tuna or salmon deals (I got 6 cans of John West tuna for 60p at Somerfield yesterday - use by date 2008!).

Good, cheap veggie ideas (I'm also a student so cheap eating is a way of life!) :

boiled rice with steamed or boiled veg - pep it up a bit with herbs, curry powder and garlic (again I shop at end of day for marked down veg or from the local market)

lentil and veg stew - some lentils (or any other pulses for that matter), winter veg, can of chopped tomatoes, garlic, mixed herbs, stock all simmered in a pan for a couple of hours or done in a slow cooker. Can serve with noodles, rice or mashed potatoes for a comfort dish!

veggie pasta bake (student staple! - add some tuna as an extra)

stuffed pepper - stuff a pepper with either cous cous or rice mixed with stir-fried mushrooms, onions, garlic, mixed herbs and some tin tomatoes, bake at 180 degs in oven until pepper is soft. i normally make a sauce with passata or tomatoe juice from tin, herbs and garlic to go with it. One of my faves this.

Tam_Lin

Had a lovely stew last night - lowfat and very filling:

Potatoes
Onions
Red lentils
Carrots
Courgettes
Broccoli
Stock
Dill
Veggie sausages optional

Fry veggie sausages if using them. Put in pot with all chopped veg, add stock and dill, and lentils. Simmer away for an hour. It thickens up beautifully.