Vegetarian Idea's

Taye · 1 June 2009 at 11:13AM

My 7 year old son decided last night that he wants to be vegetarian.

Atm im not 100% sure if this is a phase that will be over by the time he comes home from school tonight or next time he wants McDonalds or if it's something that he's going to stick with.

Long term (if it lasts) i have no doubt i can make some nice healthy vegetarian meals, however short term it does pose me one or two slight glitches.

Im on a tight budget this month, having commited myself to living out of my cuboards and freezer this month.
I cook in bulk and i have made my food for the month, 99% of it containing meat.

Because i work long hours i don't have alot of time to cook in the evening, all the meals are pre-prepared, any idea's of anything in the short term i can say serve him when the rest of us have something like spag bol or curry from the freezer (long term i'd just make a veggy one up at the same time, but short term i havn't got that option)

Also i need something for when we are having a meat and two veg type meal?? tonight i have a pork joint... i need something that can replace that with potato's / veg for him?

I don't really want to go to tons of expence in the short term, he's 7 who knows how long this will last, but at the same time i don't want to cop out and feed him rubbish because i want to give him a realistic idea of what a healthy vegetarian diet will involve should he decide this is a perminant change?

Gingham_Ribbon · 1 June 2009 at 11:50AM

Taye, well done to you for helping him make this change, short or long term.

He's old enough to be explained to that you want to support him in this but his dinners for the month are alreay made and if he eats as normal for the moment, you and he can plan a healthy diet for him together, starting very soon.

If you have time, you can make some veggie burgers that he can eat when you're having meat and veg days in the meantime. They're quick and cheap if you have a food processor. Or quorn or cauldren sausages are a good standby. I'll post a link to a burger recipe later.

twinkle_star_2 · 1 June 2009 at 11:58AM

If the budget stretches and time is tight the easiest thing is to get some vegetarian sausages. But I find meat substitutes tend to be on the pricey side so I tend to rely on nuts/beans/pulses.

If you have any beans I'd suggest making some kind of bean/nut loaf thing because you need to ensure he gets some protein with his dinner. Try this site for ideas. A nice one for kids (but relatively pricey due to cheese/egg) is savoury oat bars. The recipe is here

Or you can make things like chickpea or lentil cutlets. Lots of recipes available online such as this one. Also homemade vegetable burgers are pretty simple - mixed veg and beans, mashed potatoes and you're away.

Hope some of them are helpful.

Justamum · 1 June 2009 at 2:12PM

Taye wrote: »

My 7 year old son decided last night that he wants to be vegetarian.

Well done you for supporting him :T

When I was a child I was told in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to become vegetarian. I was still living at home when I eventually became vegetarian at 20 - I'm vegan now.

Recently my mum told me 12 year old daughter that I was about her age when I started to become 'fussy'. :mad: I was annoyed that my ethics had been dismissed so cavalierly. :mad:

If he has decided to become vegetarian for ethical reasons, then he's not going to be happy if you follow Gingham Ribbon's advice and tell him he must eat meat for a month until it's all used up!

It's not necessary to go mad on the cheese either, which some people do. Beans are cheap and easy, and there are loads of recipes on-line. You might even find you all prefer to have some veggie nights and save money! Good luck.

Penelope_Penguin · 1 June 2009 at 4:10PM

Justamum wrote: »

If he has decided to become vegetarian for ethical reasons, then he's not going to be happy if you follow Gingham Ribbon's advice and tell him he must eat meat for a month until it's all used up!

While I see your point, I feel that's a bit harsh on Gingham, who's the OP of 3 of the best threads around on veggie cooking :A She's too modest to link to them herself, so here goes:

Gingham's veggie meal planner

Gingham's Spring meal planner

Gingham's Summer meal planners

There are loads of delicious recipes there

Penny. x

Gingham_Ribbon · 1 June 2009 at 5:00PM

Justamum wrote: »

When I was a child I was told in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to become vegetarian. I was still living at home when I eventually became vegetarian at 20 - I'm vegan now.

Recently my mum told me 12 year old daughter that I was about her age when I started to become 'fussy'. :mad: I was annoyed that my ethics had been dismissed so cavalierly. :mad:

If he has decided to become vegetarian for ethical reasons, then he's not going to be happy if you follow Gingham Ribbon's advice and tell him he must eat meat for a month until it's all used up!

I was a vegetarian for 22 years and found it very difficult as a child when my parents refused to allow me to become vegetarian. I began cooking for myself at 16 when I refused to eat meat any longer. I would have been perfectly happy (at 7, the age I first began to say I didn't want meat) if my parents had been reasonable enough to explain that they didn't have the money to buy me extra food until payday but once they'd sorted out a menu for me I could give vegetarianism a try.

He mentioned it yesterday and you think it's unreasonable for his mum to ask him to wait until she sorts out her budget and menu plan. I think it's unreasonable to expect her to immediately make the change when she's already explained that she doesn't have the time or the money this month. :beer:

Thanks for linking to my threads, Penny. It's lovely to see you. :A

Taye · 1 June 2009 at 7:40PM

Well tonight i've given him potato's / veg and a chilli bean burger i had in the freezer lft over from a barbaque last summer (when i had a veggy friend over).

Tommorrow night the family are having sausage cassarole done in the slow cooker but im thinking of cooking up a small pan of this http://www.frugal.org.uk/casserole.html tonight putting it in the fridge and re-heating it for him tommorrow does that sound good?

the only beans i have are haricot (pre-cooked and frozen) and kidney (tinned) does that sound like it would work? ill most likely add some extra veg as well as i have some bits that im throwing into the sausage cassarole anyway.

if i make it i can do a few portions so ill have spare for later and if the vegaterianism does end it won't be wasted because i don't mind eating it for lunchs at work or something.

*Paris* · 1 June 2009 at 7:52PM

I think it's brilliant that you're going to support your son's decision :T

There are some easy recipes & nutrition info on the Vegetarian Society website

http://www.vegsoc.org/

Gingham_Ribbon · 1 June 2009 at 9:04PM

Taye wrote: »

the only beans i have are haricot (pre-cooked and frozen) and kidney (tinned) does that sound like it would work? ill most likely add some extra veg as well as i have some bits that im throwing into the sausage cassarole anyway.

Yes it sounds fine. I'd add some extra veg too and use veggie stock rather than water if you have some. Also, if you want to add more beans, a rinsed tin of cheap baked beans does the job just fine with casseroles and chillies, though they need to be added near the end to stop them becoming mushy.

After this first period is over, it will definitely save you money as veggie food is much cheaper than meat if you're scratch cooking.

kianicky · 1 June 2009 at 11:43PM

Well done on supporting your little boy in his venture into vegetarianism. I was a good bit older when i became a vegetarian. I was 15 and my mum and dad supported me. my mum was great about and didn't make a fuss. she did what she could to cook things i liked and could eat and we were on a pretty tight budget back then too. there's been some good ideas said already. best of luck to you and your little lad. if it does last he will be very thankful to you when he is older for supporting him.

Trow · 2 June 2009 at 8:14AM

Some simple veggie ideas will be possible with what you have in the cupboards anyway, I'm sure. And veggie food can be cheaper than non if you don't go for the meat substitutes such as quorn.

What about baked beans on toast
Baked potato with cheese/beans
Macaroni cheese
Pasta and tomato sauce
Omlette
Poached/scrambled eggs on toast
Boiled eggs and soldiers
Veggie stir fry
Lentil soup
Vegetable soup (eg potato and leek, carrot and coriander etc)

OK, some are a little uninteresting, but if he is getting his dinners at school then he doesn't need a big meal every night as well.

I would recommend for future use, soya mince which is dead cheap and makes masses as it is dehydrated, rather than the frozen veggie mince which is more expensive. I made a spag bol one time when we had a friend, who happens to be a chef over for dinner. He was in the middle of eating it, when he looked at me and said 'you are eating meat??' so it's obviously not as bad a substitute as some people think!

Good luck, and I'd like to add my "good on you" to everyone elses. Its obviously important to him, and its great that you are supporting him. And well done you for raising someone who obviously cares about the issues enough to want to make changes.

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