Knowing How To Alter Any Meal To Make It Vegetarian Friendly
I don’t know if it is just me or not, but I am noticing a lot more people who are vegetarians these days. I think it is important to have a few simple meals ready just in case you have to turn your roasted chicken into a vegetarian melody at the last moment.
When preparing a meal for a vegetarian, it is first important to know exactly what a vegetarian is. A vegetarian is someone who does not eat any sort of meat (animals). However, it might be important to ask if they eat seafood or not as sometimes vegetarians will eat fish, shrimp, and other related animals. This is frequently referred to as a pescatarian. After you get that knowledge, it is now time to plan your meal accordingly.
You first may need to know what some common substitutes for meat are, this may help you still be able to cook one of your favorite dishes but simply turn it vegetarian. I often will use beans, cauliflower, eggplant, and potatoes instead of any one of various meats. For example, cooking a taco can easily turn into cauliflower tacos, simply make your taco how you would including all possible seasonings, just substitute your meat for cauliflower. You may also find yourself using tofu, tempeh or seitan from your local grocery store as an easy substitute to throw with any meal to replace the meat that was once there. Knowing what you can use to substitute meat is the easiest way to cook for a vegetarian and to turn any meal vegetarian.
It is also important to find protein rich foods to incorporate into meals as your vegetarian may not be getting the protein needed from their everyday meals as they are missing the meat that most others would be getting in their meals. Incorporating milk or plant based milk, nuts, cheese, eggs, and beans into a meal can be a major life saver to your vegetarian friends as you are ensuring they are still getting the protein they need to get through the day, or at least more than no protein.
I know it is often very easy to fall into habits of simply just making pasta dishes, or using a lot of carb heavy products to create a meal because they are the easiest food products to think of when you think of creating a vegetarian meal. However, so much more exists out there than just meat and your carbs.
I often always go to the vegetarian section of the grocery store, you will be surprised by what you might find there. I know beyond meat and impossible meat exists, however, not every person really likes that type of meat so you should ask ahead of time their thoughts on it if that was going to be the route you were looking to go. The frozen section always has veggie burgers and soy burgers as options if you were going to cook burgers for the night. I personally love soy burgers and almost prefer them to a regular burger. There are so many options you might find there to give you various ideas on what to use to cook your big meal. Just make sure you know the preferences of your vegetarian before you assume what sort of meat alternative to use for your meal.
Good options for a side are also vegetables. It’s healthy and helps to get everyone their needed nutrients. Whether you are creating a salad, roasting up some peppers and onions, or cooking up some potatoes, a side of veggies is the most important part. I am not saying you can’t enjoy a meal and not include carbs, you can definitely have a side of rice or mac and cheese, I just don’t think every single meal option should have to be carb based.
Tips For Cooking For A Vegetarian
- Know their preferances
- Know your alternatives
- Try to incorporate a protein
- Don’t always resort to carbs such as pasta
- Get creative
Meal Ideas For A Vegetarian
- Stuffed shells – with a ricotta and spinach filling and a side of greenbeans and a small salad
- Cauliflower tacos with a side of corn and beans and/or a salad
- Soy burger, green beans and mac and cheese
- Pata in a butter garlic sauce, broccoli, and a salad
- BLT, using tempeh bacon, and a salad
- Vegetable stir fry
And the list can go on and on, it is actually kind of simple to find vegetarian meal options and to transform any meal to being vegetarian.
I hope some of these tips and ideas helped and your next meal for someone who is a vegetarian is a big hit.