The Vegetarian & Vegan Thread

[couturecouture]

Man, I am the only person I know who makes the connection between the burger and the cow.
It makes me sick to even smell meat.

Same here. . . some is worse than others but once in a while I will start to gag at the smell of meat. I cannot look at meat and not think of the animal that it came from. I used to be able to cook it for my boyfriend and friends but I can barely touch it now, if at all.

I think it's a waste to toss/not use animal products when you've already bought 'em.

That's a good point. I have to agree.

 

[foreverandnone]

Umm okay .
I was drinking the other night and had a HAM and swiss sandwich at Tim Hortons and I feel terrible. I didn't even realize I was eating meat until I was finished.

I feel terrible. Has anyone here ever made a mistake before?

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Nope, never made a mistake. (Do you believe me? )

I have a question for you guys ... I was having dinner recently with someone who used to be vegetarian, then started eating fish and chicken again, but still does not eat beef and pork. She was questioning the waiter about exactly how the grill was cleaned. Because it was scraped and not scrubbed down between grilling beef/pork and chicken, she said the chicken cooked on that grill would make her sick, because she no longer had the enzymes to digest beef and pork.

True?

 

[ilaughead]

^I've heard people say stuff like that quite a few times, but I don't see why your body would stop producing the enzymes. I could be completely wrong though, I'm no nutritionist/biologist.

foreverandnone: Don't worry too much about it. It's near impossible to not make a mistake every once in a while (especially when eating out!) Just take it as a lesson, and keep on truckin'!

 

[cestmagique]

I have a question for you guys ... I was having dinner recently with someone who used to be vegetarian, then started eating fish and chicken again, but still does not eat beef and pork. She was questioning the waiter about exactly how the grill was cleaned. Because it was scraped and not scrubbed down between grilling beef/pork and chicken, she said the chicken cooked on that grill would make her sick, because she no longer had the enzymes to digest beef and pork.

True?

False, but let's see if I can explain. It takes a very long time for levels of item-specific enzymes to drop so much that your friend would maldigest beef or pork, especially since what she would be consuming is such a miniscule portion. The fact that she still eats meat would also make it easy for her body to handle beef or pork, since those meats are biologically similar to fish and chicken. Basically, any reaction she had to a little scrap of beef or pork would be due to psychology, not biology.

The body knows what to do when confronted with food. This meat scenario is the same as if you eat a food you've never tried before; there might be certain parts of the food that your body would not yet be efficient at digesting, but overall, the physical compositions of animal products and edible plants to other foods in their respective categories are extremely similar, and bodies are designed to effectively use any food that is put into them anyway, just for the sake of survival. There's nothing to worry about.

 

[foreverandnone]

Yeah it seems pretty false to me. It seems more a mentality thing rather than a physical enzyme problem.

 

[oiselet]

Umm okay .
I was drinking the other night and had a HAM and swiss sandwich at Tim Hortons and I feel terrible. I didn't even realize I was eating meat until I was finished.

I feel terrible. Has anyone here ever made a mistake before?

I've made similar mistakes. Sometimes I don't check the ingredients until after I've eaten only to realize it had fish sauce, chicken gizzards, gelatin, or whatever. Gr.

 

[foreverandnone]

gizzards?!

 

[cestmagique]

It seems more a mentality thing rather than a physical enzyme problem.

Yep, and it's a worry without any logical basis.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Thanks, y'all It sounded like BS to me, but she explained it so confidently that I was like, well ... OK



She has a great deal of energy behind all of her various sicknesses

 

[Serenity*Now]

I agree with the above ^ and I also don't think it's possible that a tiny amount of substance on the grill could bring havoc on her digestive system. But I know people that can smell and taste other meat (esp. game) on their food and dislike the taste/smell so much so that it makes them sick.

Maybe it was just a line that she told the waiter (& you) to make sure they were extra careful. Like when you tell them you're allergic to some type of food that way they are SURE not to use even the smallest amounts of it, in or around your food. Versus just telling them it's a preference.

 

[tgeezyband]

Man, I am the only person I know who makes the connection between the burger and the cow.
It makes me sick to even smell meat.
Ive progressively started going into vegan territory although I doubt I will truly be able to commit 100%.

Question: if you bought leather goods before you were vegan, do you still wear them or do they sit out?

If you think about things that way then you will get sick, what about the fact that manure is used in process to fertilize farms, all the bugs that crawl on the plants, but I just eat the stuff that taste good and don't think of the actual process of how the food got to my plate. (Only if the restaurant has a bad rep, or looks dirty will I think of what could have been done to my food but that is different)

Now, are there any vegetarian chains here in U.S.? I want to try more good vegetarian dishes, but I can't recall a stand alone vegetarian restaurant in a nearby area.

I'm not going to go vegan, but I'd just want a good balance between meat and veggie.

 

[Serenity*Now]

^ Veggie Grill, Native Foods...those are a few that come to mind.

 

[tullepen]

I am vegan on and off.I miss mozzarella from time to time.Can't get tempeh or seitan down,ugh! But what would I do without Soy Delicious ice cream?! I love the Cherry one!

 

[JeniWren]

I'm thinking of cutting down on meat completely, for anyone else that has decided to take this up, is it easy to begin with?

I eat so much chicken and salmon, i'd need to find a good substitute! If anyone has any good links for vegetarian 'beginners' let me know.

 

[parisia]

Make sure you buy B12 supplements!

 

[fashionista-ta]

I'm thinking of cutting down on meat completely, for anyone else that has decided to take this up, is it easy to begin with?

I eat so much chicken and salmon, i'd need to find a good substitute! If anyone has any good links for vegetarian 'beginners' let me know.

My mother used to buy the day-old tofu, so I'm not the best person to talk to about meat substitutes

However, when I do meatless meals, there's often cheese (or pasta and cheese) involved ... I also think risottos make very satifying meatless meals. I use chicken broth, but I'm sure veggie broth works too ...

 

[Mignonne]

i am vegetarian but i was vegan (no eggs no honey...) too. I dont eat meat since 7years i think

 

[Bella_Lass334]

hello *waves* ive been a vegetarian for 5 years and this is the first time ive decided i want to contribute a vegetarian meal for thanksgiving. does anyone know of a really good veg. gravy and veg. stuffing recipe? karma awaits you!

 

[fashionista-ta]

hello *waves* ive been a vegetarian for 5 years and this is the first time ive decided i want to contribute a vegetarian meal for thanksgiving. does anyone know of a really good veg. gravy and veg. stuffing recipe? karma awaits you!

OK, I will admit I know nothing about this I have never made Thanksgiving gravy or dressing without the aid of a turkey.

But I do know enough to say that the key will be your veggie stock. For vegetarian fat, you're not going to do better than butter, and I'd use it with a generous hand.

If it were me, since cream gravy is vegetarian, I would be tempted to make that instead, rather than trying to make a vegetarian turkey gravy. (Hard to see how that would end well ... but a real triumph if it did!) It's lovely on mashed potatoes of course ...

For the dressing, I would be sure to include at least some cornbread, and nuts (like pecans or chestnuts). I'm thinking I would make a strong onion and celery stock. You can use the onion skins, and of course you would want as many celery leaves as possible. I always select the bunch on this basis, but you might want to buy multiple bunches.

I would also use fresh herbs in the dressing ...