Would anyone have advice for a new vegetarian?

[Gatsby]

I decided I'd become a slight modified vegetarian (by modified I mean I'm only allowing myself to eat only seafood once a week). Everyone I know is cool with it and I so far I haven't had any cravings for meat (except shrimp). The only problem is thinking of food to eat. So I was wondering if anyone could recommend a website for tasty vegetarian food and other ideas on what I should eat? So far I can think of salad, pasta, curry, and that's about it. Thanks to anyone who can help.

[LadyKaren]

Not that I have anything against vegetarians in the first place, mainly because most of my friends are vegetarians, but that is why I ask this:

Why?

There are benefits of becoming a vegetarian, yes, but there are a lot more negatives to it, especially if you don't make it a lifestyle choice and you're just cutting meat out of your diet. Most meat is where you get most of your nutrients from and unless you can supplement other foods in to your diet in a much higher ratio, it's unhealthy for you.

If you're considering actually doing this, expect massive change in your life for long term. If you're eating under the household of your parents, then expect to either be begging your parents to buy you certain foods, or expect to go shopping yourself. You'll need to be eating a lot of a.) fish (if your a peso-vegetarian), b.) nuts, and c.) bean. And I mean in large quantities.

I might sound like I'm against vegetarians, but I think it should only be done with proper consideration. For instance, one of my closest friend's dad's started having health problems and he had to cut meat out of his diet. In support, his entire family stopped eating meat with him. They changed from going to safeway to pick up food once a month, to having to shop weekly in order to have food in the house. They would go to farmers markets each week to get enough produce to support their family. They could do it because they had something they were doing it for.

Enough with my rants.  In my opinion, pending on your reasonings, I say at your age you really shouldn't be doing it. That is my advice.

[DemonLordZabuza]

I second her thoughts.  I'm not against vegitarians unless they come up to my face while Im eating a nice meal and telling me how horrible I am for eating what Im eating.  Then they get responded with a fist in their face.

My biggest thing for not becoming vegitarian is the lack of protein.  Also the fact that all the vegitarians I have met look malnurige, I dont think I spelled that right.

Suggestions:
-try talking to your folks to help you out, if you live at home.  If with a roommate talk to them.
-don't talk to much about it to people, because some will tease you with meats.
-don't stress to much about it.  Another thing I've seen with vegitarians and vegans, lots of stress...specially the first starting ones trying to figure out what to eat.

[mDuo13]

Good luck on becoming a modified vegetarian! If you don't want to become malnourished, you should make sure to eat enough vegetables, etc. - and yeah, DLZ is right, don't allow yourself to stress over what to eat, because the stress is gonna be way worse for your health than anything else. ;)

If you want ideas for what to eat, I think the external links on Wikipedia are usually a good place to start.

[Kegan_Flame]

Well, my mother is a long time [modified as well] vegetarian.. she eats seafood..

suggestion..


GET IRON PILLS...



this is a must.. your iron is going to go plummeting down to deathly levels.. my mom almost died because of being a vegetarian.. you're going to need to up your doctors appointments to make sure you're getting enough of everything else as well.

Food suggestions.. Pasta's are very good. You can do a lot with them.. as you're cooking the noodles add fresh herbs.. tarragon. thyme.. anything really.. you can add cooked beans, cucumber, zucchini... Veggie lasagnia is good to... eggplant parmasian... pizza... Morning star has some great veggie corn dogs.. taste better then the real thing.. they also have fake chicken nuggets.. breakfast patties and other things.. eat cereal with fruit in the morning.. make sure when you have a salad you add nuts, fruit, cheese and stuff to it.. hmm.. what else.. Burritos.. Taquitos [black bean].. be careful because at most Mexican restaurants the make the rice with chicken broth..



ok, that's all i got for now.. i can add more later :)

[destranacion]

like kegan said a whole lot of iron is necessary VERY VERY necessary.

a general multivitamin can be good too and while you are at it protein would not hurt.

i know a lot of very tasty vegetarian thai dishes

[Ayamachi]

You won't be putting your health and nutrition in danger by becoming a vegetarian if you do it correctly. Modified vegetarians have even less to worry about. For your specific diet, try these general guidelines:

1. Talk to a nutritionist or other health PROFESSIONAL; your doctor would be an excellent place to start, as they know your health better than anyone here can. They can also tell you which supplements you'll need to take, if any.
2. Learn about different types of fish and seafood - which kind you like, and which have specific nutrients.
3. Monitor your nutrient intake. The main issue for vegetarians is acquiring the nine essential amino acids (proteins that the body cannot produce on its own), or complete proteins, which you get in a single piece of meat. There are some plant sources of complete proteins, but other than those you can only get these essential amino acids through eating the right variety of foods.
4. Don't do this half-assed. You need to be educated and take it seriously. To do otherwise WILL lead you to health problems and deficiencies.
5. Don't settle for what you think vegetarians eat. There are tons of vegetarian versions of otherwise non-vegetarian foods, some of which have come a long way in tasting and behaving like the animal derivative. There are hundreds of thousands of good recipes out there, so take the time to look around and figure out what you like. The diets of Asia tend to have the most good vegetarian options for various cultural reasons, so that's a good place to start.
6. Be open to trying new foods. Even ones you didn't like before can be presented in a way that's more to your taste, and ones you've never heard of or tried before might be what you're looking for.
7. Stick to your guns. As much as there are militant vegans out there screaming at meat eaters and trying to get them to convert, there are friends and family of your own that, even with good intentions, will not take you seriously and try to steer you away from your dietary lifestyle. It can be very trying getting pressured from people you know, so think about how much you want this and be prepared to defend it.

Go to a bookstore and look through the cookbooks. You don't have to buy any, at least not at first, but they'll give you an idea of what food options are out there for you, and what might be worth trying.

[Gatsby]

I thank everyone for your responses. Well I'm not going to be one of those protesting PETA vegetarian/vegans I don't care if others eat meat (my girlfriend is a huge meat eater). I'm not going to monitor everything I eat or whatever, but I'm going to try my best to cut meat from my diet. So far I'm doing and feeling fine, I'm supplementing my protein by eating two egg every morning. I also take a multi-vitamin (I've been taking them long before I became a vegetarian) at dinner. I realize my old diet wasn't really different. I was looking at some of the college magazines for vegetarians and I've gotten some ideas for recipes. I'm quite fond of tofu and have no problem with vegetarian chicken nuggets, etc. I'm going to go for two weeks and see how I'm feeling, how my health is, etc. If I'm not looking good I've already decided I'll quit. 

[Mebbe]

High five. I'm semi-vegetarian. I eat meat only half the year, hahahaha. Just kidding. I still sometimes eat eggs, chicken and fish, but vegetables most of the time. Let's say, they now only make up 10% of my diet, maybe even less. I only eat those animal products for the protein and the iron, because really, it's kind of a hassle to get pills and tofu only when you're the only one in your family that's going to eat it.

But at least, my family is eating more vegetables now.

Good luck.

[Gatsby]

*high fives* Thanks! Tonight I experienced my first temptation. My parents were cooking steak and they smelled so tasty. Lol. But I cooked myself some tortellini and alfredo sauce. :P I think being a semi-vegetarian is fine for me, but as I said I'll see how I am health wise. I might even decide to eat solely white meat (which I prefer to red meat anyway).

[Kegan_Flame]

Just so you know the multi-vitamins won't cover the iron loss, you really need to check with your docker when becoming a vegetarian.. seriously.. my mom had to get hospitalized.. and she eats lots of eggs and fish.. so be careful!! it's a lot harder then it sounds, but i applaud you for going for it!

[Gatsby]

Ah see I didn't know that, I'm making an appointment in the morning so I'll see what he recommends then.

[Kazuko]

well actually I think The PETA vegetarian menus are pretty tasty

they give good advice, dont just be turned off by the fact that they can be a bit extremist, just substitute or modify the recipie if you must

soy meat is pretty good, pricey but well worth it like the soy chicken nuggets

[astroboy]

I'm a member of PETA == people eating tasty animals   ;D

Anyways I'm not a Nutritionist (nor do I play one on TV)....IMHO a vegetarian diet is more healthy. I think mainstream popular entertainment and advertising has hoodwinked society into thinking meat is a necessity for health. It is NOT. Not trying to whack a hornet's nest...I'm just saying. But hey, meat tastes good, so I'm not giving up on it.

as for food:
There are some Asian grocery stores or fast food take outs (especially Vietnamese) that sell fried tofu. While anything fried probably can't be too healthy but it has a very rich+heavy taste to it, so it can be used as a substitute if you have any meat cravings. Hope that helps.

good luck!
The Meatrix I

[BunofGovt]

I don't think its been mentioned yet, but if you eat desserts, you can google or search for vegan dessert recipes online.  I've found several good chocolate cake dessert recipes (made one for the office and everyone thought it was very tasty).  Be aware if you get serious about going more stringent that white sugar may not be considered vegan because of the processing process.  I think you need to look for a specific kind of sugar that is not processed the same way as white sugar, like beet sugar.  I found mine in Whole Foods.

[Moonblossom]

I have another strong suggestion/imploration for you that may sound kind of weird, but it's to get your cholesterol checked about three months after you stop eating meat. Especially if you have any Southeast Asian, Scandinavian, or French ancestry.

When I was younger, I stopped eating meat entirely. It wasn't a moral descision so much as an aesthetic one, the taste and texture of meat was unpalatable to me, I can't quite explain why.

High cholesterol runs in my family, and I was getting tested fairly regularly for it. After I stopped eating meat I figured I could stop getting it tested, and skipped it for a while. Then my dad had a massive stroke, and they insisted on testing me regularly again, and mine was through the roof. Here in Canada we use a different system, but I think it would have been around 700 on the US scale. Walking stroke or heart attack basically. I explained that I wasn't consuming -any- animal fats, I was excersizing reasonably, I was eating lots of veggies, and had no idea what had happened.

It turns out that the three groups I mentioned (and possibly others, I don't know) are prone to a genetic defect of the liver. Basically what happens is that if the body detects a deficit of both the good and bad cholesterols (since in effect you need at least a bit of both to function properly) it goes into a sort of panic mode and starts to produce the stuff on its own, but sometimes it doesn't know when to stop.

Now I am on medication and I've gone back to eating smaller amounts of meats and animal fat, and I have it sort of under control.

So please just keep in mind that while going veggie can be very heart- and artery-healthy, for some people it can also be dangerous if you don't keep an eye on it. Get yourself tested, and then maybe again a year later, and if both tests are low/normal, you should be fine. But if they're on the high end, especially if you're not eating any meat and don't consume a lot of junk food, you should discuss dietary options with a doctor if you want to continue being a vegetarian.

[Gatsby]

Just for an update if anyone wants to know. I've stopped eating all mammals. I still eat seafood and poultry. I've been going strong since I started this and I'm feeling fine and am in great health. :P

[Moonblossom]

Seafood is great, lots of protein and omega-3 fatty acids and whatnot, all really good for you. Glad it's working out.

[Gatsby]

Thanks. :P I've been eating way more vegetables and fruit too which is a nice replacement for fatty red meat. I won't lie I still crave meat occasionally but it's not too bad. Plus my parents have been very supportive and changed their diets to match mine (except when guests are over in that case I make my own food).