For the past three months we have, voluntarily, for no political statement nor protest, for all good intents and purposes, become vegetarian. Why, I hear you ask?
The decision to go cold turkey (mind the pun) and do away with meat was a simple decision based on a realisation we were eating far too much meat than could surely be healthy and spending far too much money for food we didn’t particularly care for.
With a fish meal thrown in one a week, more accurately we’d be described as pescatarian now. Rather than put a label on it, I’d happily call it a ‘meat-less’ diet and be done with it.
It’s not that we would never eat meat again, we just happen to be in no particular hurry. No hurry at all.
When it came down to the brutal truth, meat was a bit boring. We figured if we put as much love into the vegetables as we did meat (not as a side dish, but as a main), we couldn’t go wrong. And we haven’t so far!
Meat can be quite bland by itself. It needs spices, garlic, and lots of love, to say the least. Not everyone can afford prime cuts of meats, and supermarket offerings can be pumped with brine, or rather chewy regardless of the care gone into preparing a meal with it. Slow cooked meats are delicious, but so is a vegetable stew if prepared with love and vigor.
A meal prepared with love always tastes amazing.
Do meals get a little repetitive?
No more than meat dishes! Some say there are only really a handful dishes to one’s repertoire. If anything, we are eating a far bigger range of food than ever before. One trick we’ve found is to keep the textures varied.
We’ve replaced Beef Lasagne with Pumpkin & Feta, Lamb Pie with Leek & Mushroom, Chicken Ravioli with Cheese & Spinach, Mince Nachos with Refried Beans…the list goes on. We’ve never eaten better. Then there’s pasta bakes, soups, vege burritos, pies, tarts, pastries, and mushroom burgers!
How do we cope with the occasional meal out?
In our experience, we’ve been pleasantly surprised by number of meal options available to us. Vegetarian pizza is delicious, Indian restaurants do the best vegetable curries (close tie with Thai), and just about everywhere does a fish dish. We are spoiled for choice.
How do I feel?
Great After a meal we’re not bloated and we have the same energy as we did previously. Protein is really important for a balanced diet so we do ensure we get lots of it. So far, so good. While it hasn’t been the reason, we’ve noticed we’ve dropped a few pounds. The grocery bill is a little lighter too!
Are there any downsides?
Unfortunately, this healthy turn of events has resulted in disappointment. 10 months ago we’d set a family challenge to grow our own veges for a year from seed and not buy any veges from the supermarket. We have done exceptionally well however due to the increase of vegetable consumption (and the amount of variety required to successfully win with an all-vege diet) we needed to boost supplies by buying in extra.
Is that a fail? Yes in theory, but we are very excited that we’re still growing as much food as we possibly can under the circumstances. The vege garden has done, and is doing, us proud.
