Veg people I need your help?????!!!?

So I have a situation and if you read through it I would appreciate SO MUCH any advice and help, I am so lost!!





So long story short, I am freaked out by the amount of chemical additives in our food, like arsenic in chicken, hormones in beef, and how cows and pigs and chickens are fed one another's feces and stuff.





I can't afford organic meat (2-3 times the price) so I need HELP in cooking, like mostly vegetarian. How to work with tofu? I already tried making stirfry with Silken tofu stuff and it was disgusting and flavorless mush. I need help and pointers, I am TOTALLY new to this... how do you guys do it?





I just feel so retarded that I have lived for 26 years and I can't think outside the box for vegetarian meals except beans and rice or mac and cheese.Veg people I need your help?????!!!?
Wow, what a horrifying thing to experience! Good for you for being such a great mom though :)





I can tell you from my experience, that when I first became vegetarian (10 yrs ago), soy products all tasted weird to me. I didn't like tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, soy ice cream, etc. and I was afraid to cook with it. I ate a lot of packaged 'fake meat' which is healthy and yummy (like veggie dogs), and I don't think it's more expensive than regular deli meats, burgers, etc.





Once I got brave enough to experiment with tofu, I started out by heavily seasoning it and eating it mixed in with lots of vegetables (stir fries!). Garlic, salt and pepper, plus herbs of your choice (I like the italian blends, with rosemary, thyme, basil, etc.) are tofu's best friend. After you eat it in combination foods for a while, you will grow accustomed to the taste and probably start to really enjoy it. I LOVE tofu now and can't believe I ever didn't like it.





My recommendation with cooking ideas is to make foods like you did before, but replace the chicken/beef with tofu. Anything goes... lasagne, pasta, stir fries, soups, etc. Just season the tofu so that it tastes good! It doesn't have much flavor on its own, which is actually kind of nice because you can make it taste like whatever you want to, depending on the type of dish you're making. I also strongly recommend using firm or extra firm tofu - the texture is much better and it's easier to cook with. Try cutting it into small cubes, and cooking it with onion, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and herbs. That basic 'recipe' can go with many different types of dishes (on top of spaghetti, in stir fries, with rice and veggies...) If you prefer asian flavors, try cooking with garlic, ginger and soy sauce.





Oh yeah, you can also marinate tofu, like you would meat, to infuse it with flavor.





There are also other types of proteins/fake meats that you can buy or make on your own if you find them too expensive where you live. 'Seitan' is made from a simple recipe of mainly wheat gluten, and is a great sub. for meat. I've made it on my own, and once you get the hang of it, it's inexpensive and easy to make. You can also get 'TVP' (texturized vegetable/soy protein), and make your own veggie burgers, or a fake 'ground beef' type of protein. Check the organic or health food sections of your grocery store for the stuff to make these... if they don't carry the right stuff, check if there is a 'natural' or organic store in your area.





I hope some of that helps... kind of long-winded, but I wanted to get it all in there to encourage you in your quest for a healthier diet for your family :)





If you have any questions, don't hesitate to email me.Veg people I need your help?????!!!?
you need to go and get a good cookbook.





or go online and find some good vegetarian recipes. There are tons of sites out there.





there are also probably lots you know how to cook that don't need tofu -- pasta w/ roasted veggies, beans and cornbread, fish and coleslaw. Get protein from other sources too -- like yogurt and avocados. you don't HAVE to have tofu. :)
I just had to answer this and give you a star for telling others about this. I have a child who was coming home from school with terrible stomach pains. Turns out the Styrofoam they used to serve the lunches on was the problem. Some children act like the parakeet in the mine and we have two of those children. We have a lot of toxic materials in our environment that should be done away with and because of a child's size, they are the most vulnerable. Keep telling people.


I know organic meats are expensive but they are well worth the cost. People eat more meat then they really need and if you cut back on portions sizes and use a mix of beans etc. it is more affordable.
I have been a veg for about 10 years and what you have said is so scary, my family still eat meat but I will show them this and maybe they will change there minds.





So the help you have asked for.





I don't use tofu I to found it mushy and tasteless. Quorn is the best I have found. It comes as mince, chunks, fillets, ready made as sausages, burgers etc. I make mince pies, shepherds pies, curries, stir fries and my family don't even pick up that its not meat. Quorn takes on the flavors around it so if you use aromatics it has a lot of flavor. Beans and chickpeas make some really tasty recipes. Everyone thinks lentils are flavorless but there not.





3 bean casserole





Tin chickpeas


'; borlotti beans


'; red beans


'; tomatoes


3 celery sticks chopped


1 onion chopped


2/3 garlic chopped


green pepper chopped


Basil, dried 1 tablespoon


salt and pepper


vegetable stock cubes 2


TOPPING


3/4 potatoes, sliced and par boiled


4 oz Cheddar cheese





In olive oil fry for 2/3 Min's the veg, basil and stock cubes, add beans and stir in. Add tomatoes s and p cover and cook for 20 Min's.


Put into large casserole dish cover with potatoes, sprinkle over the cheese. Bake in med hot oven for 20 Min's till nicely browned.





There are great veg recipes on the net.





'
































'
A previous responder said it best in my opinion: just get a good vegetarian cookbook.





You mentioned tofu, which is made from soy bean. . .When using soy products, it is important to use fermented soy. All the health benefits that are advertised about soy are actually about Fermented Soy, not regular soy; regular soy is not so good for you, but Fermented soy is.





If you need to get conventional fruits or vegetables, just put some hydrochloric acid in a spray bottle and spray, then wash. Then do the same with white or apple cider vinegar, then wash. This will get much of the pesticides off.





All the best,


Alaf
Tobacco is also said to be sprayed with insecticides like arsenic...keep him away from smokers too.





I had heard about the arsenic and chickens but I didn't know it was that bad that a child could be poisoned. Arsenic poisoning can make hair fall out too.





Read vegetarian books by Gary and Steve Null to find out all the details of meat additives.





Cows can be given a growth hormone (rbGH or Prosilac)made by Monsanto to make them produce more milk and the milk doesn't have to be labeled as such.





Also cow TB germs can survive pasteurization and there are many germs in milk....Pasteurization requirements for soymilk, rice milk, almond milk are stricter than for cow's milk..as far as how many germs and contaminants can be in there.








http://www.notmilk.com/t.html (M. Bovis and cow's milk)


http://www.gulfmd.com/general%20medecine鈥?/a> (M. Bovis can cause TB)





*********


Quorn roast (frozen food section) with some vegetable oil and oregano rubbed on the outside and baked makes a good turkey substitute.





Also Morningstar Farms has ';Chik Patties'; ...a fake chicken made from soy.





I like this fake chicken broth a lot. You can use the broth to make soups or add vital wheat gluten (high protein) to make a chicken flavored seitan (fake meat or wheat meat).








Light Yeast Flavoring Powder (chicken flavor broth)





This has a poultry-type flavor. Nutritional yeast is not the same as baker's yeast. It is found in the health food store or section.





Ingredients


1 cup good tasting nutritional yeast flakes


1 Tbsp. salt


1/2 tsp. ginger


1/2 tsp. turmeric


1 tsp. black pepper


1 tsp. marjoram


1 tsp. tarragon


1 tsp. paprika


1 tsp. rosemary


2 tsp. sage


2 tsp. celery seed


2 tsp. thyme


2 tsp. garlic powder


2 tsp. onion powder





Method


Pulverize all ingredients in a blender until powdered. Store in a jar in a cool place. Use about 1 TBSP per cup?


http://unturkey.org/2006/12/20/light-yea鈥?/a>





*******


Here is a recipe for fried chicken seitan..Nutritional yeast is not the same as baker's yeast. It is found in the health food store or section.





Seitan. What is Seitan? Does anyone know?





Seitan (pronounced SAY-tan) or ';wheat meat'; is a protein rich food made from wheat gluten. All that mock-meat you eat in restaurants or purchase from your supermarkets is usually made in part from wheat gluten.





Like all flours, wheat gluten has virtually no flavour鈥?so this means your Seitan will soak up the flavours of whatever it is cooked with.





You can run out to your local supermarket and purchase pre-made Seitan or pre-flavored cutlets鈥?but why do that when it is so easy and cheap to make yourself! You can make Seitan from scratch using regular flour and water (recipe on page 284 of La Dolce Vegan) but for today's lesson and in the interest of time we will be using Instant Vital Wheat Gluten.





Gluten has many names. Instant gluten. Wheat Gluten. Vital Gluten. Vital Instant Wheat Gluten. It's all the same. Just get some and let's get cooking.








BASIC INSTANT GLUTEN





1/2 cup instant vital wheat gluten flour


1/2 cup water





In a medium bowl, stir together the wheat gluten and water until it becomes elastic. Knead for 5 minutes and set aside. Choose a mock meat flavouring (recipes for flavourings on page 284-5of La Dolce Vegan) to use with your prepared dough.





Makes 2 large or 4 small servings.











FAUX CHICKEN FLAVOURING





* Basic Instant Gluten (see recipe above)





Broth:





2 cups water


1/4 cup nutritional yeast


2 tbsp tamari


1 tsp onion powder


1 tsp dried sage


1/2 tsp dried thyme


1/2 tsp salt


1/4 tsp celery seed





In a large saucepan, bring all of the broth ingredients to a boil. Slice Basic Instant Gluten into steaks, chunks or strips and drop carefully into broth. Reduce heat and cover with lid. Let simmer for 50-60 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until broth has reduced completely.





Use ';chicken'; immediately in your dish of choice or store in the refrigerator (for up to 6 days) or the freezer (for up to 6 months). For a chewier texture, once you've boiled the ';chicken';, bake it at 350 degrees F in a lightly oiled baking dish for 30 minutes.





Makes 2 large or 4 small servings.








Jay Lo鈥檚 FRIED ';CHICKEN'; seitan


When you prepare your ';chicken';, shape and cut them so they resemble a nice breast.





1/4 cup flour


1/2 tsp paprika


1/2 tsp salt


1/2 tsp ground black pepper


1/2 cup ';milk'; (soy, oat, rice etc)


Faux Chicken (see recipe above)


3-4 tbsp olive oil





In a shallow dish, stir together the flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Set aside. In a small bowl, pour ';milk'; and set aside. Dip ';chicken'; into flour, then dip in ';milk'; and then into flour again. In a large frying pan on medium-high heat, fry ';chicken'; in oil until well browned on both sides.





Makes 2 large or 4 small servings.


http://www.vegfamily.com/vegan-cooking-t鈥?/a>
Stir fry with silken is a bad idea lol. It's meant for smoothies and things like that. use firm and extra firm with you're grilling. It's kind of tasteless, so use a marinade or plenty of spices when cooking with it. Hope this helped =)
Library = lots of cookbooks.





Go to some vegetarian/vegan potlucks to actually eat and try things and get ideas.





Silken tofu has basically been invented for making desserts.





To use tofu... you just drain it, and chuck it in. That's it. No mystery there.





Get a stainless wok (do not get one with non-stick coating).


Wash wok.


Get extra virgin olive oil.


Put in wok.


Heat oil.


Throw in garlic, ginger.


Throw in cut up tofu.


Cook cook cook (tofu is already cooked by the way).


Add something such as soy sauce.


Done.





What I usually do is the same, but add vegetables first and tofu last.


Some veggies cook faster, so cook them first then add he others later that cook faster. Throw in a little water and put the lid on... steam for a bit... mix... repeat until ready.'





Just practise throwing stuff together.


You'll get the hang of it.


Miso is a great thing to use instead of soy sauce too.


Little nutritional yeast will add that chicken skin flavour too -- great for soups and sauces.





Well, there's a whole world of food out there... mostly vegetarian or vegan. Explore the world of food.
OH WOW! I'm totally sorry to hear about your son. How awful!! I hope he is back to normal in no time. :-)





I had to chuckle when I read ';I just feel so retarded that I have lived for 26 years and I can't think outside the box for vegetarian meals except beans and rice or mac and cheese.'; I felt the same way when I first became a vegetarian. I was like, ';Okaaaay....a meatless dish can't be THAT hard to create'; - but it was like a foreign state of affairs for me. Not to worry...it's normal for those of us who were reared on meat.





Okay. Let's start from the beginning. Do a little research about the vegetarian diet. You said that you've been poking around on the Internet and that's a good thing. There is a lot of information out there, but don't believe EVERYthing you see. I'd suggest going to your local library and checking out a few books about vegetarianism as well as some veggie cookbooks. They often have special sections about stocking the ';basics'; in your kitchen as well as a nutritional guide. You will then be able to see what you can replace your meat products with to get the same amount of vitamins and minerals. Of course, the biggest bonus of cookbooks is learning what types of food you can eat and gaining some great recipe ideas.





Onto beloved tofu. (haha) It's a very versitile food as long as you buy the right type for the right recipe. There are different levels of firmness and for a stir fry, you want to use firm or extra firm. It does not crumble as easily as the silken and soft varieties. You can marinate the tofu to make it taste however you'd like...you should also drain the tofu before using. Here's a one-stop source to the ins and outs of tofu:


http://www.cooking-solutions.com/tofules鈥?/a>





Just keep in mind that it's better to replace the missing meat with fruit and vegetables instead of carbs and cheeses. Loading up on those is a sure-fire way to gain weight with a quickness. Limit your inatke of pastas, potatoes, cheese pizza, grilled cheese, etc. They're okay in moderation, but eating other things like black bean burritos, veggie stiry fry with brown rice, baked sweet potatoes and stuffed green peppers with veggie ground beef are healthier options.


Good luck to you!