Vegetarians

What are some alternate sources of protein and other things that aren’t in vegetables and fruits?

Re: Vegetarians

legumes/lentils/ beans r considered rich protein sources ....i think !!:)

Re: Vegetarians

Chick peas, lentils, seeds (sunflower, sesame) soy milk, boiled eggs, cheese, brown rice, peanuts, broccoli, apples and carrots.

Meal ideas would be Mac n’ Cheese, spinach lasagna, baked beans and baked potatoes.

And much more...

Re: Vegetarians

Just curious, any vegetarians here?

Thanks Afia and belle.

Re: Vegetarians

i'm not a vegetarian .....but i've been for sometime.....n i'm telling you its not an easy thing while living with gosht khor hubby n kids ...:)

Re: Vegetarians

Chick-tarian, i'm not too fond of red meat. Is your sister the vegetarian sarah?

Re: Vegetarians

Hey belle :) No, I am. Although a pretty bad one because I sometimes give in and eat fish or something. But working on becoming a vegan in the near future.

Afia yeah I know, my sister and husband love meat and can't live without it so I guess I am stuck with making two dishes everyday for the rest of my life. How come you aren't a vegetarian anymore? It was hard at first. No matter how full I was, I always felt like it wasn't a "meal", because I mostly eat stuff raw.

Re: Vegetarians

actually i wasn't a vegetarian by choice....all 3 of my kids forced me to be one before they were born.... couldn't stand the smell of meat at those times ...:)

Re: Vegetarians

Afia - I was the opposite.....I used to eat steaks for breakfast at one point.

Re: Vegetarians

ima vegetarian ( i finally decided meat doesnt do anything for me..and at times just plain sickens me out..and so i've officially give it up). everything belle listed is what i try to eat, and i take vitamins too.

Re: Vegetarians

Anyway some good sources are dairy products, nuts, soy, grains. though dairy products and nuts have a lot of fat. soy doesnt have much fat i believe or perhaps fat free not really sure. I grew up vegetarian and now eat meat now and then. Theres probably a lot of pakistani food thats veg and of course indian food is great for veggies.

As far as to the quality of protein that nuts etc have i don’t know much about that.

http://www.vegsoc.org/info/foodfacts.html

http://veggietable.allinfo-about.com/articles/protein.html

Vegetarian Protein Sources

There is a popular misconception that meat is the only real source of protein, and thus that a vegetarian diet is inherently unhealthy due to a lack of protein. It is impossible to stress how untrue this is.

First of all, the Recommended Daily Allowance of protein is not as high as one might think, and many people - vegetarian or not - eat more protein than their bodies actually need. The approximate RDA of protein is only 47 grams for women and 54 grams for men.

Secondly, there are many protein-rich vegetarian and vegan foods. The only problem is that vegetable sources of protein, with the exception of soybeans, are not complete proteins, so you need to eat more than one in order to get the complete protein.

Vegan sources of protein

* Cereals and grains - wheat, rye, corn, rice, pasta...
* Leafy green vegetables, including spinach
* Legumes - beans, lentils, peas, peanuts
* Nuts - almonds, walnuts, cashews...
* Seaweed - kelp, spirulina...
* Seeds - sesame, sunflower...
* Soy products -  tofu, tempeh, soy milk...
* Vegetables - Brussel sprouts, potatoes, yuca

Ovo-lacto sources of protein

* Eggs
* Cheese
* Milk
* Yogurt

As long as vegetarians (and everyone else, for that matter) eat a wide variety of foods, they will easily manage to eat enough protein - not to mention other nutrients.

If you want to be absolutely certain that you are getting enough protein, you should eat food combinations which form a complete protein, such as:

* Legumes + seeds
* Legumes + nuts
* Legumes + dairy
* Grains + legumes
* Grains + dairy

Chances are you already eat complete proteins without even trying. Here are some tasty and healthy complete protein combinations:

* Beans on toast
* Cereal/muesli with milk
* Corn and beans
* Granola with yogurt
* Hummus and pita bread
* Nut butter with milk or whole grain bread
* Pasta with beans
* Pasta with cheese (e.g., lasagne, macaroni and cheese)
* Rice and beans, peas, or lentils
* Rice with milk (rice pudding)
* Split pea soup with whole grain or seeded crackers or bread
* Tortillas with refried beans
* Veggie burgers on bread

Note that these combinations don’t necessarily have to be eaten at the same time; you can eat one several hours after the other and still benefit from the complete protein.

As you can see, there are plenty of vegetarian sources of protein, so the next time some “carnivore” :wink: says your diet is unhealthy, you’ll know how to respond.

Bon appétit !

Re: Vegetarians

Fat free or 1% cottage cheese is also very good source of protein. You may wanna try Gay Lea's Nordica brand.

Re: Vegetarians

try tofu and quorn and dried soya protein... looks like bits of dry rusk, makes good somosa filling.

go to holland and barret you'll find all of the above there and you'll also find sos mix (veg sausage mix ) to which you can add your own spices and herbs,

Re: Vegetarians

same