Meat free meals for climate change

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lancashire lass
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Meat free meals for climate change

Post by lancashire lass »

Probably seems odd putting in the "environmental, green & ethical issues" section instead of food & drink but with growing concern about climate change, reducing red meat consumption seems to be getting a lot of attention to reduce greenhouse emissions as well as water and land usage (as in growing crops to feed livestock instead of people)

As part of my "Green Pledge" that I signed into earlier this year, I opted to have a meat free day once a week and so far is no big deal and I'm now moving on to regularly having at least 2 or 3 meat free meals a week. Unfortunately I seem to have replaced some meat dishes with cheese which comes under the same umbrella to not only reduce red meat but diary consumption as well. So I have been looking at alternates to meat and I have to say that I'm not overwhelmed by the choice available. Some people think it's silly eating something that tastes like meat and to be honest, it's not the flavour but the texture and a feeling of being satiated (that is, after eating a meal and not feel like something is "missing" in it ... I usually end up eating something else later on which is not good for my waistline)

I'm not a big red meat eater anyway but I tried replacing minced beef with Quorn mince in my traditional spaggy bol - it was so insipid that the end result is my going back to minced beef. I used the rest of the Quorn mince in a chilli instead which was okay but I have decided not to get any more. Besides, I thought it was a little on the expensive side. Next, I tried soya mince - not bad in a chilli so that has been one switch. As for other Quorn products - again, the price puts me off for what you get but I did decide to try Quorn pieces and I have to say this is working out much better and in my opinion a good alternate and can easily be incorporated into sauce and curry dishes.

I just wondered if there were any other "alternates" to meat or cheese (though if I was honest, I really do not want to give up my cheese)? Not so much meal ideas (I'm not after recipes) but basic products that can be incorporated into meals. It goes without saying that egg dishes are on the menu already but any other suggestions would be much appreciated.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by Freeranger »

OH was veggie for a long time and I found the Quorn range quite mixed - the best ones for us were the fast-food type things such as burger, southern style chicken & sausages. All quite good. The mince improves if you brown it first with onions and then add your ingredients, but the best mince I found was TVP - textured vegetable protein (yum!). I think, like tofu, these types of products work best as sponges for the other, stronger flavours - once it's in a rich sauce or been marinated, it's the added flavours you notice. Can only recommend experimentation and practice with these.
We also ate a lot of pulses, which tick the satiating box. I can recommend Gail Duff's various vegetarian cookery books, or the original Cranks. You'll find recipes for vegan 'cheeses' and butters which are nut and grain based. The key to these recipes is the wholefood element - the fibre and often added bran leaves you full.
If that's all a bit 70s for you, then a lot of Indian cookery is non cow based - dahls, for example.
Varying the textures gives you back the jaw feel that you're missing from the meat. Crunchy veg and chewy bread help. Everyone misses bacon - there's a version next to the Quorn that's quite good. Flash fry or grill for longer than they suggest. Also crumble as a topping instead of cheese.
So, alternatives to cheese - the vegan cheeses BUT the change of angle to wholefood veggie leaves you not needing it nearly so much anyway.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by albertajune »

An interesting topic this. I also eat very little red meat, opting instead for chicken with a couple of veggie days.
There are alternatives if we can afford them but most are made from beans which can then give us other problems. For instance most beans used in vegetarian and vegan food have to be transported into the country putting lots more contamination into the atmosphere.
It is partially being blamed on cows for the amount of farting that they do but what about other animals and our ever growing population. I'm sure that we all contribute in this way.
I personally think that red meat should be eaten in moderation but maybe think again about all the overseas holidays that people now have which they didn't have a few years ago. I really feel that transport is our biggest problem and that includes the amount of cars on the road, sometimes more than one in a family.
The climate change with the problems it brings is such worry for future generations but I don't think that people are fully committed to making changes to their lifestyle and this includes people world wide. Not eating red meat is the answer.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by wendy »

We very, very rarely eat meat and then it would be beef or lamb. Difficult to factory farm those and we stopped some time ago simply because we felt we ate too much meat.
We do not eat quorn or any processed subsitutes.
Or don't eat any processed, quick meals etc and neither do any of my animals.
Just don't like putting rubbish in my body.
The Cranks recipe book is well used in this house as well )grin2(
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lancashire lass
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

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Freeranger wrote:the best mince I found was TVP - textured vegetable protein (yum!). I think, like tofu, these types of products work best as sponges for the other, stronger flavours - once it's in a rich sauce or been marinated, it's the added flavours you notice


Just had a google and found a short youtube on how to rehydrate (the "3 parts liquid + 1 part water" confused me until I realised the liquid was some form of stock for flavouring) I think I'll give that a try thank you )t'

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZSxkzDy9tg[/youtube]



Freeranger wrote:We also ate a lot of pulses, which tick the satiating box.


oops, forgot to mention that I'm not impressed with replacing meat for pulses - I can just about tolerate baked beans (oh yes, one of my occasional meat free meals is (low sugar) baked beans over baked/microwaved potato, plus er ... cheese) and I prefer tinned butter beans instead of red kidney beans for the chilli though I'll have them if that's all there is in the cupboard. The occasional soya mince chilli is working out okay but generally chickpeas, dahl, umpteen other types of beans & legumes, lentils ... not my thing (one of the reasons why I'll never truly be vegetarian because I'm a bit fussy with some foods) I have been adding a small amount of lentils to the chilli meat/soya mince sauce but not much.

albertajune wrote:most are made from beans which can then give us other problems. For instance most beans used in vegetarian and vegan food have to be transported into the country putting lots more contamination into the atmosphere.


I agree - beans like soya and chickpea are cultivated in warmer countries and shipped over. The argument against red meat consumption is that soya is used to feed animals instead of to people. And yes, too much bean food give me problems which is why I only occasionally have baked beans / chilli.

albertajune wrote:It is partially being blamed on cows for the amount of farting that they do but what about other animals and our ever growing population. I'm sure that we all contribute in this way.


)t' although to be fair, not just farting but belching too - cows have multiple stomachs and also chew the cud which basically becomes a bioreactor where the food has to be fermented by bacteria so that it is broken down and more easily digested. For example, if we ate raw carrots, we don't get anywhere near the amount of nutrients than when we cook it which is the same sort of process. The result of belching (and farting) is release of methane into the atmosphere which is a bigger greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. There is evidence that some modern farming methods (breeding for larger animals + rapid growth for the meat or higher yields of milk, increased feeding instead of grazing and having much larger herds) increase emissions.

albertajune wrote:but maybe think again about all the overseas holidays that people now have which they didn't have a few years ago. I really feel that transport is our biggest problem and that includes the amount of cars on the road, sometimes more than one in a family.
The climate change with the problems it brings is such worry for future generations but I don't think that people are fully committed to making changes to their lifestyle and this includes people world wide. Not eating red meat is the answer.


)t' I absolutely agree - overseas holidays, attending big sports and entertainment events, some of the sports themselves - and that's just a drop in the ocean of all the other carbon dioxide emissions. I imagine a football stadium filled with smoke, and removing a single smoke particle (a pin prick) is my contribution when avoiding an activity that generates carbon dioxide - it's such a big problem it needs everyone on board to take personal action instead of telling the governments to do something. We are all responsible one way or another, whether it's being taken in by adverts, or keeping up with fashion, doing our own thing regardless of the consequences.

Freeranger wrote:alternatives to cheese - the vegan cheeses


I think I might stick to my cheddar cheese sorry FR - I actually like lots of different types of cheeses providing they don't smell to high heaven. For cooking sauces and toppings, nothing beats cheddar quite the same - I'm happy to reduce but substitute doesn't always go down well with me. That's not to say I won't give it a try ... I'll let you know if anything seems a good alternate

I think I may have to start visiting the vegetarian/vegan stalls and just try stuff out to see if there's anything that I'll be happy to swap providing it is affordable and within my grocery budget.

wendy wrote:The Cranks recipe book is well used in this house as well


I've just bought a second hand book of the Cranks Recipe Book: the vegetarian classics online - it should arrive next week - and will give this a try, thank you )t'

One other thing I forgot to mention that I definitely won't be looking into and that's eating insects, whether live, smoked, dried, fried, flavoured and drizzled with whatever. The thought just makes me )loo( I would rather starve LOL
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by wendy »

As a lot of you know.
I have Gousto boxes, a couple of times a month.
They do some nice veggie dishes. A little too much carbohydrates, sometimes, but saves me having to think of something and shop for it.
I get a box with 2 meals for 2, for £24.99. I can make the 2 meals stretch to 3 so that is 6 meals. I eat one meal and freeze the others for another day.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

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I didn't like to say that I wasn't convinced about the whole cow thing as you were asking specifically about cheese replacement (that you're not going to change anyway!!).
I think the argument is much more about intensive rearing or environmentally damaging things like clearing rain forests for grazing. Good farming practice can have a net positive effect, and this farmer explains it way better than me:
https://www.facebook.com/MossgielFarm/p ... __tn__=K-R
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by Meanqueen »

I've just eaten my dinner. New potatoes, carrots, and frozen broad beans in the steamer. Half a tin of mushy peas warmed in the microwave in a mug, and poured over the top of the vegetables. I will probably have the same tomorrow.

I do sometimes eat Quorn products, either grilled, or chopped up in a pan with onions and mushrooms. Tes….co do a 6 pack of frozen veggie burgers, thing they call them patties, for £1.

Trying to cut down on cheese, I don't buy the big blocks any more, I get small potions of tasty cheese, cheapest at Allllldidly. I eat chick peas and pulses, pasta and rice, and noodles. Not eaten meat for many many years, can't stomach it knowing where it comes from, not eaten fish for about 7 or 8 years.

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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by Freeranger »

Another thought for cutting down on cheese - use stronger ones or mix blue cheese with the normal one. More bite per mouthful. We do it when we're dieting.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

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I am fortunate enough to have the Hari Khrishna community very near to me.
They have slaughter free cattle and I get my milk etc from them. It is not cheap.
But I know that these cattle are looked after like they were when I was a child. I pay the extra to keep the calves with their mothers. The male calves are not slaughtered but go onto to kept to pull carts etc. The girls retire when they are finished milking. They are also milked by hand.
Bonus they are fed on grass etc, as they should be, no pellets. Hence they do not procuce the farts that processed fed animals do.
Which I can vouch for, as my dogs are fed real meat and don't have a fatulence problem
They are called The Ahimsa Dairy Houndation. Lovely people
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lancashire lass
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by lancashire lass »

I forgot to mention I do use mushrooms a lot which I really like - they are full of protein and low in carbohydrate and no fat (except in what they are cooked in of course) - so they either replace meat (for example in an omelette instead of say ham, or topping on a pizza or simply grilled/fried with or without garlic/sauce and drizzled over vegetables) but is also one way to bulk up on and have smaller meat & pasta portions for example in a spaggy bol.

Freeranger wrote:you were asking specifically about cheese replacement (that you're not going to change anyway!!).


sorry my fault - I mean an alternate to cheese (as a source of protein) rather than replace with a different (vegan) cheese. I'm not against trying different cheeses - I use cheese a lot in cooking (mainly toppings) rather than say in a sandwich, so if I did switch it has to be (i) similar in price as I have a tight budget (ii) same or similar taste and cooking qualities. I once tried "low fat" cheese and it went straight into the bin - put me off trying an equivalent alternate for life LOL. (I'm not fond of cottage cheese either)

Freeranger wrote:I think the argument is much more about intensive rearing or environmentally damaging things like clearing rain forests for grazing.


you put it a lot better than I did )t'

Meanqueen wrote:I eat chick peas and pulses, pasta and rice, and noodles.


I eat pasta, rice and noodles, even occasionally bulgur wheat which has a nice nutty texture. Potatoes and sweet potato also feature a lot in various form (boiled, fried, baked, in soup/stew) but these are all mainly carbohydrates. I buy the wholewheat pasta and noodles and I like the Basmati rice with wild rice (cooks well when added to a curry such as a Biriyani and left to simmer so all done in one pan) and are both filling and slightly lower in carbohydrates than most others. I'm borderline diabetes type 2 so I'm always being told to cut down on carbohydrates.

Meanqueen wrote:not eaten fish for about 7 or 8 years


I still eat fish but not too often and even then, I do have principles and stick to sustainable fishing stock. I have done now for about 20 years when I first started to notice the size of fish for sale were getting smaller indicative of over fishing.

I also eat chicken and in particular turkey which is lower in calories (turkey mince in a creamy herb sauce or alternate in a corn beef hash tastes really nice) so these have been good alternate to red meat dishes but I still only have one portion every week or every other week so I'm not eating any more than usual.

)t' Thanks for all the suggestions so far, it's really been appreciated.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

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Still waiting for delivery of my second hand book of the Cranks Recipe Book: the vegetarian classics but in the meantime I have done a little more research.

On my Saturday supermarket shop, I only called in at the one shop and there was a special offer on Quorn products so I selected a few with different seasonings and have since tried some of each - a little on the salty side, even on special offer a little on the expensive side but generally they are an acceptable alternate if I got home from work and was too tired to start cooking from scratch (my "emergency" bung it in the oven and ping when its ready kind of food) The Swedish meat balls & Crispy nuggets were surprisingly nice. I also bought some own brand "burgers" ... actually very tasty and when I looked at the ingredients, contained a mix of veggies such as carrot, red pepper, celery, onion, garlic and chopped nuts. I wouldn't call them burgers but more like a moist thin flat potato or fish cake (without the fish, potato or breadcrumbs) and at a pinch I could easily make my own version up.

The ingredient that caught my eye were the nuts ... one of those alternate to meat which I'd happily eat. However, for an ingredient I always thought shouted "vegan", I couldn't find anything. Not only did that surprise me but I was quite surprised by how few vegetarian / vegan foods are available, and the supermarket I visit is quite large. Mind, I didn't visit the chiller units as I am a bit loathe at buying any ready meals in general for both salt/fat content and price for what you get. But I've seen lots of recipes online for nut loaf (from the Christmas version up to a spicy version) so perhaps I'll make one and just reheat portions as and when I need.

Cheese ... well I walked the length and breadth of the aisle and every conceivable cheese was on display but nothing to indicate vegan or vegetarian. Perhaps I should have looked closely for the little green V on the label rather than a big sign on the shelf, but as I had already got to the supermarket later than usual, it was crowded and I abandoned that idea. I've since looked online for what is available in my local supermarkets ... for one, very little choice (I think only one brand) and secondly, some of the reviews are so mixed from 1 star to 5 star - much sounded like my review of the "low fat" cheese I once tried.

Meanwhile I have looked online at various other products available in supermarkets and I'm really surprised by the small selection or the fact that many products are referred to as "fishless" fish portions, "meatless" ham, chicken and so on. Goodness me, if I WAS vegetarian or vegan I think I would be embarrassed. It was never my intention to substitute a particular food for a vegetarian option of the same thing but to look at alternate ingredients to meat. No wonder some reviews are rubbish when comparing like with vegetarian product - of course they are not going to taste the same!

Meanwhile while looking for a supplier of the textured vegetable protein, I came across this old newspaper article printed at the time of the horse meat scandal (can you believe it was back in 2013) in the Mail Online Interesting read about how soya protein is manufactured and the effects on health when eaten regularly.

While on the subject of links, here's the one to the Quorn site - in case you didn't know, Quorn is a mycoprotein made from a fungus (mushrooms are a fungus in case you were thinking of some green mould LOL) and not soya. Apart from showing off their range of products (of which my local supermarkets only sold a small portion of them), there is a recipe section which might be worth looking at.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by Freeranger »

TVP is sometimes near the dried pulses, and some of the other veggie alternatives are in the chillers you're avoiding. I think most of the major supermarkets do sell it - you'll maybe have to ask where they've hidden it.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by lancashire lass »

Freeranger wrote:some of the other veggie alternatives are in the chillers you're avoiding


please tell me what these are - aside from hummus and tofu, the only veggie alternatives that I can think of are ready made meals.
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Re: Meat free meals for climate change

Post by lancashire lass »

On Saturday I bought various nuts and some other ingredients with intentions of making a nut roast one day soon (what I don't use could be frozen and heated up as and when needed) Meanwhile I also got 2 different vegetarian sausages - a Quorn variety and a Linda McCartney version. My friend's husband is a vegetarian and really likes the Linda McCartney ones so I thought I was on a winner ... until I tried them. I really wasn't impressed with either but maybe if they are smothered in a rich gravy or sauce they might be okay? Thought I'd try making my sausage casserole tonight with the veggie sausages instead.

Last night was meat free Monday so I made a Mushroom stroganoff except my version also includes a chopped onion, red peppers, butternut, garlic, peas and some Quorn pieces thrown in and served with Wild rice/Basmati rice.

What I have found is that vegetarian options (whether as raw ingredients or something from the chiller) are much more expensive than my usual shop. This doesn't seem to be the way forward of encouraging people to reduce their meat consumption.
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