im trying really hard to become a vegetarian, but its hard when u work all the time and dont have time to cook

Question

any suggestions??

Answer 1

Cook big and freeze.

On the weekend, make a big pot of vegetarian soup and freeze it in individual portions. If the recipe says 6-8 servings, that will give you about six side-dish sized portions, or four main-course sized portions. Heat it up in the microwave and serve with fresh bread.

You can buy pre-cut bags of mixed salad greens, just rinse them, spin them and serve. Top with some toasted seeds (look in the bulk food section) and some organic salad dressing (or just olive oil and lemon juice).

If you roast your veggies in the oven, you can do other things while they roast. Here's a great recipe from the Food Network:

Vegetables:
8 baby carrots, trimmed
8 baby turnips, trimmed
8 baby beets, trimmed
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Toss the carrots, turnips, beets, thyme sprigs and garlic in a roasting pan with the olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper. Roast, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 30 minutes. Peel the beets.

You can serve this with a side of wild rice (just add water, put on the stove, and wait) or pasta (try it with a simple pesto or burnt butter sauce).

Answer 2

I would suggest starting with a few cookbooks geared towards vegetarian/vegan cooking. Cookbooks are good sources for finding traditional favorites (like lasagna) turned into meatless creations. The following books can usually be found on Ebay, Amazon, etc. Also try your local library.

Becoming Vegetarian by Vesanto Melina (1994)
Vegetarian cooking for dummies by Suzanne Havala Hobbs
Simple Little Vegan Slow Cooker by Michelle Rivera
Gradual Vegetarian by Lisa Tracy

In addition to the salads, roasted veggies, etc. mentioned by others, I would suggest stir frys. You can purchase pre-shredded produce (carrots, broccoli, cabbage, etc.) to keep on hand in the fridge. Simply add a bit of oil to a heated skillet, toss in your veggies, maybe a bit of tempeh or tofu, heat, season then serve over rice or noodles. Check out oriental cookbooks for recipe ideas, many have vegetable sections.

Check your grocer's freezer section for vegetarian microwave entrees, burgers, nuggets, etc.

Also, do some web searches for vegetarian recipe and products sites. i.e www.vegweb.com ; www.bocaburger.com/

Answer 3

Putting a spud in the microwave or nuking a disk of veggies isn't that hard or time consuming, but there are many meatless convenience foods. Get a pack of ffrozen bean burritos. Cans of no-meat spaghetti-O's. Soups. Hummus and pita bread. Fruits.

And of course, chocolate is the main staple of vegetarians everywhere!

Almost anything that is served with meat can be made better without the bits of dead animal.

Answer 4

15 years ago I said, "I will never eat meat again", and I have not touched it since. I don't understand how its difficult to do when your mind is made up that you no longer want to consume certain foods. You said working all the time and not having time to cook makes it hard. Why???? I work all the time and don't have time to cook very often but I eat. I don't think that is your problem. Again, make up your mind to do it and you will. And something like working a lot will not be a factor at all.

Answer 5

What would you do otherwsie? Go to fast food places?
Yes, soy products, soy milk, beans and grains. They have a lot of vegetarian fast foods now. Taco Bell has a bean burrito without cheese... el fresca or somehting. Cook some potatoes ahead of time, cook lots of pasta and sauce ahead of time. Make sure you get you beans and grains to include brown rice.
In other words, cook ahead of time and find products. If you're a peske-vegetarian (can eat fish) you're in even more luck.
When you have the time, cook ahead. It's worth it.

Answer 6

I have lots of friends who are vegans, you can make pasta salad, fruit salad and veggie dips to bring to work throughout the week. Also toasted pita bread with hummus (love the roasted garlic flavor!) is a great and filling snack. Veggie burritos are great, cheap and filling. Soups and chili's can be home-made in 30 minutes and either frozen in individual containers for a quick dinner. Quesadilla's, portobello mushroom "burgers"...lots of ideas out there!

Answer 7

I think it's harder to eat meat because All meat needs to be cooked. There are lots of great pasta meals and salads. If you are going out to eat alot- sounds like you are, because you don't cook, Order a veggie burger, salads or veggie sandwiches, omelets. Just make sure you get enough protein.

Answer 8

All you have to cook is pasta and rice, potatoes. These all take short times. Buy the rice that cooks in 5 min if you don't have 40 min. Pre-cut vegetables and store in ziplock double sealing freezer bags. Store in the fridge; they will stay fresh longer in these bags. Hope this helps.

Answer 9

Make time. IF you can't make time for yourself then what's the point of becoming a vegetarian. Becoming a vegetarian means lifestyle change....

Answer 10

Well if it's hard 4 u because you like meat then try thinking of the animal that's how i do it (I'm a veggie)