What are some healthy meals I can eat if I don't like vegetables?

Question

I'm wanting to eat healthier but I dont like hardly any fruits and vegetables. I'm just looking for some good tips and advice so I can live a healthier lifestyle. If anyone has some good ideas please let me know.

Answer 1

I know EXACTLY where you are coming from, and I have the perfect solution for you, but first I need to clear up a few things for you.

I don't like the taste and consistency of a lot of vegetables. As a child I was forced to eat foods I didn't like and because I was physically forced to eat them, it doubled the effect of not liking vegetables because as well as a taste dislike for them, I now also had a psychological reason to not like them as being force fed sort of scarred me.

Here is a good example for you. I eat tomato puree, tomato soup, tomato sauce, tomato ketchup and tomatoes cooked on pizzas or in Bolognese sauce for example, but if you made me eat a tomato I'd wretch and then most likely you'd have to remove it from part of your anatomy too!

First of all, don't listen to people who say things like "You'll just HAVE to learn to like them..." or "don't be childish and eat your greens..."

Comments like this from people are massively unhelpful and to be honest are no different from health fascism. My sister in law knows that I won't eat certain vegetables and her attitude is that I should "just grow up and eat them and stop being a child". Well, ask yourself this, what right does ANYONE has to tell you that you MUST eat vegetables?

How dare people scold you like a child for not eating veg, how dare they tell you what to do. I bet they smoke or drink in excess or sleep around, which are all much more dangerous than failure to eat veg, yet do you tell them what to do.

Don't force yourself to eat things that you really detest, you'll just make your dislike stronger.

Also, this whole 5 a day thing is partly a fallacy. I agree completely that 5 portions of fruit and veg per day are massively beneficial for health, however don't believe people when they say that not eating veg is a modern thing. The only time in history that people (European people especially), have eaten large amounts of fruit and veg were during the second world war when meat was not available in massive quantities. The average middle or working class person in pre 20th century europe would have a daily menu like this:

Fish, Cold Meat (leftover from meals), Porridge or Bread for breakfast. Cheese, cold pork, beef or mutton and more bread and maybe a single piece of fruit such as an apple. For dinner would be meat based stew or soup made with whatever meat is available plus locally available beans and pulses etc..

Now I certainly don't see five portions there, 3 maximum.

Also an excellent case study are some of the Plains Indians of North America whose beliefs forbade them from digging the earth (therefore no farming) and would eat honey, sweet berries and nuts but mainly fish and vast quantities of buffalo meat (yes the dreaded beef was a staple food). Yet, until the Europeans introduced diseases and processed foods, they lived well into their 70s and beyond and were lean and fit. They didn't eat bread as they didn't generally process corn (some did though the majority didn't).

So don't go assuming that you will die of some lingering disease if you don't eat veg. It helps, indisputably, but break yourself in gently and don't listen to the whole "you must" brigade telling you what to do. Smoking, drinking and work related stress will kill you many times quicker than poor diet will.

Buy a juicer. Preferably a decent one, expect to pay £70 / $140 plus for one, but it is worth it's weight in gold.

I juice this everyday: 3 apples, 5 carrots, a small portion of broccoli, 2 oranges, even things like beans can be juiced. Then stir it up, hold your breath and swallow. (If you hold your breath then you won't taste it because air must pass over your nasal taste sensors in order to work. Try it, you can hardly taste anything.

This way, you are taking in massive amounts of fresh, uncooked (the best) fruit and veg. Carrot juice with a little orange in it is very tasty and carrots (especially raw) are one of the healthiest vegetables.

Be careful with stir fry and over cooked vegetables as if they are cooked incorrectly or over cooked they can be carcinogenic (cancer causing).

Try blending up tomatoes with some beans and carrots and onions and then stifry them into a bolognese sauce with plenty of herbs and lean meat. I guarantee that you won't taste the veg but you'll get all the benefits.

Don't beat yourself over it, if you start slowly and mix the veg with meat, then you won't notice. Blending or juicing are excellent ways to hide the flavours. (Some research even suggests that we are genetically "pre-wired" to not like the taste of bitter vegetables as after all our distant ancestors would gorge themselves on fatty meat they had hunted and only have berries and root vegetables if they were lucky.)

I hope this has helped, I know that I will be shouted down by the whole health or anti meat brigade, but I don't care because I have been in your position.

I rarely ate vegetables until recently and I am overweight, but I've not had a day off sick in years, I never get colds or flu EVER, and I've never visited the doctor with a weight related problem and I'm fitter and healthier than most of my slimmer friends. So don't get too concerned about a healthy lifestyle.

Just do half an hours decent exercise a day and drink at least a litre and a half of (non-alcoholic) liquid, preferably water everyday.

(I won't cite any sources in this article as my knowledge is drawn from many sources, articles and much experience. My field of knowledge is Evolutionary biology so a lot of my knowledge stems from that.)

Answer 2

Like you, there are many fruits and veggies I dont like, either because of texture or taste and my Doctors advice was > Eat lots of what you do like and enjoy them. Eating should be a pleasant experience and as an example, I find eating 2 tomatoes more enjoyable than a tomato and a plum (yukk) and get the same benefits!
There are no health benefits to eating lots of different vegetables. It's quantity not variety that matters. Try to have a mixture of root, leaf and legumes(peas, beans etc) as well as the fruits you do like and try eating them in different ways. I don't like cooked cabbage for example but I do like it raw which is healthier anyway.
Make a salad from your favourites and serve alongside your main meal!
Good luck and stay not just healthy but happy!

Answer 3

I don't like a lot of veg too so I can sympathise. Juicing is obviously the best way but one way I will eat a number of veg I don't like is in a stew. Once cooked this way the veg are much more palatable. I use sweet potatoes, butternut squash, parsnip, swede, carrots, onions, mushrooms, any kind of meat (I'm making a beef stew tomorrow in my slow cooker), stock cubes, water, bay leaf and a little red wine. Try adding some dumplings too as a special treat. Chuck it all in a pot and cook either in the oven or in a slow cooker. Most of these veg I would never eat but I like them this way. People say cooking removes the vitamins and minerals but a dietitian told me that they remain in the gravy. Give it a try. Eat up and enjoy! The other thing I would never eat any other way but enjoy is asparagus and courgette soup. Just cook both in water and then liquidise. It tastes quite sweet. I like it liquidised really well so there are no bits in it.

Answer 4

The best way to get what you need from vegetables is to juice them and use an apple for taste.Also Supergreens is an excellent way to get your 5 a day as well as great for your energy boost,it really does get you on a healthy way of life.
The more acidic you are (eating processed foods,meats,alcohol and fizzy drinks) the less tasty alkalining foods are (veg supergreens etc)The more you eat and drink alkaling food the more your body will crave them and your health and energy will explode!!

Dr Robert Young has researched the alkaline/acid body theory and concludes that there is only one disease and that is an acid body you can get disease's when you are alkaline.

Please email me if you are interested in regaining you health and energy.
[e-mail] or vist my website www.innerlightinc/andyperry.

Answer 5

I saw an article in a medical newsletter that suggested that if you don't like fruit and vegetables you should take folic acid. The article did relate to a specific condition and said it was the last resort and only if the patient absolutely could not.....otherwise I understand you can get some vitamins from underdone fresh meat

Answer 6

If you like tomato try Making your own tomato based sauces you can then blend in tomatos, onions, peppers carrot, spinach etc. tadd spices or herbs then serve them with pasta, rice, noodles etc. also you can cover lean chicken with them and then bake in the oven.

Slap a load of fruit and veg on a pizza or toasted sandwich and try veg baked in a sauce in the oven.

Soups are a good way of disguising veg, smoothies and milkshake too, eat banana or carrot cake, or add tomatos onions and pepper to an omelet.

Some fruit such as apricots and mango I dont like fresh but dried they are nice, even a handful of yoghut coated raisins from the health shop can be classed as a portion (but dont cover everything with chocolate,

I use a lemon and butter sauce over green beans and other veg that I dont like much, and also sweet and sour sauce with stir fry veg and noodles. a cheese sauce works too (cauli/broccoli cheese).

I smother sliced banana in custard and add raisins to bran flakes, with a portion of berries and yoghurt.

Eat the fruit and veg you like then try one new fruit or veg a week (find a new recipe or way of serving something ... you never know you may find some you like.

Answer 7

It all depends on what you do like ? Do you like beans or pulses or which veg do you like,try veggie curries or tomatoe and courgette pie which is just a tin of chopped toms with a clove of garlic and sliced courgette boiled down to thicken put in an oven proof dish and top with mashed potatoe,grate some cheese on top and bake in a hot oven for twenty mins .Also you can get fruit and veg type drinks so hold your nose and swallow if you really dont like it .Try more veggies as you will find that your palate will adapt very quickly ,I am just making pumpkin curry its delicious.Good luck .Dont forget the excercise!!

Answer 8

i would say just focus on the fruits and vegetables you don't mind. then just stick to fish, lean meats, whole grains, low fat dairy. excercise also helps if you want to be healthier. teas are also good to help keep your body clean. you could really do or eat anything in moderation, but changing little aspects everyday to reach your overall goal is probably the best. good luck!

Answer 9

Since I am vegetarian but i hate vegetables and fruits, i make juice of them and drink them instead... they are delicious and far more nutritious than cooked food, plus i eat home made beans and brow rice.
Buy a good juicer and a book about juices.

Answer 10

Try juicing fruits and vegetables. They taste completely different when mixed together. Or breakfast cereals are fortified with vitamins and minerals but be careful to choose ones low in sugar and salt.
Good luck.

Answer 11

Baked Chicken is always a good alternative. I usually put a little bbq sauce over chicken breasts and bake it for about 25 - 30 minutes on 350. It turns out perfectly moist.

Aslong as you dont eat any startches after 2pm, it should help you as well.

Also, try different ways of cooking vegetables, my husband didnt like asparagus untill he had it baked with parmesean cheese on it, and now he loves it. So its always good to experiment!