Vegetarians ( and Vegans ) Thread!!!

[kuntrygirl]

I LOVE just about anything from Morningstar farms! They can be pretty pricey sometimes but there are usually coupons out there for some type of discount.

I always buy the extra firm tofu - I like the texture better than the softer ones. Tofu tends to pick up any flavor that you put with it, so I like to stir fry it with veggies and soy sauce or (best of all) peanut sauce. Or cut it up into smallish chunks and use it to replace meat in a Mexican dish. Be creative...since it is tasteless it is easy to bury it with something spicy!

So, I can stir fry using a little olive oil in the pan? How long to cook it?

 

[Kevin565]

So, I can stir fry using a little olive oil in the pan? How long to cook it?

Directions

 

[Frost Homestead]

tofu is best fried in regular vegetable oil, but depending on what you're making it with olive oil will work too.

Here's a great tip for making tofu. Buy the extra firm or form tofu and take it and freeze it. thaw out in the fridge and use it like you normally would. Just don't sqeeze out too much water when you fry it, because that gives it "room" to hold more of the oil you cook it in. this gives the tofu a more 'meaty' texture. nom nom nom

 

[Joz]

I'm not currently a veggie,but I have been in the past and do still enjoy eating primarily veggie meals.

As re the Vegetarian Hot Dogs: Why? I've never groked the whole "fake meat" thing. I like veggieburgers because they're grain-and-veg patties, not because they're almost like hamburgers. Frankly, the amount of processing that fake-meats go through is enough to scare me off of them. Tofu or cheese are about as processed a food item as I like to start with.

If I wanted a veggie meal in a bun, I would:

Cut zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, carrots into long quarters or 1/8ths, onions into fat slices (Can slice aforementioned veg across the long axis if you're doing kaiser-type buns rather than hoagie-type rolls)
Place in large (gallon) ziploc bag with olive oil, herbs, salt, pepper, to evenly coat veg
Throw veg on grill (or roast in oven) until carmelized
and
Roast a head of garlic (cut top off garlic, place in square of foil, wrap nearly completely up, generously pour olive oil into foil on cut end of garlic, finish wrapping, put in oven for 30+ min)
and then
Slice and toast yer buns.

THEN, squeeze roast garlic head to distribute roasty garlic moosh on cut, toasty side of bread; spread as required.
arrange roast veg on bun (separate onion into rings first)
add cheese if desired (muenster and havarti and farmer's cheese are all particularly good)
add chopped fresh herbs if you wanna (parsley? Chives? tarragon?)
assemble halves and enjoy.

So much better than fake (or real!) hotdogs.

 

[kuntrygirl]

So, I can stir fry using a little olive oil in the pan? How long to cook it?

Directions 

THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!

 

[veganurbanfarm]

Ok, I bought the veggie dogs and will having them tomorrow for lunch.
I want to try tofu but I am clueless as how to cook it. Can someone help me please?

I used to find tofu very unappealing, but there are plenty of ways to cook it that make it very tasty. Try marinating it overnight in any marinade you choose (I normally just use italian dressing). Then grill it on a kebob with peppers, onions, mushrooms and potatoes! It's my favorite memorial day picnic food. Tofu is also good in stir fry, since you use some sort of sauce usually. Tofu absorbs any flavor you cook it in, so get creative!

2 quick tips for tofu:

1. Squeeze it overnight before using it in anything. Tofu is stored in water and when you try to fry or grill it full of water, it ends up wet or mushy. When you squeeze most of the water out first, you get a more firm, meaty texture.
2. Use firm or extra firm tofu if you are replacing meat, since softer tofu will fall apart (the firmer the better). If you are adding it to baked goods or combining with something, use silken or soft tofu.

 

[veganurbanfarm]

I'm not vegan and I do eat my eggs, so I can't answer that part - however I am surprised you are getting all the 'slaughter' questions.. I don't eat my chickens either, nor do I raise them for meat, but when I had to 'cull' a seriously ill chicken a few weeks back my co-workers acted like I was Hannibal Lecter. And they all eat chicken - so why is my putting down an ill chicken so horrifying? I'd rather have your coworkers..

As for the egg-eating, I am also on veggie boards and the hardcore vegan types insist the eggs must be fed back to the chickens. I personally see no problems eating the eggs from my chickens since I know they are well taken care of, but that's completely up to you! =)

If you sell the eggs to friends and coworkers, think of it this way - for each dozen they buy from YOUR chickens, that's one battery hen dozen they won't be buying.

I'm not sure why non-vegetarians feel the need to tease us veggies about eating meat/eggs and to try to "catch us messing up" when they can. I don't feel that there are any rules about our diets - it is a personal choice and we eat what we feel comfortable eating and this is what I usually tell them. I have been vegetarian for 40+ years and cut out almost all dairy/eggs about 3 years ago. I plan on eating the eggs that my chickies produce if I want to, selling them and giving them to a soup kitchen for the majority of the time. No one should be judging us on our choice of diet; I'll leave that to God!

1. I've been a vegetarian my entire life so being "Teased' for being a veggie has basically been the norm for me. Luckily I'm one of those people who no longer care what other people think about me.

2. I'm a vegetarian but I do not eat eggs. Your best bet for selling them would be:

• Posting a Ad on craigslist
• Selling to neighbors, friends, family
• Some restaurants may by your eggs off of you
• You could also blow out your eggs and sell them for crafts

Thanks for all the support you guys! I really appreciate some non-militant feedback on these subjects. I was actually a little skeptical about talking about this stuff in a vegan/vegetarian because I've met a lot of very fascist vegans in my day. I haven't done this my whole life, but I tend to be a very "conservative" vegan. I try very hard to keep the lifestyle, but when I encounter things that just seem to make sense (like eating eggs from pet chickens) I find no reason to follow the vegan view. I feel the same about honey. From the research I've done, buying local honey from small beekeepers seems to just make sense. The bees aren't harmed to get the honey, they make more than they need to survive and honey is a great alternative to corn syrup or processed sugar.

Anyway, enough of my ranting. I'm not sure if we will use the eggs, but I now have plenty of ideas of how to get rid of them if we don't consume them all. I can't believe that anyone would feed the eggs back to their chickens. I would think that would cause a lot of problems with chickens breaking their own eggs before they can be collected.

Finally, I sympathize with you all when it comes to being teased for my decision. My mother's side of the family is comprised of hunters. They have never understood how we stay alive without eating copious amounts of meat on a daily basis. It's less irritating now...I actually laugh at it pretty frequently!

 

[veganurbanfarm]

Here's a quick one for you all:

It has been proven that a plant-based diet is not only better for us physiologically, but it is also "green". Plants take much less energy to produce and our bodies digest them better. Plants also break down naturally (compost) and they are naturally occurring (obviously).

I look at being vegan as more than just a diet or a lifestyle choice. This has become a mission for me to find the way to live both naturally and "permaculturally". I have made it my mission to find every way possible to conserve energy and money in my life. We usually stick to alternative medicines when possible. We recycle more than we discard. We plant a bigger garden every year. I built and installed water barrels last summer. We are getting into chickens now...etc.

So my question for everyone is this: aside from being vegan or vegetarian, what else do you all do to take care of yourselves and the environment?

 

[Kevin565]

I'm really into using alternative items for different purposes. Such as using fruits for beauty products, lemon juice for cleaning for my face,etc

 

[featherz]

Anyway, enough of my ranting. I'm not sure if we will use the eggs, but I now have plenty of ideas of how to get rid of them if we don't consume them all. I can't believe that anyone would feed the eggs back to their chickens. I would think that would cause a lot of problems with chickens breaking their own eggs before they can be collected.

Just had to mention, I do feed back eggs to my chickens now and then - if I have too many and they are getting old, if I have cracked or defective eggs, etc. I always scramble them and have never had a problem with egg eating. That said, I am sure your family and coworkers would love them if you don't wish to eat them!