I struggle.
In my heart of hearts, I want to be a vegetarian. I want to stop eating meat and not contribute to the meat industry or at least, just eat fish if I need to. CBC doesn't eat meat now, he eats some fish but no meat. I only eat meat out and on many occasions, I also eat vegetarian. I like veggie alternatives, particularly tofu and tempeh and various forms of soya (but not Quorn!) and I enjoy pulses and beans.
But I can't seem to make the full transition.
I regret this.
Today, one of the other musicians at church was saying she had prepared a roast chicken for lunch as we didn't have much time between the morning service and the afternoon practice for the carol service. I hadn't had any breakfast at this time and I was thinking of Roast Chicken all through the service. I never cook a roast or meat just like this since as mentioned, CBC doesn't eat meat, only fish, and I just don't cook it. On my way home, I called into Aldi and I bought a tray of Free-range Chicken drum sticks and thighs. I wanted to buy free-range so I was limited to buying this tray with 7 pieces in it. I didn't want chicken breasts as they have less flavour. All the dinner was prepared, I'd cooked leeks, roasted potatoes AND sweet potatoes. Cavalo Nero and French beans. I cooked the chicken and as I ate it, I'd eaten half of one piece of chicken and I didn't want anymore. I just couldn't face it. I ended up eating 3 pieces because I will not waste anything and I have an additional 4 for tomorrow.
When I actually cook it, I don't enjoy it.
Cut to tomorrow night and I ate three pieces of chicken (one is still left) and I really didn't enjoy eating it.
Yet, if there is a small amount of meat in something, I seem to enjoy it and crave it. Small chicken pieces in noodles.
I know there are a lot of ethical reasons why I shouldn't and don't want to eat meat. Maybe I should just go for it.
But then I also don't want to be a pain when visiting family and friends...
I guess, what I need to do is just keep my meat eating minimal yet there's a part of me that feels I should go the whole hog (forgive the meat based idiom).
What do you think?
If you're a veggie, I'd appreciate your views AND if you are a firm meat-eater!
xx
It's a problem when you dine with others and everyone is edgy trying to serve things people can/will/want to eat. Food is too important to us, I think. I know I spend so much time thinking about it and considering what to eat.
ReplyDeleteGood luck figuring it out, Kezzie.
Go for it! it is SO easy to be veggie, honestly! I never think of myself as a 'pain' and there are ALWAYS veggie options everywhere you go. Everyone will quickly adjust and consider your veggieness, its not exactly un common these days! Plus if its really a problem for some friends and family eat before you get there and then just nibble at side dishes etc. I can't relate in the missing meat and enjoying meat thing though I'm afraid. I haven't eaten meat in around 20 years, (except accidently in a burrito in Canada and I burst into tears in the restaurant, was physically repulsed and ran out! But we don't mention that! lol!) meat for me isn;t appetising whatsoever, it just doesn;t look like food. I don't care about others eating it around me and I can touch it and prepare it for others (mainly the cat) but it is not something that looks edible to me. The whole thing about every veggie secretley craving bacon, NOT true, ew, the idea just repulses me. I don;t get wanting to eat flesh and veins and muscles and ew, just ew! That's not food to me!!! Plus you know, pigs are SO cute! So yeah anyway, go for it!!! If the ideas and thoughts are there you won't stop until you do it anyway! Watch Earthlings or read some vegan websites, those will push you over the edge you need, lol! Best of luck! x
ReplyDeleteWell, when I'm working out our menu plans ... I get the vegetables and then add either meat, poultry, or fish etc.
ReplyDeleteWe do also have a vegetarian meal once or twice a month which is always nice.
How you eat, what you eat - it's always a personal choice and many of us have to take any underlying health conditions or allergies into account.
Decisions ... decisions
All the best Jan
I AM a firm meat eater, and while I can agree with vegetarianism if it's for medical or religious reasons, I tend to disagree with it if it's for moral/ethical reasons.
ReplyDeleteOf course, if you want to do it, that's your right, but if you're struggling with it, I think it would be better to eat less meat and choose meat from free-range, organically raised animals that are humanely treated - which would help to promote a better meat industry - rather than to forego meat altogether. Just my two cents.
I agree with Jo, there's no perfect time to make any change so just go for it if it's something you want to do. It has never been easier to be a non-meat eater in this country than right now, supermarkets and restaurants are really upping their game so there are new and exciting options everywhere.
ReplyDeleteTelling other people can be the hardest thing as you don't want to seem rude when they are extending hospitality to you, but again I think people are generally used to non-meat eaters these days and so making a vegetable curry rather than a meat one, a pasta dish or whatever it is probably won't be a big deal anyway, especially as your young chap doesn't eat it already.
In terms of the chicken thing, if you like tempeh, tofu etc then you can probably get the chicken texture (or whatever it is you like about finding a bit of it in with your noodles) from that. Noodles are all about finding an extra bit of chewy goodness aren't they!
If you want to continue to eat meat then do it, it's nobodies business but yours - doing it because you think you should rather than because you want to seems a bit wobbly. But if fear of being a slight inconvenience occasionally is one of your major reasons to not do something you want then that's wobbly too!
I am a firm meat eater. I think we eat too much meat these days, but I also believe that we were designed to eat meat. We have teeth that were made for chewing meat, we have bodies that were designed for digesting meat. If you have to go out of your way to get foods with the right nutrients to replace meat I feel like that should tell you something (plus eating too much soy is bad for you - it mimics oestrogen and is thought to possibly be a cause of infertility in some women, eating it while pregnant can disrupt the development of foetuses, etc.).
ReplyDeletePersonally I would prefer to pay more to know the animals had been treated well, etc. As I said, I actually LIKE eating meat though. Not just soup with a teeny bit of chicken in, but a nice chicken pie or toad in the hole, etc.
I wouldn't let feeling like a pain stand in your way. People will adjust. We have a vegetarian coming to stay next week (she doesn't eat meat because she doesn't like it, not for ethical reasons) and I will find something she will eat, I'm sure. I find vegans much harder to cater for, but of course if you're not eating meat for ethical reasons then really it's hypocritical NOT to go vegan. If you eat eggs and drink milk you're still contributing to cows and chickens being kept (and are you SURE cows that are kept for milk are treated better than meat cows?), and if you eat fish you're contributing to overfishing, other animals being caught in nets, etc. If you wear leather shoes or have pillows with feathers in how do you know those animals were well-treated? I think it can quickly become a slippery slope that ends with you not being able to do anything!
Supposedly cows in Switzerland are treated better than their EU counterparts, which is part of the reason meat here is so expensive - the animals aren't mass produced and sold off cheaply, but raised properly with the right food, etc.
Good luck with your decision anyway!
So knowing what you know, you are basically saying you don't care? Yet a vegetarian is a hypocrite. What a rude attitude to people's choices. Why do you make assumptions. People say all the time that a vegan is wearing leather shoes. They probably aren't but just look like it (which happens most of the time, the point of plastic that is used for shoes is that it looks like leather). In any case perhaps a vegan doesn't want to eat something that died but doesn't mind wearing something that would otherwise be a waste product? I don't wear leather, silk, feathers etc. but I am not perfect, it isn't possible to be but I work with my current knowledge to be the best I can.
DeleteAlso my daughter is vegetarian, for her the dairy industry is okay. It isn't up to me to tell her what to think. People have different parameters, some people feel it is okay to eat fish, I don't. Every little helps. I save lives by not eating them. I have saved hundreds of chicken lives which perhaps suffer more than any other animal. People get through so many in their own life time because each life is so small. I have not eaten several pigs, cows, sheep etc. Yes that makes me feel good. How could it not? If a person cuts back on meat consumption, that also contributes so much doesn't it? I just don't feel that a meal or two of chicken which gives me a day or two of energy is a fair swap for the animals life. Especially when I don't need to end its life to keep mine . I choose life over death. Theirs and mine. I am able to make that choice where I live and I choose not to be personally responsible for slaughter when I can and do live without it.
As a vegan I ate lentils onions, mushrooms and carrots with a covering of potatoes for dinner yesterday. A 'cottage/shepherd's pie, if you will. Old style delicious vegan food. No quorn or soya mince. Cheap easy and tasty. It hasn't killed me - in fact no doctor in 27 years and a daughter of 5 ft 7 of normal weight raised as a vegetarian. I can in theory eat less foods than a meat eater but in practice probably eat more because I utilise them in my diet.
It's easy, tasty, non sacrificial because I eat nice food and I am pleased to abdicate from killing animals. I used to love to eat meat as a child and teenager but wasn't prepared to have animals suffer for me when they simply didn't need to because I could live happily without them dying.
Oh and those lentil bakes and chick pea burgers that people scoff at and don't want to own up to eating, they are the nutritious and tasty alternatives to meat. The marketing has convinced people to eat the faux products in supermarkets but they are not very nice really. Lentils are where it is at. Loaves, bakes, casseroles, stews, curries etc. There are at least 4 different types and then the beans are delicious too.
Sorry, I phrased that wrong. I meant FOR ME if I went vegetarian for ethical reasons I would feel like a hypocrite saying "I won't EAT chickens, but the ones that are kept for my eggs are okay", or "I won't EAT cows, but they can die for my shoes!"
DeleteI actually do eat vegetarian a few times a week and I LOVE chickpeas, but your lentil onion thing is NOT cottage pie. Sorry, but no lentil dish tastes like meat! (And I hate mushrooms). I do enjoy eating veggie burgers occasionally, but I ALSO enjoy real beef burgers. And the last time I made (entirely vegetarian) lentil stew my stomach was in agony the entire next day. Not worth it!!
We also have teeth and bodies designed for digesting veg and pulses etc. I never go out of my way to find nutrients I need! Vegetarian is extremely easy these days. Plus I hate the whole 'oh are you getting all these vitamins' etc debate, erm well I don't know anyone meat eater or veggie that tracks all their food and eats only government guidelines of vitamins and nutrients. We all do our best the way we can. I do agree that if going veggie might as well go vegan, I was vegan for a very long time.but I will admit that is HARD! Not at all from a good point of view, I loved being vegan, found it easy to get food and nutrients etc and living in my own only feeding myself it's really honestly easy! I was the healthiest I've ever been and was honestly not ill (not even a cold) in the 5 years I was vegan. Now, yes, I'm a hypocrite and I judge myself as such! But I will never ever eat meat as I explained above it is not food. I started off as ethical veggie and very much still am but now it's also very much I do not like it too! But as a veggie I would never wear leather, again never have never will. That I don't understand, how can u wear killed animals on feet but not out them in your mouth? For me veggie is avoiding leather etc too. Vegan is always black and white. If you label yourself as vegan you go by the vegan society statements as such there's no grey area. But sadly vegan is so hard because of the vegan police, the vegan maffia, I never flaunted it, never preached but you are all lumped together and the constant judging and constant debate every single time you dare to eat out (don't ask a veggie or vegan why they are just as they are about to eat!!! Seriously just let them eat without the debate) it literally happens every time. It's exhausting. As a quiet, /shy person having to be the odd one out and explain and justify constantly is exhausting. So I don't label myself as vegan. A lot of what I eat still is, it's just what I'm used to now. But I will remain as a hypocrite veggie that's where I've found my happy place (ish!!!) lol! 😝
DeleteI'm vegetarian, as you know. I haven't eat meat (including fish) for almost 9 years and it was one of the best decisions I took.
ReplyDeleteOthers will judge me, like some of the ones that commented earlier on your post. I don't understand why my ethical reasons would have less value because they aren't attached to a religious dogma. I also don't understand why I'm hypocritical because I'm not vegan. I know why I'm vegetarian and I'm happy with my choices, I don't have to explain myself to others.
It's your life and these are your choices. You and only you have to live with the consequences of your choices. So, do what you feel it's best for you. If you want to eat meat, do it, if you want to eat only 1 type of meat (like fish), do it. If you want to go vegetarian or vegan, do it. If you let go of the fears, a whole new world opens in front of you.
When I switched to vegetarianism, some friends made some very inappropriate comments and I realized they were not my real friends. I don't tell them what they should eat and I expect the same. Someone told me they will never go to a vegetarian restaurant, in the same day we went to a restaurant that served meat. That someone is not my friend and it never was. Respect and caring comes both ways. These days and in UK it's so easy to cater for vegetarians that is hardly an issue. If someone makes it an issue, than says more about them than anything else.
Good luck in choosing the right path for you. xx
Again, I phrased that wrong. I don't mean vegetarians are hypocrites. I meant FOR ME if I was vegetarian I would think "well, eating eggs and drinking milk is hypocritical since those animals are kept in conditions I don't know as well". And from there my mind would go to "Well, aren't my leather shoes and feather pillows also animal products. How do I know those animals didn't suffer?", so bye bye boots and bedding. But wait, plastic is also bad for the environment (i.e. animals' homes), paper and wood causes birds' homes to be cut down... where would it end?!
DeleteKeeping animals it's only one part of the story, the other one is the killing so I can get my meat. I'm not comfortable with that, I wouldn't be able to kill a pig for myself, hence me being vegetarian.
DeleteAs for shoes, I haven't had a pair of leather shoes in years and I don't think I ever bought one for myself. I managed to find high heel shoes, boots, walking boots and so on. I don't also have any feather pillows because I don't see the need, there are amazing options on the market. It's no more a hassle than finding the ones that I like, in my size and on the budget.
I try to reuse as much plastic as I can, I avoid printing if it's not necessary. I can't change the world, I can only do my part.
You have a choice every time you do something. If you are 100% happy with the meat on your plate, leather shoes and feather pillows, that's great. Those aren't the right choices for me and that's great too, because I have plenty of other options available.
If you 'want' to be vegetarian then you will go ahead and be one. If you don't then you won't. Your procrastination leads me to suggest that you don't really want to make the change. It is entirely up to you. Be someone who eats less meat or be someone who eats no meat. Labels are not what is important.
ReplyDeleteJess
I am SO LIKE YOU. For 20 years I was a strict vegetarian (because of the influence of my partner Maura) but then... I fell off the wagon and slowly introduced seafood and tiny bits of meat while dining out. Now I'm trying to go back and it's hard. Hard. Especially when faced with bacon and pastrami. :-) My advice is simply do what feels right. Eating only a little meat is okay and better than most people's diets.
ReplyDeleteI totally feel you on this, I actually was a vegetarian for 8 years but decided to start eating meat again during a hospital stay because the vegetarian food was just inedible (and the meat not much better) but I struggle with the guilt of it so much. These days I eat very little meat and don't really enjoy it when I do but at the same time I'm reluctant to give it up completely again?!
ReplyDeleteAs you know, Thomas is vegan and I am not even vegetarian. I very rarely eat fish at home (maybe once or twice a month) but otherwise the house is completely vegetarian - almost vegan, but I do have cheese. When we eat out, which we do about once a fortnight, I probably have meat or fish every other time. So, all told, I eat meat or fish at the very most for four meals a month, and cheese at maybe eight meals a month.
ReplyDeleteAnd because of that, I don't feel in the least bit guilty about not being vegetarian or vegan. The amount of meat, fish and cheese I do eat - which is always, as far as I can ensure it, organic or free-range and sustainably sourced - is so small compared to most people that I know my diet is not contributing in a major way to environmental issues surrounding meat or dairy production. If I tried to cut it out completely, I know I would crave it: as it is, I don't because I know I can have a little if I want.
I have also become less and less interested in meat as the years have passed, and had a very similar experience with roasting chicken pieces last time Thomas went away - I ended up struggling to eat them because they tasted too rich for me, I'm so un-used to it! So I am sure you will also find that over the years you will want less meat anyway.
I'm not a vegetarian, but I don't eat a huge amount of meat. Like you, I'd rather have smaller pieces of meat in a casserole. Sometimes, just looking at a piece of meat on a plate makes my appetite disappear completely. As my husband's the cook here most of the time, it would be a struggle for me to be a vegetarian, as he is very much a "meat and two veg" guy. xxx
ReplyDeleteI'm not a veggie either but I don't eat much meat. The one thing I couldn't give up, although I don't eat it every week, is bacon. One whiff and I'm craving it in a sandwich with brown sauce. x
ReplyDeleteI used to be a vegetarian but now I occasionally eat chicken and turkey....as you said, I don't want to be a bother to others and this way I can enjoy more common meals. I don't think I will ever be too keen on eating meat, but eating meat from time to time seems to suit me well, so I'll go on with that. My advice is don't worry too much about it, you hardly eat it anyway because your never prepare it...and I think it is better to eat something that was prepared for us than to be wasteful and throw it away.
ReplyDeleteDo what feels right for you :) If you want to eat a little bit of free range meat and enjoy it then don't feel bad about it, you eat lots of veggie meals too :)
ReplyDeleteI've not eaten meat for 20 years and I don't feel like I'm a pain when I'm eating out or being cooked for, people know I'll bring my own food if needs be :) My hubs is a meat eater and we get on fine too, I've only fallen out with one friend over meat eating in all that time, so I think that's pretty good going (he invited himself over for a takeaway then took extreme umbridge when I said that was fine but I don't have meat in my home so it'd have to be veggie pizza or veggie curry. He brought up something snide about 'your beliefs' or 'your food' every time I saw him after that, until I stopped seeing him. Funnily enough I'd been friends with him since I was 12, which is the age I went vegetarian! Oh well!)
I eat a well balance of both I'd say. My normal lunch consists of vegetables and rice, but with a "meat dish" (usually hamburger or pork).
ReplyDeleteFor me, it's all about trying to eat a well balanced diet (trying to anyway) as I'm trying to stay healthy. I don't always follow this stalwartly, but I give it my best effort!
This post has certainly opened a whole can of worms. Or should that be 'hill of beans'? I am not vegetarian. Both my daughters had long periods of being V when they were younger, and I prepared appropriate family meals as I believed it was important to respect their well considered moral choices. I eat meat sometimes but try to buy meat from sources where they have good welfare standards. This is a personal choice and whether someones reasons are ethical or medical, nobody else should judge or criticise. Go with your heart (and your gut) Kezzie!
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think that rather than giving up meat, if it's for ethical reasons, it would be more useful to work on changing the food industry. One way is by purchasing humanely raised and slaughtered meats. Give your money to those who are doing the right thing as far as using animals for food. You may have to pay a bit more, but like anything, if enough people put their money where their mouths are, things will change. Eating meat is not unethical, per se. Most animals eat other animals to survive. It's factory farming, and seeing animals as product that is the problem, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteWe are lucky to be living in a country that has higher standards for animal welfare than many other countries. Trust the Red Tractor.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to move to buying local meat, one to support the local community, and two I like to know the origins of my food. The meat I most enjoy is the meat shot on one of our farms - venison or pheasant - we know for absolute certain that it's had a good life and did not suffer.
If you sometimes have a hankering for meat then go ahead. One day you might just realise that you've gone the 'whole hog' without realising it, and the decision is made for you.
I've been veggie for 17 years. I try to be conscious about gelatine and rennet (the sneaky meat additives) but I do drink wine and cider which sometimes isn't vegetarian. I don't feel like a hypocrite - I still have less impact on animals than I would as a meat eater.
ReplyDeleteIn the same way, I think you can structure your diet however you like. Labels or not, you're being conscious about what you eat- and the occasional bit of chicken is very different to a KFC bucket a day :) xxx
Agree with ethical sourcing and campaigning, but having been veggie for about 27 years, it's much easier now we have quorn and other good meat substitutes. Give it a go!
ReplyDeletePersonally I feel best when eating meat. Our church fasts from animal products quite often and for long periods, and I don't do well without them. I think a lot of health problems are from eating grains. And though I've eaten lots of tofu and soyburgers over the years, I've learned that soy is not really good for anyone.
ReplyDeleteBut the experience of eating vegan (with fish sometimes) so much makes me skilled in cooking all kinds of meals, and vegans aren't annoying to me. :-)
I shouldn't think you have to make a once-and-for-all decision. Why don't you just take it day-by-day? You might find that as you age you have to reconsider your patterns of eating as many people have discovered. I used to be able to do without meat more easily, for example.
But I guess there are so many questions being raised here, and differing assumptions. It's complicated! Good luck. <3
We eat mainly vegetarian dishes but do still buy occasionally chicken,bacon or sausages which are locally produced. Sarah x
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