Cutting down on meat/fish and needing more protein

I do the same shysal, with red lentils which thicken it nicely. So quick and easy.
We eat it often, am careful what I eat, always cook from scratch, yet don’t seem to lose weight. It’s a mystery!

I regularly make soup, usually from vegetables. I add a couple of handfuls of lentils too. Makes it more filling but not fattening. I you don't like the texture, blending the soup makes them undetectable.

My favourite meal at the moment is a basic casserole with the protein coming from lentils. I usually add tomato pulp or chopped tomatoes and a vegetable stock pot or two. Cooks in under an hour too.

The OP said she was cutting out meat and fish in order to lose weight, vegansrock. It was pointed out to her that that was not the way to lose weight. Not ‘appalling advice’ at all.

Protein keeps hunger pangs at bay longer than most other food. Which helps when dieting

No one should be advocating more meat and fish in anyones diet- appalling advice. It might not be that the OP actually needs more protein - people tend to eat too much in the typical western diet. What are these such high rates of obesity or heart disease? You can always have a protein smoothie if you think you really need to.

Are you sure you've tried all the different types of tofu and cooking styles?

I honestly didn't like tofu to begin with but then I learnt about silken tofu and agedashi and my life changed. I did a quick search and this article shares a bit more about the different types of tofu and some recipe ideas.

Worth a read imao. Besides Asian food there's quite a lot of Mediterranean that may suit you too!

Are you sure you've tried all the different types of tofu and cooking styles?

I honestly didn't like tofu to begin with but then I learnt about silken tofu and agedashi and my life changed. I did a quick search and [https://morueats.com/blogs/inspire/what-to-do-with-tofu this] article shares a bit more about the different types of tofu and some recipe ideas.

Worth a read imao. Besides Asian food there's quite a lot of Mediterranean that may suit you too!

Not more meat but some meat. Fish is good though if steamed poached or baked

More meat and fish and less carbs and sugar. Reduce Cheese and bread snd watch portion size. Eat slowly. Good luck

I think most people eat more protein than they actually need. Cheese and eggs are excellent sources of protein- not sure why bytheway has suggested they're not.

If you need more protein eat more meat and fish.
Common sense.

Chick pea and butternut squash tagine with couscous
Spinach and bean burgers with salad and jacket potato
Cashew nut curry with coconut rice
Crispy baked tofu with a sticky sauce and spicy rice

Chickpeas or chickpea flour (gram flour) are good sources of protein and more palatable than some beans. Gram flour can be used to make a batter to coat vegetables to make fritters - OK- the fat in frying may not be so healthy, but they are very tasty! Tinned chickpeas are very cheap and can be used in lots of ways.

Cutting down meat and fish is definitely not unhealthy as some suggest. Eat less animal products and more plant based foods is the way to go. If you replace one meat based meal with a plant based one it will be good for the animals and the planet.

Baggs

Forgive me for being blunt but drastically cutting down on the most high protein foods (meat and fish) and then struggling to get enough protein seems like an oxymoron to me.

If it's about losing weight, why not cut down on carbs which are less useful?

I really don’t understand why you would reduce the amount of meat and fish you eat in order to lose weight. Losing weight should be a change of lifestyle, and as others have recommended, reducing the amount carbs (especially pastry, cakes, biscuits) is the way to go. Hopefully you will be able to exercise too.

Cut out carbs bread, pastry, rice, pasta, less red meat more peas, beans and vegetable protein plus fresh vegetables.
You will loose weight

If you are trying to loose weight you should be eating more meat and fish not less- just don't cook them in oil/ fat. Fill up on veg and fruit and don't cut out carbs too much - just cut down.
The things to avoid are sugar and alcohol!!!!

62Granny Sound suggestions. You also mentioned soya & quorn being processed while I wonder about the use of hemp protein powder or pea protein powder. To me this is an artificial construction which is hardly conducive to a more natural diet.

Why not do the old way of one third of your plate for each food type, that way you can have a little bit of everything, but if you want to really cut it out completely , pulses and lentils are a great source of protein and for instance something you would normally put mince in you could use lentils, e.g Bolognese or shepherds pie, they are reasonable prices and available in cans if you don't want to have to pre boil them. Why substitute meat with a processed item like soya or quorn. Just eat less of the "real" meat/ fish instead.

If you cut down on meat and fish make sure you get enough vitamin B12 which is found mainly in those foods. It's never a good idea to cut down on important food groups without help from a dietician as you may be cutting down on important nutrients apart from protein.

PestyOne

Vegetables are carb heavy, are metabolised by the body and stored as fat! Cut down on your carbohydrate consumption (carrots, potatoes, apples, banana and other starchy fruit & veg) to encourage the body to use up stored fat reserves. Resume eating lean meats and plenty of fish to increase protein intake and maybe use hemp protein powder or pea protein powder stirred into soups, yoghurt, etc.
Hope this helps 👍

Only a few veg are carb heavy, such as potatoes, carrots parsnips. Most are not.

Quinoa
Nuts, seeds, chia
Pulses, lentils, dry beans, peas, edamame
Eggs (have good protein if one is not vegan)
Cheese has some protein if one can tolerate cheese
Milk in various forms (by taste some is decidedly awful)

Decent pulses/ bean recipes with plenty of spices for taste?

Casdon
Please don’t knock peanut butter. Apparently it is good for the gut biome
Obviously so too are peanuts

Below is bit of net but I have read it before

Good news for peanut butter fans – adding just 2 tablespoons of peanuts to your diet can improve your gut microbiome. A peanut a day keeps the doctor away, according to new research. Peanuts, herbs and spices, even in small amounts, benefit the diversity of our gut bacteria, writes Anna Bartter.( no I am not advertising her don’t know her )

I’m a fan of peanut butter, which is a very good source of protein - the only problem is, it’s not great if you’re on a diet!