Fed up of making the same meals !

A couple of years ago, I bough a Ninja Foodi multi cooker and it changed my meal pattern for ever!

Maybe something to consider?

Astitchintime

I can relate to this.........if I ask MrA in the morning what he would. like for dinner that night he will frequently say "FOOD"!
No help at all!

Plus health concerns have now made me have a complete rethink on our meals in terms of the hidden sugars - some days my head spins with frustration and. lack of ideas.

If I ever ask dh what he fancies, he’ll invariably say shepherd’s pie!
But he never asks what’s for dinner. When I once asked why not, he said, ‘Because it’s always something nice.’
So I can’t complain!

I have a usual repertoire of maybe around 18 dishes (that I can think of ATM) not counting anything like pork chops and 2 veg.

Indigo8, I make a Thai green curry now and then, but I use a jar or packet of the paste. The only extras needed are coconut milk and whatever veg, plus soy sauce, but I always that anyway. TBH I find it very quick and easy to make.

Indigo8, I make a Thai green curry now and then, with prawns or chicken, but I just use ready made green curry paste, in which case it’s a pretty quick meal - but I do usually add ginger and garlic, plus e.g. sugar snap peas, mushrooms, red pepper and coconut milk.

M0nica

But, Norah no use if your allergies are vegetable based, sesame, soya, nuts, tomatoes, strawberries etc. All of which exist in my family. Together with several fish.

If a packet says the food is plant based, then what it says is just as clear as saying vegan - and just as useless for those whose allergies are plant based.

We're splitting hairs.

Many people do not understand food label ingredient lists. Finding butter, cream, cheeses (for example) if one lactose tolerant by a word one understands can be difficult for people. For those people vegan labels are good. Same with eggs (a severe EpiPen allergy), shellfish (in many prepared sauces), etc.

The vegan label is not perfect - but in my opinion helpful to many. I see nut free, dairy free, lactose free, gluten free - helpful information too. Rapeseed oil - not an allergy - like to know so I can avoid.

But, Norah no use if your allergies are vegetable based, sesame, soya, nuts, tomatoes, strawberries etc. All of which exist in my family. Together with several fish.

If a packet says the food is plant based, then what it says is just as clear as saying vegan - and just as useless for those whose allergies are plant based.

We should have a recipes thread to share, uncomplicated and easy meal suggestions

Try aglio e ollo, quick, simple spaghetti dish

Witzend

So, Monica, are you saying that a dish can only be called vegan, if only bona fide vegans are going to be eating it?
Otherwise it’s just ‘purely plants’?
Sorry, but that does seem a bit nit-picky to me, semantically speaking.

I think sometimes some people may miss that vegan denotes much more than vegetable based, it helps make a "mental list" of many foods to which people have allergies or intolerances.

Eggs, milk, butter, cream, ice cream, cheese, parm, anchovies, honey, mayo, worcestershire, gelatine, some pasta, some crisps, some candy, etc.

For example: If allergic to eggs - the word vegan on a packet is helpful.

Norah
We've tried quorn, don't care for it. Again, it's easy to just eat lovely entirely plant based meals without vegetables imitating meat.

Since Quorn is a UPF, we don’t eat it. As you say, you don’t need vegetables imitating meat.

I made a shepherds pie with lidl quorn, and some puy lentils, and it tasted good, but I'd just as soon have missed out the quorn altogether.

Mollygo

Linda McCartney's sausages were high in salt content. Is that still true?

No idea, but after a look to the ingredients I decided we'd be better served with organic tofu or tempeh. No need for substitutes - I merely make sure we've plenty of protein daily.

We've tried quorn, don't care for it. Again, it's easy to just eat lovely entirely plant based meals without vegetables imitating meat.

I've no idea, I don't look at all those things, unless I have an inkling something is really bad.

Linda McCartney's sausages were high in salt content. Is that still true?

Plant based stuff is a long way from how veggie foods used to taste.
I use quite a lot of plant based sausages, just broken up and in place of meat in dishes.

Cheap (ish!) and cheerful.

Meat sausages can always be replaced with plant-based ones. I like the Linda McCartney meat free sausages.

MissAdventure

Thank you again, Norah

That's further down on the to-do list, as it uses more ingredients.

Do you just omit the meat, because I know you're one of "those" shhhh.... vegans

We do cook meat - when our daughters and GC will be round and have asked for certain meat. They say this recipe is good with or without sausage, they love it, so we cook it meatless.

Granddaughters make in their homes, with Kielbasa, cut and fried. Adding fried Kielbasa at the end, after simmering soup - so meat doesn't toughen.

They occasionally add leftover gammon, good use.

Thank you again, Norah

That's further down on the to-do list, as it uses more ingredients.

Do you just omit the meat, because I know you're one of "those" shhhh.... vegans

MissAdventure

Thank you.
It'll be on my to-do list.

Try this as well.

500 g sausage (omit if you don't eat meat) -- brown

1 chopped onion -- add to sausage and cook until soft

1 celery, chopped -- add the rest, bring to boil, then simmer.
1 chopped carrot
1 c brown lentils
2 chopped scrubbed potatoes
2 bay leaf, salt, pepper
1t cumin, 1t sweet paprika
3 sprigs rosemary (I cut 3-4" sprigs)
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 liter stock (I use vegetable)

120-150 g kale, chopped -- add to wilt, after lentils are tender

I serve with vinegar.

Witzend

So, Monica, are you saying that a dish can only be called vegan, if only bona fide vegans are going to be eating it?
Otherwise it’s just ‘purely plants’?
Sorry, but that does seem a bit nit-picky to me, semantically speaking.

No, I am saying that no food can be described as vegan food.

Vegans are people not food and there are many other groups who have specific food requirement and the food is not described by who they are. For example, people with Coeliac disease cannot eat gluten and food for them is descibed as 'gluten free' not 'coeliac food'. Food good for diabetics is described as 'diabetic friendly' or sugar-free or some such phrase, not diabetic food.

Vegan food is an anomaly and inaccurate, which, for some reason irritates me. I think all of us have small things that, for some reason irritate us quite disproportionately. This is mine.

As I’ve gotten older I’ve begun to make more mistakes in my cooking and baking. Yesterday i was in a hurry and I forgot to add an egg to a cookie recipe. Surprisingly, they turned out ok, at least my DH said so. I’ve even forgotten to put the chicken in chicken soup! Didn’t realize it until after I delivered it to my daughter. I really need to take my time and concentrate!

My ex-DH was horrendous and had limited tastes and refused all veg except potatoes and onions. But would eat Branston Pickle which has all manner of veg in it! Nor would he eat anything with garlic but would eat a pepperoni pizza which is loaded with the stuff!! Just plain awkward and it made mealtimes hard work as our kids were learning to be as difficult as him. Thankfully now as AC's they both eat pretty much anything and DS loves cooking and has a wide repertoire which DH and I enjoy on our visits to see them and GDD.
DH is will happily eat anything I put in front of him and doesn't complain if I make a huge pot of stew which we will eat for two or three days and ring the changes with crusty bread or different styles of side veg. As he is diabetic we do have to watch what he eats but it is far easier to manage when you cook from scratch as many prepared foods have sugar added. We do limit pasta and rice accordingly but there isn't much that is off limits.
Many years ago, my DM used to help out an elderly couple on a voluntary basis with their midday meal. Every single day they had boiled bacon, boiled potatoes and peas! They never changed it - ever!! They had been married over 40 years.

It's not just the veg; it's food.
We're on the edge of a precipice, I think.

Ilovedogs22

Sorry to hear that MissAdventure, everything changes the good & the bad, hold on in there. 😊❤👍

Tell him he’s lucky to have you making food for him at all a d you simply won’t put yourself through a battle every day.
If he won’t eat veg then he won’t, he can just have some meat or fish with spuds or rice and do the veg or salad just for yourself.

Jaxjacky

kittylester

But, why make the same meals again and again?

There are loads and loads of recipes on line.

I think kitty there are a number of reasons.
Some people eat to live, they have little pleasure in the whole process, particularly if they’re on their own.
Some have a tight budget, so they make and eat what they know is affordable, others physically for various reasons can only eat certain things, bad teeth is one example.
Others are just not adventurous, like predictability and routine. There may well be others, but not everyone is of the same mould as others.

Good answer Jaxjacky👍🏻

So, Monica, are you saying that a dish can only be called vegan, if only bona fide vegans are going to be eating it?
Otherwise it’s just ‘purely plants’?
Sorry, but that does seem a bit nit-picky to me, semantically speaking.