Vegetarian Meal Ideas

• Why Vegetarian?
• Natural Diet
• Controversies
• Natural Foods
• Nutrition 101
  • Introduction
  • Protein
  • Carbohydrates
  • Fats
  • Vitamins
  • Minerals
  • Digestion
  • Daily Requirements
• Meal Planning
• Cooking 101
  • Staples
  • Vegetables
  • Legumes
  • Eggs
  • Knife Skills
• Food Safety
• Healing Diet
• Websites

Meal Planning:

Introduction:

"Meal Planning" attempts to pull together all the information from the preceding sections, to provide some simple guidelines for planning daily meals. Why Vegetarian lays out some ethical reasons for choosing a vegetarian diet. Natural Diet identifies what are the healthy foods to include in a vegetarian diet; abundant fruits, vegetables, whole grains and in moderation legumes, raw nuts and optionally low-fat/non-fat milk and eggs. Lastly, Nutrition 101 looks at our nutritional requirements, the best sources to fill those requirements and the general ratio of proteins, carbohydrates and fats in a balanced diet.

The Food Pyramid is a convenient tool depicting the recommended daily intakes. It shows at a quick glance the general foods to include and in what amounts.

The Vegetarian Food Pyramid:

There are several versions of vegetarian food pyramids out there; perhaps the most notable would be the one at the oldwayspt.org site. However, my favorite is the one below. It differs from the oldwayspt version in that it doesn't combine different food groups together (fruits and vegetables), whole grains are the foundation of most meals and legumes are in moderation (not the same amount as grains).

Below are typical serving sizes for each of the food groups.

The basic principles of a healthy diet are that it should be adequate, balanced, varied, and moderate.

• Adequate - provides enough calories, nutrients and fiber. Eat nutrient dense foods as much as possible and shun empty-calorie foods. You want to be able to eat as much as you want so you can feel full without having to worry about calories. Fruits, vegetables and whole grains are the way to go. On the other hand, foods high in fat or "added sugars" can easily help you meet or exceed your calorie requirements while still leaving you deficient in your nutrient requirements.
• Balanced - eat from each of the food groups in the approximate portions recommended by the serving sizes.
• Varied - eat a wide variety of foods from each group. With fruits and vegetables, try to include lots of different colors and types of greens to insure a wide range of protective phytonutrients.
• Moderate - do not overdo any particular food or food group. Be especially moderate with solid fats (butter, cream, cream cheese, sour cream), added sugars, salt and cheese.

Meal Planning:

Here are some very simple guidelines for how the daily intake can be spread across three meals and a snack(s). There will be tremendous variation between individuals; lacto, lacto-ovo, vegan, raw, toddlers, teenagers, adults, elderly but this forms a good foundation. Varying energy requirements are met by the whole grain and starches group which can range from 6 to 11 or more servings. Generally speaking, people with high energy needs (teenagers, athletes, manual workers) will eat more of everything!

Planning a menu of dinners out 1-3 weeks can really help. It insures variety, reduces repetition, helps with planning groceries and takes the stress out of "What's for dinner?" after coming home from work. Trying to decide a dinner on the fly can lead to frustration if ingredients are not available, unplanned store visits, increased grocery costs and as a last resort maybe even ordering take-out! With a little forethought some dishes can be reused. For example; Spanish rice made for enchiladas can be used 2 days later with Spanish omelets, cornbread made for chili can be used 2 days later with a Southern meal, chole made for and Indian meal can be served 2 days later with a different curry.

Meal tips:

• It's not necessary to weigh, measure or fuss about portion sizes. If you eat a varied diet, things will balance out in the end. Choose portions according to your appetite but avoid overeating. In a typical dinner, you can visualize the plate as approximately ½ carbs, ⅓ vegetables and a serving of protein. If you have a tendency towards being overweight reduce the carbs and increase the vegetables by a corresponding amount. You will need sufficient volume to feel full.
• When planning a dinner, I usually choose the main carbohydrate first to determine if it will be, for example, a rice, pasta or potato meal, then I choose the other items to go with it. Another alternative is to build the meal around whatever fresh produce is on hand.
• Greens, legumes and nuts (other than peanut butter) are not generally a significant part of the typical western diet. Eating habits are difficult to change, so introduce changes gradually. For example, if greens are new to you or your family, try introducing cooked greens with dinner a couple times a week. It can take a couple of months before a new habit gets established. Gradually working these items into the regular diet can make a big improvement.
• Legumes are an important component in a vegetarian diet. Here are a few ways to work legumes into the diet. Try pinto or black beans in Mexican meals, dal, chole or rajma in Indian meals, humus or falafel in Middle Eastern meals, and soups (lentil, split pea), baked beans, chili or black-eyed peas in American meals. Soy products like tofu, edamame, beans, soy milk, mock meats etc. are great additions to almost any meal.
• If you're tempted to skip breakfast in the morning, see Why Breakfast Is the Most Important Meal of the Day
• Have drinks either 20 minutes before or 1 to 1½ hours after a meal. Only sip a light drink as needed during a meal to moisten dry food.
• Stay hydrated. Have 6-8 cups of water per day. Herbal teas, juice, soups and milk count toward that.

Sample Daily Menus:

The USDA has an interesting on-line tool called the Food Tracker which can be used to evaluate your daily intake. Simply input all the foods eaten for a day and the tool will display the total calories, graph the input by food group and a link to "Nutrient Intake Report" will give amounts for all the nutrients and an indication if the amounts are "OK" or "Under". Foods input need to be in their database. Most common ones are there but you may not be able to input some processed foods, home cooked recipes or vitamin supplements.

Disclaimer:

The contents of this Web site are not intended to offer personal medical advice. You should seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this Web site.

References:

1. Thompson, Janice L., Melinda M. Manore and Linda A. Vaughn. "Designing a Healthful Diet" The Science of Nutrition San Francisco, CA : Pearson Benjamin Cummings 2008
2. Duyff, Roberta L. "Planning to Eat Smart" American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide Hoboken, NJ : Wiley 2006
3. Melina, Vesanto, and Brenda Davis. "Designing the Diet" Becoming Vegetarian Summertown, TN : BPC 2003
4. Messina, Virginia, and Mark Messina. "Guidelines for Meal Planning" The Vegetarian Way New York : Three Rivers Press 1996
5. Weil, Andrew. "The Best Diet in the World" Eating Well for Optimum Health New York : Quill 2001
6. Food Pyramid by the Loma Linda University.
7. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015-2020 from U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and Dept. of Health and Human Services
8. ChooseMyPlate.gov The USDA's food guidance system is comprised of the new MyPlate symbol and other materials to help Americans make healthy food choices and to be active every day. It includes much of the consumer and professional information formerly found on MyPyramid.gov.