How can a vegetarian can make it with a husband who eats meat?!
Answers: I have decided to make the switch to a vegetarian diet...I have been a vegetarian before but stopped in college when I could only eat the campus food. I would like to transition back, and I plan on only giving up meat and byproducts, not milk or eggs. My husband has agreed to give up red meat entirely, but will not give up any other meats and I don't want to force him to do so (I think it's a personal choice). We will be phasing out red meat over the next week or two and then I will continue to phase out other meats from my diet. Any tips on how to keep my husband happy with his meals while I cut meat from my diet? He is the kind of person that eats meat with every meal, so eating a portabello burger instead of turkey burger is not going to cut it for him. Has anyone else dealt with this same issue?
I'm vegan and my husband eats meat and he's learned to enjoy some things the vegetarian way, other times he makes something for himself or gets himself food. I love him and don't let it become a conflict or an issue of dispute. Plus, just about everything you make can be made vegetarian at the same time.
If you make stir fry, add cooked, diced chicken breast after you take it off the stove - and serve yourself just the veggies or add prepared diced tofu instead.
If you make chili, make it a hearty bean chili and serve yourself first and add ground beef later.
Make generally-agreed upon food like pizza and mac and cheese, which can be great vegetarian.
Talk about shopping lists and what concessions you're both willing to make. EVERYTHING in EVERY relationship is a give-and-take, no two partners are exactly alike and there's always going to be compromises, from how you roll up socks to what's on the shopping list. This is just another thing to find common ground on.
Another great tip: cook in excess if you make your husband food or if he prepares himself food with meat in it. Freeze meat-filled leftovers so your husband has food to take with him to work or otherwise heat up.
P.S. Over the past few years my husband has gone down to where he eats meat less then three or four times a week, his diet is 85% vegan or better. He's come to understand the reasons behind going vegan and has begun to enjoy vegan food, and honestly I think he'll probably go vegan (he even went for 2 years on a vegan diet at one point but picked meat up again). Food and shopping lists and making seperate meals was never really an issue for me because it was easy to make vegetarian meals and add meat later or just eat vegetarian.
He's an adult, he can make his own food. Otherwise he can eat what you prepare. Omnivores eat vegetarian food, it doesn't work vice versa.
Even if he still wants to eat meat, he doesn't need it at every meal, every day. Perhaps, some days during the week, you could prepare a totally vegetarian dinner, and the other days, make something vegetarian and then add a serving of meat to his portion. A week might go like this:
Sunday: falafels
Monday: spaghetti with tomato sauce (and some ground meat for his portion)
Tuesday: tostadas or tacos, with beans for you and meat for him
Wednesday: vegetable stir-fry, with a separate bit of stir-fryed chicken for him
Thursday: veggie burgers and salads; try some different brands of veggie burger, he may like them
Friday: salads, with some slices of meat for your husband
Saturday: vegetarian ravioli
I have had a similar situation in my house, because I used to be vegetarian when no one else in my family was. Also, one of my high school teachers was a vegetarian but sometimes cooked meals for the guy who rented a room in her house; she would prepare something she liked and then cook a separate serving of meat that he could add to his meal, just like I described above. I hope this works out okay for you!
Good for you! It's a step towards a more humane world. I'm in that situation and have been for 14 years. He can eat whatever he wants at lunch and then when you have dinner you can make lasagne, cheese enchilladas, tortellini, and he probably won't even miss the meat. Most guys love pasta and Italian foods, like Eggplant parmesana or manicotti. If he is desperate for meat he can always cook his own, but I find that many people don't realize how many of their favorite dishes don't include meat. Yes, it's a personal choice but that doesn't mean you have to cater to him if he's super-picky. Good luck!
Just to expand on some ideas that Maggie mentioned -
- Make the pizza with half-meat, half veg - I usually do a sausage of some type or pre-cooked ham/bacon for my boyfriend
- Burgers are easy - pull out one veggie burger, one turkey/tuna, etc. burger for the man, and slap one on each side of the grill
- If you have some pre-cooked, seasoned ground turkey and pre-cooked, seasoned lentils you can use them in quite a few dishes - just throw in some carrots and onion, put into ramekins and top with mushroom gravy, then potatoes to make shepherd's pies; or stuff into tomatoes or peppers for stuffed vegetables.
- Curries are really easy too - just throw in a handful of chicken or shrimp after you've taken yours out
- Do the same with soups or stews - just add a handful of bacon bits, fish, chicken or ham after you've doled out a big bowl of your own
- Making lots of chili can work for making tacos or burritos, too - add the ground turkey afterwards and presto, meatified.
There are a few things me and my SO try to keep on hand to make meals easier.
- Cooked bacon or ham bits (microwavable kind)
- Cooked chicken, in pieces
- A tub of cooked ground meat
- A tub of cooked lentils or beans
- Frozen sausages
- Frozen veggie and meaty burgers
I'm a vegetarian and my boyfriend's not. I usually make side dishes we can both eat, and then a main dish for each of us. For example, I'll make him chicken and me tofu (separated by tin foil or in a different pan) both marinated the same. Or I'll bake him some chicken nuggets, and me some Morningstar Chik'n nuggets. And pasta's always good. Make a pasta dish, and cook some meat on the side to add to the top of his.
Make your food veg. If he wants to eat non-veg then he will have to make his own. Like most guys, he will get sick of that and not do it. My husband stayed omnivore for three years. Now we are both vegan. Change can happen. Open his mind and try many varieties.