HELP! Cooking class homework on vegetarians?!


Question: HELP! Cooking class homework on vegetarians!?
This is my h/w:

Interview 2 people who are vegetarians and ask why they have chosen to be vegetarian!. Ask them what types of food they consume and if they ever have any difficulties getting vegetarian food at functions and restaurants!.

If you are a vegetarian, please answer this in detail!. I am giving best answer too :)Www@FoodAQ@Com


Answers:
there are 4 main reasons people become vegetarian!.!. I became vegetarian for the first 3 (I can safely say that #4 had nothing to do with my going veg, because it was 1990 and that wasn't true at that time (especially where I lived))

#1 The animals: The way the animals are treated in today's meat industry is appaling!.!. the lives they lead, the way they are killed, is not just inhumane, it's torturous!.!. Personally, I love animals and was never afraid to admit I wouldn't have the guts/heart to kill an animal myself so I could eat it!.!. so I realized it was a bit hyporcritical of me to have someone else do my "dirty work" that I was not willing to do myself, and spare me the horror of seeing the animal die, yet still enjoy the taste of the meat

#2 Health!.!. Unlike 150 years ago, cows (for example) are not happily grazing on grass that GOd intended them to eat!.!. they are being fed ground up sheep/cows mixed with some grain!.!. this causes serious health problems for the cows (Mad cow, anyone!?) and add to that all the hormones and antibiotics they are fed, To ME it seems that meat is not SAFE to eat, healthwise!.!. also, the typical western diet (including mine before I went veg) includes WAY too much meat, more protien than humans need!.!. that's not good for our health (all the things I said about beef go for most other meats as well) Pollution makes fish unsafe to eat as well!.!. vegetarians have been proven to have lower cholesterol, less cancer and heart attacks!.!. because we're not eating too much protein for our bodies to handle, like most westerners!.!. and we're not getting all those diseased meats and chemicals!.!.

#3 (this was one of the biggeset for me) ENviornmental!.!. so much land is being deforested, which hurts the planet!.!. Why!? to provide farmland to raise cattle!.!. Or FOOD for cattle!.!. most grain is not grown for human consumption, but for cattle consumption!.!. if we were all veg we could have aLOT less cattle, and the environment would benefit!.!. it takes WAY over 1 lb of grain to produce 1 lb of beef!.!. and water!?!? It takes WAY more water to produce beef than to produce grain!.!. if we took all the grain fed to all the cattle in ONE DAY, we could use it to make 2 loaves of bread for EVERY human being on the planet, including the starving children in Eithiopia, or wherever!.!. And we won't even get into how much pollution cows produce!.!. how much waste!.!.!.

#4!.!. Going veg is "the thing to do" All the celebrities are doing it!.!. it's the "vouge" the "fad" But again!.!. it was NOT the fashion/fad/vogue in Blytheville Arkansas, 1990, when I went veg

Okay now that reasons I became veg (1-3) now we'll move on to what I eat!.!.

I don't have the BEST vegetarian diet!.!. the BEST vegetarian diet is built on whole grains, fruits and vegetables, legumes and nuts in wide variety!.!. Ideally, dairy, eggs, junk food, and meat analogues are used in CAREFUL moderation!.!.

Me!.!. I fall way short of what I should be!.!.!. I eat way too much non-whole grains!.!. eat too much meat analogues!.!.

For breakfast I like things like cream of wheat or oatmeal with honey and rice milk!.!. Or maybe scrambled tofu and tortillas!.!. or maybe biscuits and gravy!.!. fake sausage is nice, but I try to not eat it too much!.!.

For lunch I like sandwiches made of tofu, or fake meat, or hummus and pickles, or just lettuce/tomato/etc!.!.(like a subway veggie delight)!.!. I need to eat more vegetables than I do, but I do allright with fruit!.!.

also for lunch maybe a little "pizza" made by using a pita bread as the crust!.!.!.!.yum!! Or there's a multitude of things to eat!.!. curry and rice!.!.!.tofu and rice!.!.!.spaghetti!.!. bean burritoes, vegetable and tofu fajitas, the list is almost endless!.!.

Supper I usually eat light, say, a bowl of cereal with rice milk, or some air-popped popcorn, but if I'm "bad" i like the same stuff people usually eat for supper!.!. spaghetti, pizza, hot dogs (immitation hot dogs)!.!. vege burgers, etc, etc, etc!.!.

Do I have trouble at restraunts!? Depends on the restraunt!.!. I will say, with vegetarian trend growing, more and more restraunts have a better selection for vegetarians!.!. I'm also not afraid to ask if something could be made without meat, if it looks like it could!.!. LIke when I see "steak and portobella" fajitas on the menu I'm not afraid to ask!.!. "can I have that with more mushrooms in place of the beef!?!?" Many many restaurants are very accommodating!.!.

But I will say once in awhile it's nice to go to an all-vegetarian restaurant where I can feel free to order anything that sounds good, without worry!.!.

and SOME restaurants have a very limited choice for vegetarians!.!. but I can usually find a salad!.!. or get them to leave the meat off of some dish!.!. and I don't eat out alot at restaurants I haven't frequented before!.!.Www@FoodAQ@Com

I am vegetarian!.

I was brought up as a vegetarian and am happy to have been!. When I was old enough my parents offered to make me meat to eat but I did not want to!. I object to how some animals are bred, kept and slaughtered and just do not like the idea of eating an animal!. I consume all sorts of things, pasta, pizza, curries, beans on toast, sandwiches, cereal etc!. All the things you eat just without the meat!. I find that if you tell people you are vegetarian, or check out menus before hand there are often considerations made for vegetarians!.

Hope fully I have been of help!. Good luck with your homework!.

P!.S!. If this isn't suitable other reasons for being vegetarian are religions, allergies!.!.!. in other words just make it up!.

You may find this page useful although it is a bit long and full of text:
http://en!.wikipedia!.org/wiki/VegetarianWww@FoodAQ@Com

I decided that I didn’t want to support cruelty to animals!. I did a lot of research into how animals are treated on factory farms and slaughterhouses, and I decided that I don’t want to support it anymore!.

I eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and grains!. I really like fake meats, such as veggie burgers, veggie chicken strips, veg bacon, etc!. They make it very convenient to be vegetarian since cooking is too time-consuming for me!.

Here are some of the protein-rich and iron-rich vegetarian foods that I try to include in my diet as much as possible:
http://www!.tryveg!.com/cfi/toc/!?v=08sourc!.!.!.

Most functions are pretty good about including at least one vegetarian option!. Once in awhile I'll go to a restaurant where salad is the only vegetarian food on the menu!. At restaurants like these, I sometimes ask if the chef can whip up a vegetarian entree!. In general, though, I can usually find enough vegetarian food to eat at restaurants!.

Good luck!Www@FoodAQ@Com

I am a vegetarian!.

I have chosen to be a vegetarian because I haven't always really liked meat, I want to TRY to help the animals, and I've heard that it is healthy!. Meat has never been my favorite part of a meal!. And as for helping animals, I also want to try to save the rainforests because people are cutting them down so they can raise cattle there!. (The cattle that becomes our food) Lastly, I have heard that becoming a vegetarian is healthy, and I know that meat isn't the best for you, besides the fact that it gives you protein!.

Some things that I eat are lot of vegetables at dinner time, and my mom is going to start buying me some tofu so I get the protein that I need for dinner as well as the other meals!. For lunch, I make sure to have a lot of protein to substitute the meat, like peanut butter or cheese sandwiches with almonds or cashews and raisins and grapes or some other type of fruit!. This weekend I am going to make this tasty bean soup that I found on the internet!.

I really hope this helps, I tried to inclulde a lot, and good luck!Www@FoodAQ@Com

Hi! I'll help!

I first started to think about going vegan for health reasons - I had read a lot of medical journals and clinical research, and everything I read supported that vegans experience lower incidence of chronic illness than non-vegans!.

I was still teeter-tottering about it when I watched a show called How It's Made - they did a segment of hatchery chicks!. I saw the way those tiny chicks were tossed-about like beanbags, and I was just horrified!. These little babies were hatching out of their shells expecting to find mom, and all they find is machinery!. I almost cried!.

THEN I found out what happens to those chicks, the reason why they're separated by sex!. The females are grown to be layers!. The males are thrown away and destroyed!.

That was it - my decision was made!. It wasn't enough to be vegetarian!. (The way I see it, there is no such thing as ethical vegetarianism!.) On my 27th birthday in 2006 (5 weeks before I got married) I became vegan!.

On a typical day, breakfast is oatmeal with berries, flax, maple syrup and soy milk!. Lunch is a big salad with nuts and fruit and a home-made dressing, or a vegetable sandwich with hummus or vegenaise (vegan mayo)!. Dinner is a big pile of vegetables and either beans, tempeh, or a tofu dish!. I eat lots of fruit and veg, and very seldom any processed foods or analog meats!.

I don't have difficulty getting vegan food at restaurants I go to because I plan ahead!. My husband and I choose restaurants that have a few selections that I know are vegan, or we'll go to vegan restaurants!. For family dinners or weddings, I plan ahead - I'll call the host and ask if it's possible for me to be served a vegan dish, or - in the case with family get-togethers - I'll bring a tasty vegan dish and dessert to share!.

Hope this helps!Www@FoodAQ@Com

I choosen to be a vegetarian after reading a book on factory farming!.

I eat rice, noodle, pasta, vegetable, mushrooms, tofu, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, mock meat (sometimes) anything that had no meat and seafood!.

In Singapore, there is no difficulties getting vegetarian food!. In a small country with about 4!.5millions people, everywhere we go, we can find vegetarian food even at foodcourt, hawker centre, coffee shop!.

There are more and more vegetarian eateries serving different type of cuisines, like japanese, thai, indian, korean, indonesian etc, Take a look at their menu at the vegetarian eateries website (just list a few) :

The whole Earth : http://www!.thewholearth!.com/
Bombay Cafe: http://www!.bombaycafe!.com!.sg/
Origin Sin :http://www!.originalsin!.com!.sg/

I listed many other veg eateries webstie at my blog, if you like to know what the veg menu is, go to my blog, it is on the right
http://crystalbyblog!.blogspot!.com/

Even the non-vegetarian eateries are getting vegetarian friendly!. You can go to any eateries and request the Chef to cook a veg!. dish!. Some of them even have a vegetarian menu, even the fine dinning restaurant, take few examples:

Equinox: http://www!.equinoxcomplex!.com/main!.html ( click on restaurant, click on the menu, the vegetarian dishes are listed on their menu)
Lemongrass : http://www!.lemongrass!.com!.sg/menu!.html
Sakae Sushi : http://www!.sakaesushi!.com!.sg/menuveggie!.!.!.!.

Function is not a problem, as long as we inform them in advance, this can be easily arranged, althought it might not be the best vegetarian food, but it is vegetarian :-)

Even food web, vegetarian is one of their option for selection:
http://www!.hungrygowhere!.com/search_resu!.!.!.


cheers :)Www@FoodAQ@Com

I have chosen to be a vegetarian because I realized that meat doesn't contain much of the nutrients I need from food!.
Here are other reasons:
The Environment

1!. Conservation of Fossil fuel!. It takes 78 calories of fossil fuel to produce 1 calorie of beef protein; 35 calories for 1 calorie of pork; 22 calories for 1 of poultry; but just 1 calorie of fossil fuel for 1 calorie of soybeans!. By eating plant foods instead of animal foods, I help conserve our non-renewable sources of energy!.

2!. Water Conservation!. It takes 3 to 15 times as much water to produce animal protein as it does plant protein!. As a vegetarian I contribute to water conservation!.

3!. Efficient use of grains!. It takes up to 16 pounds of soybeans and grains to produce 1 lb!. of beef and 3 to 6 lbs!. to produce 1 lb of turkey & egg!. By eating grain foods directly, I make the food supply more efficient & that contributes to the environment!.

4!. Soil conservation!. When grains & legumes are used more efficiently, our precious topsoil is automatically made more efficient in its use!. We use less agricultural resources to provide for the same number of people!.

5!. Saving our forests!. Tropical forests in Brazil and other tropic regions are destroyed daily, in part, to create more acreage to raise livestock!. By not supporting the meat industry, I directly reduce the demand to pillage these irreplaceable treasures of nature!. Since the forest land "filters" our air supply and contains botanical sources for new medicines, this destruction is irreversable!.

6!. Asthetics!. Decaying animal parts, whether in a freezer case or served in restaurants, can never be as asthetically pleasing to the senses as the same foods made from wholesome vegetable sources!. Only habit can allow one not to perceive this: a change in diet makes this self evident!.


Personal Health
7!. No deficiencies!. There is no nutrient necessary for optimal human functioning which cannot be obtained from plant food!.

8!. High fat plus cholesterol!. Animal foods are higher in fat than most plant foods, particularly saturated fats!. Plants do not contain cholesterol!.

9!. "Carb" deficient!. Meat is deficient in carbohydrates, particularly the starches which are so essential to proper health!.

10!. Vitamin deficient!. Except for the b-complex, meat is largely deficient in vitamins!.

11!. Agricultural Chemicals!. Being higher on the food chain, animal foods contain far higher concentrations of agricultural chemicals than plant foods, including pesticides, herbicides, etc!.

12!. Exposure to livestock drugs!. There are over 20,000 different drugs, including sterols, antibiotics, growth hormones and other veterinary drugs that are given to livestock animals!. These drugs are consumed when animal foods are consumed!. The dangers herein, in secondary consumption of antibiotics, are well documented!.

13!. Pathogenic Microorganisms!. There are a host of bacteria and viruses, some quite dangerous, that are common to animals!. When I eat meat, I eat the organisms in the meat!. Micro-organisms are present in plant foods too, but their number and danger to human health is by no means comparable to that of those in meat!.

14!. Worms and other Parasites!. Ditto on # 13!

15!. Shelf life differential!. Plant foods last longer than animal foods!. Try this experiment: Leave out a head of lettuce and a pound of hamburger for 1 day, which will make you sick!?

16!. Organoleptic Indications of Pathenogens!. Plant foods give tell-tale signs of "going bad"!. Ever hear of someone getting sick from "bad broccoli"!?

17!. Heart Disease!. Meat eating increases the risk of heart disease, this country's #1 killer!. The correlation is an epidemiological fact!.

18!. Cancer prevention!. Of all the natural cancer prevention substances found: vitamin C, B-17, hydroquionenes, beta carotene, NDGA, - none has been found to be animal derived!. Yet most meats, when cooked, produce an array of benzenes and other carcinogenic compounds!. Cancer is infinitely easier to prevent than cure!. Soybeans contain protease inhibitor, a powerful anticancer compound!. You won't find it in useful quantities in animal based food!.

19!. Disease Inducing!. The correlation between meat consumption and a wide range of degenerative diseases is well founded and includes!.!.!.!.!.

20!. Osteoporosis

21!. Kidney Stones and Gallstones

22!. Diabetes

23!. Multiple Sclerosis

24!. Arthritis

25!. Gum disease

26!. Acne!. Aggravated by animal food!.

27!. Obesity!. Studies confirm that vegetarians tend to be thinner than meat eaters!. Obesity is considered by doctors to be a disease within itself!.

28!. Intestinal Toxemia!. The condition of the intestinal flora is critical to overall health!. Animal products putrefy the colon!.

29!. Transit time!. Wholesome food travels quickly through the "G!.I" tract, leaving little time to spoil and incite disease within the body!.

30!. Fiber deficient!. Fiber absorbs unwanted, excess fats; cleans the intestines; provides bulk and aids in peristalsis!. Plant food is high in fiber content; meat, poultry and dairy products have none!.

31!. Body wastes!. Food from animals contain their waste, including adrenaline, uric and lactic acid, etc!., Before adding ketchup, the biggest contributors to the "flavor profile" of a hamburger are the leftover blood and urine!.

32!. Excess protein!. The average American eats 400% of the RDA for protein!. This causes excess nitrogen in the blood that creates a host of long-term health problems!.

33!. Longevity!. To increase ones risk of getting degenerative disease means decreasing ones chance to live a naturally long healthy life!. Huzas and other peoples with large centenarian populations maintain lifestyles that are relatively meat free!.

34!. Well Being!. I just feel better since "giving up" meat and becoming vegetarian!.


Personal Finances
35!. Health care costs!. Being healthier on a vegetarian diet means spending less on health care!.

36!. Food costs!. Vegetarian foods tend to cost less than meat based items!.


Ethics
37!. Love of animals!. I love animals as I love myself!. I have no desire to kill them or cause them harm!.

38!. Stance against Factory Farming!.!. I cannot make a statement against factory farming if I myself eat animals!.

39!. Respect for Sentient Life!. I show gratitude to my Creator(s!?) by eating as low on the food chain as possible!.

40!. "Economic Vote"!. I show support of the meat industry and the way they operate when I purchase and use their products!.

41!. Small sacrifice The sacrifice I make is nothing compared to the animals, its life!.

42!. Natural diet!. Our hands, teeth, feet, intestinal tract!.!.!.even our body chemistry is that of an herbivore!.

43!. Reciprocity!. If I partake in the slaughter of animals, I will have to repay my contribution to that act!.

44!. "Protecting the Temple"!. "Whatever affects the body has a corresponding effect on the mind and soul" (E!.G!. White)

45!. I believe in nonviolence!. Slaughter isn't!.

46!. World Peace!. There can never be peace among men while men are declaring war on other highly developed life forms!.

47!. Clear conscience!. I know what I'm doing is right!. I feel good inside about my decision to remain "meatless"

48!. Example!. To live this way is to protect the underlying values of those around me!.

49!. Easy substitutes!. There are vegetable based substitutes for every meat product imaginable!.

It's somehow easy to find vegetarian foods at restaurants!.Www@FoodAQ@Com





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