Katy, my fiancée, is a vegetarian. Over the course of our relationship, I have greatly reduced the amount of meat I eat. Not so willingly at first. But, shockingly, I have managed to survive without it everyday.
I have found protein replacements. And the amount of hummus I consume could be measured in gallons. There are even meat substitutes that I find myself gravitating to each time we grocery shop.
Now, I enjoy films. And I enjoy learning new things. Over the past couple years, a number of documentaries have been released citing the horrible things that happen to animals on corporate farms, covering the not-so-great benefits of eating meat that has been injected with hormones, and reiterating the incredible amounts of waste that goes into consuming meat in our economy.
After taking in this information, I can say it alters my eating habits for a few weeks to a month. I drink more water, try to take vitamins, and, although it sounds crazy, swear off meat like I swear off drinking when I wake up hung over. Yet, it never sustains.
I walk through the market, spy bacon and hamburger and steak. Finding myself staring, I make mental notes of meals to make when Katy is gone and I can eat alone.
Last week, on my day off, I made this:
It was worth every bite.
At my most recent checkup, I was perfectly healthy. Though I can say I have put a few extra pounds in the past couple years…which probably will lead to something else I should have given up.
(The idea with this series of posts is to reflect on things I'm not doing with the intention of taking time to, hopefully, start doing those things again.)
Tofu is awesome as well. You can bake it, fry it, sauté it and even blend it into smoothies. (It works as a healthy thickener.)
ReplyDeleteWhen my hottie and I need to cook a quick meal, we stir fry green / red peppers, onions, garlic, EVOO, and tofu and throw it into a bowl of Ramen. (we let the noodles soak in the broth to cook them, but then promptly drain them to avoid that extra sodium)