and do you think this is unhealthy?
and do you think this is unhealthy?
No, I think of substitutes as now and then things. I don't think anything is good if used too much.
I don't think they're unhealthy. Actually, bean meats are quite healthy. I eat vegan meats and vegan cheese about once a week.
I'm raw vegan now but when I ate a cooked vegan diet I ate meat substitutes every single day
hardly ever ate vegan cheese though.
I just bought some vegan cheese for the first time, so I'm trying to use it up before it goes bad!
Peace, love, and happiness.
i eat soy mince maybe couple of times a week and tofu about the same..vegan cheese about once per week....jus for variation. it ink i could do quite happlily without them should ineed to
I never eat vegan cheese, can't stand the stuff, but I do like vegan sausages, burgers, cheatin' ham etc and soya mice and I eat them a few times a week. I certainly don't think they're unhealthy. I eat far better than the average westener, I enjoy my food and don't worry about what I eat.
I use vegan cheese frequently through the week. Probably 4 or 5 days. Mostly because my stores are finally carrying a decent vegan cheese and I want to enjoy it while it's around.
As far as fake meats up until 2 weeks ago it was a daily thing. I would use them in lunches every day. I only started thinking it might be unhealthy because even though it's vegan it is still a processed food. So, I decided to stop. Just (proudly) finished second week of making lunches for hubby and myself without the aid of fake meats. I think I used them to begin with for the super easy convenience factor. I'll get them in the future, but for a treat. Sometimes I like to make submrine sandwiches or hoagies.....yum!
I have never tried vegan cheese as it doesn't appeal to me at all.
As for fake meats, I don't have them either. I don't want to eat something which has been made to taste like meat. I find the thought repulsive somehow. I do eat tofu and tempeh, but I prepare it myself rather than buying processed products.
First it was necessary to civilize man in relation to man.
Now it is necessary to civilize man in relation to nature and the animals.
Victor Hugo
I use 1 packet of cheezly a week but there are four people to feed. I dont eat fake meat very often, about once a month maybe, i have gone right of.
I don't eat fake cheese ever. It's pretty awful, and I have found that I don't really miss cheese on a lot of things (tacos, burritos, sandwiches). Allthough if I could make a great Mac and Cheese or cheesey pizza I would. I just never seem to eat that...
The other thing that bothers me about fake cheese is that it has zero protein, is high in fat/calories, and generally lacking in anything good. That may sound harsh, but if it at least tasted good I would use it as a treat!
I go through phases with fake meats where I eat them a lot. I have been going though that lately, otherwise I don't eat them everday. Normally, I eat them maybe one or two times a week. I think most fake meat is pretty healthy. Allthough it is processed, most are very high in protein, and low in fat/calories. That is probably the main reason I eat it. Some taste really good too.
I don't consider tofu a meat replacer, but I eat that about once a week. Also, I am not sure if TVP is...I kinda think of a meat replacer as something that is meant to taste like meat (veggie burger, fake chicken, fake ground, fake turkey slices).
To me, tvp, tempeh, seiten and tofu are different. As they may replace meat, they are not as processed with added flavorings/salt/fillers to taste like meat.
I dont very often eat fake meat, but I have to admit I do eat soya cheese a lot. I really miss pizza, so I very often make myself a pizza with Cheezly, or I will mix potatos with Cheezly. However, I went to my Dads house today and he had Brie Cheese that was kind of sliding off the plate as it was so "room temperature" and it made me want to heave
I never found a vegan cheese I liked, but there was a vegan cream cheese that was absolutely divine! Is that the right word, cream cheese? Soft spread type thing you buy in tubs and comes in different flavours like chives....I was addicted to that.
I never liked dairy cheese anyway, except grated and melted and mixed in with scrambled tofu,
Yes, cream cheese. I love it.Cairidh
Peace, love, and happiness.
everyone seems to like cheezly. I wonder if i can get that shipped to the US?
I never tried it, I didn't like the look of the packet....I think it was the name...Wildflower
yayTigerlily
does it taste the same as dairy cream cheese, or is it just the vegan one that's gorgeous? (I never tried dairy cream cheese, I hated cheese)
The cream cheese does taste like dairy cream cheese, but dairy cream cheese doesn't taste like real cheese anyway. it is processed and totally different.
IMO.
I personally think it tastes exactly the same--which is great as I was a cream cheese lover back in my omni days.Cairidh
Peace, love, and happiness.
I never liked meat. When I ate meat I thought all food tasted disgusting. But when I became vegetarian suddenly all food tasted nice...so I don't think can fake meats taste like meat....
For example I hated sausages..but loved veg. sausages.
Hated meat pies...loved Linda McCartney meat pies.
or maybe going vegetarian just changed my body and hence changed my sense of taste.
Not everyone! I very occasionally have some Tofutti cream cheese, and the odd Realeat sausage. But that's it. I don't like anything else.Wildflower
"Do what you can with what you have where you are."
- Theodore Roosevelt
not sure what you mean by "substitutes." i don't eat any of what i consider substitutes.
i do, however, make cheese sauces ocassionally (maybe once a month), but those aren't substituting anything, nor did i have anything like it when omni. i also use tofu, tempeh, and seitan, but those are not considered meat substitutes (though I've heard them called that, probably because they're high in protein or something).
utopiankitchen.wordpress.com
I think fake meat is nicer than the real thing, it's been awhile(over 13 years) but I remember meat being grisly, greasy, having hard bits in, and fish having bony bits, and it not being all that nice at all.
I eat it a lot, maybe every other day, since my (omni) partner loves it too. TVP or vegemince or Linda McCartney or Redwoods fake meats usually. And I use a lot of tofu but I don't really think of that as a meat substitute.
As for cheese, I used to love the real thing, but I'm not too keen on the vegan versions and quite happily go cheeseless.
It is a monstrous thing to do, to slay a unicorn...you have slain something pure and defenceless and you will have but a half life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips.
I don't eat any meat replacers. It reminds me too much of the real thing and make me disgusted. I start thinking about all the animal cruelty, which makes me sad, disgusted, and sick...not good when I'm eating! I have been a vegetarian since I was 14 and I tried a meat replacer for the first time only a year ago. I don't miss the taste of meat at all, so I don't feel a need to eat meat replacers.
Strangely, I don't feel the same way about dairy replacers. I drink non-dairy milk (usually almond milk) almost every day and eat rice "ice-cream" quite often. I occasionally (but pretty rarely) use Tofutti cream cheese or sour cream.
You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.
~John Wooden
I would often eat fake meats twice a day *shock horror*
I had no idea thats not what vegans do....
I ate the same way as when I ate meat...but with fake meats....
I forgot soy milk is a substituite.
I drink soymilk everyday. I use it in coffee and tea, pour it over oatmeal and cereal (something i am not fond of, but tastes better with soymilk). I also occasionally will drink a glass of it with a cookie/cake like thing, or a banana. I make smoothies with it too, and subtituite it in my pancakes, mashed potatoes, and any other recipe that would have called for milk.
I love almond milk too.
You know what? I really don't see soy milk as a subsitute, as it doesn't try to imitate dairy milk's taste (unlike soy cheese, fake meats...). I see it as a beverage on it's own. I know a lot of dairy-eaters who drink soy milk ocasionally...they like the taste.
Peace, love, and happiness.
yeah I never saw soya milk as a milk substitute coz it tastes nothing like it....
but I did see "sogood" as a milk substitute - a white drink made from soy protein and loads of other ingredients, most of them artificial.
I did see soycreme as a cream substitute but I don't think it tastes like cream because I hate cream but love soycreme.....
Really its pointless people eating animal products because vegan fakes taste a million times better!!! So the "I love the taste" arguement won't wash.
I've never bothered with cheese/cream replacers, I dont miss them, and I make yummy pizza without cheese.
I have a veg sausage a couple of times a week (mainly because hubby likes them) but I could easily do without them.
Me either really, but I think someone else mentioned it so I wasn't sure if it counted as some people seem to be concerned with too much soy protein.Tigerlily
I would guess soymilk has been around since the beginning of time, as tofu has been and tofu always starts with a soymilk that is coagulated does it not?
Who knows, that's what I thought tofu was anyway! fermented bean curd...being from a soymilk like base?
You are correct, Wildflower. Tofu is the curd that comes from soymilk when a coagulating agent is added. But I wouldn't consider it a substitute for anything that comes from an animal either.
We have a lot of omin guests in this household so that's when the meat substitutes are in greatest use. The big winner is always seitan since I make my own (the store bought stuff is the pits).
We have used vegan cheese in the past, mostly to melt on warm sandwiches. In the future I would probably make a sauce or gravy since that's what melted vegan cheese reminds me of. Homemade would be healthier too.
Tofutti cream cheese and sour cream are also big hits when the omni's are around - so they pass the taste test.
I don't usually purchase soy creamer but make my own out of cashews. It's healthier and cheaper.
Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein
I love cashews. Would you mind sharing the recipe DianeVegan?DianeVegan
If plain dried TVP counts as fake meat I eat it about once a fortnight during cold weather when I cook a chilli. I use about a tablesponfull aded to lots of veggies and beans. In summer I don't eat it as often.
I recently discovered the Redwood's cheatin range so I buy that every few weeks. Maybe once a month or so. I have been a veggie 25 years so I have lost the feeling that it might remind me of meat because I can't remember what meat tasted like.
I have some Redwoods cheezely about once a week.
I have veggie sausages on average once a month.
See my local diary ... http://herbwormwood.blogspot.com/
I just pm'd the recipe to you.dharma
Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein
Thanks DianeVegan
I eat maybe one or two vegan boca burgers per week. They are the only meat substitutes that I really like. Maybe it's dumb to say, but most vegan meat subs don't appeal to me because they are too much like actual meat, typically texture-wise. And aside from all the moral reasons for my veganism, I've always hated meat and anything "meaty-textured".
Mostly I use tofu in all it's forms as a "meat substitute".
I have never tried vegan cheese before, because there isn't any available here that doesn't contain casein.
I never really ate cheese at all pre-veganism anyway, so I suppose I'm really lucky, as it seems a huge percentage of new vegans struggle with cheese cravings!
Cheese was definately the hardest thing to give up. I still crave it all the time. Vegan cheese is okay, except that it doesn't melt and get gooey like real cheese. However, I read in VegNews magazine that Kraft is coming out with a new vegan cheese that has a special protein in it derived from soy. Apparently this protein is similar to the protein in real cheese that gives it it's melting ability. I for one am pretty excited to try it when it comes out.
:: As long as there are slaughterhouses there will be battlefields. :: [Leo Tolstoy]
I eat them all the time, sorry.
And I just discovered veggiemasters chicken nuggets and they were nice
Sorry again
I want to find some chicken nuggets but all the ones here contain egg.
Peace, love, and happiness.
I never eat vegan cheese (though I've tried a few kinds) because it all tastes quite gross to me. I haven't tried vegan cream cheese though. However, I was never much into cream cheese anyway.
As far as meat replacements like veggie burgers and such, I have those maybe once every two or three months. I just don't feel the need for it. There are so many other (and easier) things to make/eat.
Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen.
- Albert Einstein
I haven't been vegan that long so without wanting to tempt fate, I don't think I've had enough time to really crave the taste of non vegan foodstuffs. I've tried cheezly in garlic and herb and nacho flavour but didn't particularly like either TBH. If I want something to be creamy I usually stir in a dollop of Tahini or use hummus. I agree with what somebody said previously- just because [soy cheese for example] is vegan, it doesn't necessarily make it all that much healthier, because it's still really processed.
As for meat substitues, not that often. I have tofu about twice a week in a main meal but rely largely on lentils, beans, peas, nuts and seeds to get protein...
I like vegan sausages. The best i've found so far were some redwood ones. Though redwood stuff is usually mint.
Cheese though... I like the fake parmezan cheese. Good for stiring into pasta sauses like.
I like vegan cheese better than I used to "like" dairy cheese (only liked it on pizzas) but can easily do without, though I always have some fake parmezan at home.
As for meat substitutes it's quite the same, I like most of them but haven them only about once or twice a month (I don't think of tofu, tvp, tempeh and seitan as subs)- the stuff is also pretty expensive.
What I could become addicted to is vegan "fish" if I could get any proper one here (I know, I could order online but all people tell me how horrible the substitutes are).
I hardly ever eat meat substitute, but when I do it's the sausauges and they're gone in one night! Lol. Same with cheese, I'll buy it once every month or so and eat the lot in 2 days lol. It's so yummy! I just get little cravings I think. I don't think it's bad for you though unless you eat it everyday..
Rarely, but I have found a product that I LOVE called Rawmesan. It's a substitute to the parm cheese you sprinkle on pasta. It's made with crushed sunflowers and nutritional yeast and some herbs. It's so delicious. Gopal's is the brand I believe.
I eat some of the organic tofurky products. They use windpower too!
"Turtle Island Foods is a certified Organic Processor, registered and inspected by Oregon Tilth Certified Organic of Salem, Oregon. We use third party certified organic soybeans and grains wherever possible. Currently our entire line of Tempeh Products is made with Certified Organic ingredients and our Tofurky Products are made with Certified Organic Tofu."
"In December 2005, Turtle Island Foods committed to purchasing 100% of its electricity through the Blue Sky renewable energy project. By investing in wind power we have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 252 tons per year.
That reduction is equivalent to the greenhouse gases released during 540,000 miles of driving or absorbed by 47 acres of trees."
http://www.tofurky.com/aboutus/organics.htm
The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.
Previously I would have said I buy the bacon style rashers about once a month, and we might have that on a pizza, as part of a fry up, in whatever meals, just as we fancy it and until it gets used up. Then we easily live without it until I next happen to get to the shops to get some.
Cheezley, the super melting mozarella, was used about once a week on a pizza. That was the only thing I thought it tasted any good for.
BUT, recently after seeing how many interesting vegan cheeses and meaty things Redwoods do, and placing a huge order from their website... well we have been eating them every day to use them up! lol
It really is for 'treat' foods rather than the norm though - pizza, hot dogs, fry ups (not much frying going on though apart from cooking the sausages!)...
My hubby and I, pre-vegan (vegetarian), used to love to experiment with buying different cheeses, especially those ones with apricot or cranberry in, or smoked, stuff like that - we used to have them in baguettes on the weekends or occationally on crackers. Well I didn't think any of the Cheezley I could get was nice enough for any of that, but now I've tried the one with cranberries and the one with bacon-style bits, they aren't bad. I especially like the cranberry one on crackers. We also tried the bacon-style bits cheezley on a hamburger and it was ok.
My only problem with them is that the bacon-bits one smells a bit like dog food... and also the packaging and all that just puts me off completely, including the way it all sticks to each other when you try to cut it from the block!! So I can enjoy it, as long as it's not me preparing it!!!
In addition to the cranberry and the bacon-bits cheezleys, we also got some super melting gouda (tried it on a pizza the other day - not much difference that I could tell apart from colour, maybe slightly stronger taste), and some SM edam, which we've not yet tried, and some SM cheddar slices, which we had on toast, and I had in a sandwich with Branston pickle, and that was nice.
So perhaps it's the mozzarella that I don't like for much besides pizza, or perhaps it's just that my tastes have changed, and I've forgotten about what cheese is like, or maybe it's my expectations that have changed?
We are both very stressed right now with getting ready to move to Australia in Jan, so we haven't been having 'proper' healthy meals much either. I know that healthy meals would help our stress though. I just can barely summon up the strength to organise for hubby to help me out by making something - it's not as easy as saying 'Honey could you make a Lentil Hotpot tonight please?' By the time I've found the recipe and found 95% of ingredients for him (he can find the water by himself, it's in the tap)... may as well make it myself.
Sorry I've gone off topic... I'm so tired
soy cheese sucks, i tried it once and it was like eating plastic..
I eat very rarely meat or cheese substitutes because here in switzerland there aren't many alternatives and it's all to expensive. Sometimes i eat tofu or seitan and that's all, I don't even feel the need to eat meat or cheese substitutes when there are soo many things you can make with fresh vegetables, beans and so on
I used to eat meat replacements fairly often (probably 3-4 times a week) but since moving out and going to university, I just cant afford them.
Maybe its a good thing, often they would be quite high in fat, and I eat more veggies. I eat them sometimes when I visit my boyfriend, he treats me
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