The meaty business of turning vegetarian
The biggest stir round these parts has been the Four Corners documentary on Monday, exposing the inhumane practices inflicted on animals due to live exports. As a result there are a lot of omnivores who've been put off eating meat.
The problem, nutritionally, is it's not just about dropping the meat. There's a whole heap of misinformation about vegan and vegetarian diets. So if you're a bit confused about sorting fact from fiction - check out this simple guide to becoming vegetarian.
If you've taken the plunge and experimenting with a meat-free diet - the majority of recipes on this site fit the bill. Just start cruising the "vegetarian" box on the drop down menu on the right side of this page.
For cooking in and eating out in Melbourne (and beyond) start with Cindy and Michael's delightful blog Where's the Beef?. These guys are responsible for the addictive soy bombs being made in every vego house in the city!
Heidi Swanson's cookbooks and blog 101 Cookbooks are a goldmine of wonderful recipes. Her generous site allows you to search for meal ideas by ingredient and she's formatted the recipes so they can be easily printed.
My two favourite local cookbooks (yes, I've mentioned them before) are Flip Shelton's Veg In, perfect for beginners and those converting to vegetarian food (full of vego "take away" recipes) and Tony Chiodo's Feel Good Food. Both make perfect gifts for those who've seen the light about live exports but don't quite know how to make the transition to a more meat-free diet.
Happy cow-free eating!
The problem, nutritionally, is it's not just about dropping the meat. There's a whole heap of misinformation about vegan and vegetarian diets. So if you're a bit confused about sorting fact from fiction - check out this simple guide to becoming vegetarian.
If you've taken the plunge and experimenting with a meat-free diet - the majority of recipes on this site fit the bill. Just start cruising the "vegetarian" box on the drop down menu on the right side of this page.
For cooking in and eating out in Melbourne (and beyond) start with Cindy and Michael's delightful blog Where's the Beef?. These guys are responsible for the addictive soy bombs being made in every vego house in the city!
Heidi Swanson's cookbooks and blog 101 Cookbooks are a goldmine of wonderful recipes. Her generous site allows you to search for meal ideas by ingredient and she's formatted the recipes so they can be easily printed.
My two favourite local cookbooks (yes, I've mentioned them before) are Flip Shelton's Veg In, perfect for beginners and those converting to vegetarian food (full of vego "take away" recipes) and Tony Chiodo's Feel Good Food. Both make perfect gifts for those who've seen the light about live exports but don't quite know how to make the transition to a more meat-free diet.
Happy cow-free eating!
Labels: ban live exports, eating well, nutrition, vegan, vegan friendly, vegetarian
posted by GS at 2:23 pm
10 Comments:
Tonight I am making Hunza Pie with fresh baby silver beet picked from the garden, and cannot believe I am doing the hippie thing 40 years after the first time.
I love the taste of sheep and pig, but cannot enjoy either while knowing the process is so evil.
My friend the farmer says the chemicals in livestock would give anybody pause for thought.
My main opinion of Muslim nations and their customs is: anywhere women are having a bad time, animals are having a worse time.
Hi AOF-nice post.
I think anyone who decides to eat meat must reconcile that it is never a pleasant business to kill an animal. I find myself rolling my eyes at those who are seeking some sort of easy way out not to confront the fact that they by choosing to consume flesh, are part responsible for an animal dying. Of course I dont condone any maltreatment but if most people took the time to actually see then way animals are dispatched at an abattoir, even in the most humane of ways, I reckon many would decide not to eat meat again. I think some people are being hypocritical by getting behind some causes and yet ignore some substantial others-cows milk anyone?
I can see a a major junction in the not too distant future where our ethics will collide with the reality of providing meat for the table. Because so many people are removed from the reality of rearing, killing and butchering meat, any kind of insight is shocking whether it be some footage of an abattoir here or otherwise. Whist the Indonesian example is awful, it does not represent the majority of practices in abattoirs here in Oz.
The truth is, there's nothing humane about killing an animal for meat IMO but does that change our desire to consume it? I dont reckon and thats an unpalatable fact.
timely post for me - I just read one of those toddler guides and found it really negative about vegetarian children so it was heartening to find some links that were more positive (esp about calcium which is the one where sylvia seems to have more problems). I haven't really followed the four corners palaver because 1) I can't bear watching animals suffer and 2) I feel a bit like steve about not eating animals no matter how they are killed.
Ann - Hunza pie that's a blast from the past. I have memories of awful, dry grey/brown food, with the toughest wholemeal pastry in the world. Though of course, yours wouldn't taste like that!
Steve - so true. It's a bit like the fish eaters who can't handle being served a whole fish. Like they forget the eyes existed before it was packaged into nice little fillets.
Johanna - glad you found the links useful. Not sure that Steve actually said he didn't eat animals though :)
oops - sorry if I misread steve's comments - just scanning too quickly - maybe I just fixated on Steve's bit about there being nothing humane about killing animals
i did leave a long - and probably tedious comment ;-) - 'tother day, but blogger didn't like me.
something to the effect that i went to an agricultural high school, and the kids who did ag to HSC level raised and then slaughtered (at an abbatoir) a calf, which meant our entire year knew about it, too. was interesting that no girls went vego afterwards, just three of the boys!
Lucy - ah the comment gobbling monster has been at work again. Good to know there were some sensitive new age blokes in the making in outer Sydney :) Any idea is they stayed vego?
It's not really pleasant to kill animal, that's why a lot of people is turning into a vegetarian because of these animal killings. I'm staying in a rural property we don't have much on livestocks there,that's what I like about it lots of fresh and healthy vegetable and fruits.
sushi guide
http://www.jenius.com.au/2009/02/top_30_australian_food_blogs.php
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