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Unnecessary additives to food that stop them being vegetarian… What is the strangest that you have seen??

The average glass of water contains 189ppm of RAW STEAK.

I have been vegetarian for almost a year now and have found that aside from Tofu and whatever foods I can get at the store, I am limited on what I know how to cook. What are some good easy recipes (I am a college student, so have limited time for cooking) and some that are better for entertaining?

ok here are some really good recipes!!!!

~~~~vegetarian Manicotti~~~~
8 ounces manicotti noodles, uncooked (u can find them at wal amrt)
1 1/2 cups marinara sauce (vegetarian)
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
15 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
Rinse in cool water.
Take Sauce and HALF of the basil and oregano.
Cook 3 minutes.
Makes 6-8 servings
Spread 1/2 cup of sauce mixture into 13×9 baking dish.
In bowl, stir together 1 CUP of the mozzarella, ricotta, egg, Parmesan, nutmeg and remaining basil and oregano.
Fill pasta tubes with ricotta mixture; place in dish.
Pour remaining sauce over pasta.
Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
Bake at 350º for 25-30 minutes

or try these

~~~~~Patatas Bravas~~~~~

3 pounds red potatoes, scrubbed well and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (I didn’t peel mine)
olive oil spray
1/2 medium red onion, minced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup water
4 -6 green olives, halved
chopped parsley, for garnish

Start a large pot of water on to boil while you preheat the oven to 375 F. When the water comes to a boil, add the diced potatoes. Boil for 5 minutes—no longer or they will start to fall apart. Pour them gently into a colander and allow all the water to drain off.

Place the potatoes into a large, shallow baking dish that has been sprayed with olive oil. Spritz the tops of the potatoes lightly with olive oil and place in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes and then stir with a spatula, making sure they aren’t sticking to the pan. Bake for about 30 more minutes, stirring again halfway through. The potatoes should become crispy but not hard and overdone.

While the potatoes are cooking, make the sauce. Sauté the onion in a non-stick pot for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, and cayenne and cook one minute more. Add the remaining ingredients (except parsley) and simmer for about 20 minutes, until thickened. Remove the bay leaf and puree the sauce in a blender or food processor. Return it to the pan and keep warm until ready to serve.

Once the potatoes are cooked, place them in a serving bowl and pour the sauce over the top. Sprinkle with parsley and serve as a side dish or appetizer

~~~~~~Rotini (or Penne) All’Arrabbiata~~~~~~

2 tsp. olive oil
3 tsp. garlic, finely minced (use fresh, not the jarred; trust me)
1 – 1 1/2 tsp dried red pepper (use less if you don’t like spicy)
1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes
salt
8 oz pasta (penne or ziti preferred)
2 Tbs parsley, chopped

Sauté the garlic and red pepper in the olive oil for about 3 minutes; do not brown the garlic!

Use a blender to puree the tomatoes. (I use a hand blender right in the can and leave them slightly on the chunky side.) Stir the tomatoes into the garlic mixture. Simmer, stirring, until the sauce is slightly reduced and thickened, about 20 minutes. Season with salt to taste.

Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente, about 10 minutes; drain. Toss with the sauce and cook for a couple minutes more. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with a good crusty bread. Serves 4

~~~~~~~Black-eyed Pea Gumbo~~~~~~~

2 medium onions, diced
1 bell pepper (any color), chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 tbsp. minced garlic
4 cups vegetable broth, water, or a combination
2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 pound okra, tops removed and sliced
1 1/2 tsp. thyme
3 bay leaves
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. oregano
1-2 tsp. chopped chipotle peppers (canned in adobo)
1/4 tsp. Liquid Smoke (optional)
2 1/2 cups cooked black-eyed peas, plus cooking liquid (1 cup dried black-eyed peas cooked in 3 cups water)*
salt to taste (optional)

*You can use canned black-eyed peas–use 2 16-ounce cans, rinse them first and add some extra water or broth to the gumbo.

Heat a large, non-stick stock pot or Dutch oven. Add the onions and cook, stirring regularly, until they begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Add the bell pepper and celery, and cook for 3 more minutes. Add the tomato paste and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until okra is done and mixture has thickened, about 45-55 minutes. Add more water as needed–this will be thicker than a soup but still have a good amount of broth. Serve over freshly cooked brown rice and add hot sauce at the table.

~~~~~~~~BROCCOLI STUFFED SHELLS ~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 can cream of celery soup
1/2 c. minced onion
1 sm. clove minced garlic
4 tbsp. basil
1 3/4 c. spaghetti sauce
1/2 c. cooked broccoli, chopped sm.
1/2 c. shredded Mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. Ricotta cheese
12 shells, cooked and drained (extra lg.)
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese

Cook broccoli and let drain. Cook shells; let drain and partially cool. Mix first four ingredients until well blended. Stir in broccoli, Mozzarella, and Ricotta. Spoon stuffing into shells and placed in greased casserole dish. (At this point the shells may be placed in the refrigerator as long as overnight, to be cooked later). When ready to cook, spoon spaghetti sauce over the shells and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until heated through.

/*/*/*/*/*/*Cajun 15-Bean Soup*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

20 ounces dried mixed beans (you can find these prepackaged in most grocery stores), rinsed
12 cups water
1 large onion — chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic — minced
juice of one lemon
15-ounce can stewed tomatoes
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring
1 1/2 teaspoons salt — or to taste

Last night I saved some time by putting the beans into the pressure cooker with 8 cups water, cooking at high pressure for 12 minutes, and then releasing the pressure and cooking until the beans were completely cooked. If you use a pressure cooker, I advise letting the pressure come down naturally rather than quick-releasing. And if you have a quick-release setting on your PC, do not use it! I had beans stuck in my valve when I tried that.

If you don’t want to pressure cook them, then place the washed beans in a pot with 12 cups of water and boil covered 60-75 minutes until beans are tender.

While the beans are boiling, brown the onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic in a non-stick skillet.

Add onion mixture, stewed tomatoes, and lemon juice to beans along with the spices and simmer 30-45 minutes. (If you started the beans in the pressure cooker, add 2 cups water at this time too.) Add liquid smoke and salt at the end. Serve with bread or over rice, or just by itself, as I did

Hi,
I moved in to ramamurthy nagar recently. Iam trying to find out whether any mess or home made vegetarian food or hotel is available in that area. Since roads are bad, searching has been difficult. If anybody could deliver at home, thats also welcome. Pls help.

I think you can try any Shanti Sagar, Sukh sagar etc..they are in almost all the localities. their food is 100% vegetarian and tastes really good. must try their Gobhi manchurian and Kesri baat.

Hi,
I moved in to ramamurthy nagar recently. Iam trying to find out whether any mess or home made vegetarian food or hotel is available in that area. Since roads are bad, searching has been difficult. If anybody could deliver at home, thats also welcome. Pls help.

hey I used to live in ramamurthy nagar… not too much choice there I’m afraid… but if you want home delivery…. Tamarind. There is also this small shack (looks dodgy) run by a UP gentleman inside ramamurthy nagar … (beyond fabmall..keep going straight and it’ll be on your right) which serves amazing chole bhature and puri aloo .. n home delivery though, you’ll have to pick it up.

If you’re looking to eat out… Indiranagar…

we’ve lived there for 2 years and a lot of the food places nearby aren’t great.

hope you like some of these!

Refer me a really good lawyer ,who can help me with my case against mishandling, misrepresenting of vegetarian food by 6 top restaurants here in Toronto in last 6 days one after another, within 1 week !!

Please suggest me good lawyer in Toronto or GTA who can help me on this.

How did they "misrepresent" the food? The vegetable soup was made with chicken broth? A "vegetarian" named dish contained fish? Personally, I’m smart enough to ask what is and isn’t in the food, beyond the menu description. If the server says s/he does not know and doesn’t bother to ask the kitchen staff, I not only do not get the item, but lower the tip. One time, my husband, his sister (who is vegetarian, but still eats a lot of what I would call junk), and his parents and I were at a steak restaurant. Now, I don’t mind steak restaurants. I can get a baked sweet potato (usually) and a couple of other safe sides beyond the iceberg lettuce plate. The smart waitress caught on to my SIL’s and my orders and asked if we were vegetarian. My SIL had to brag that she is vegetarian and I’m vegan. (I don’t offer that information unless asked. It’s part of whom I am, but still not a big deal to me.) She informed us that the potatoes are dipped in beef grease. Even my husband and his parents who regularly eat greasy, fried foods (and it shows) were disgusted. We have not returned to that restaurant. (This was after I asked if the green beans had ham in them and a few other little things.)

You MIGHT be able to sue, but I doubt it. It comes down to common sense. Ask what is and isn’t in the dish. If it looks "suspicious" then don’t order it and either leave the restaurant or just order coffee and water and a good beer. (Labast is good for a "light" beer, but I’m sure the really good stuff [not Bud or the equivalent) can also be found in Canada.) Also, don’t return and tell your veg friends about your experience so they can decide if they want to patronize the place. Even my omni husband won’t return to a place (with me at least) if it’s not "friendly". Overall, my family and I had a bad experience with that restaurant and we did not return.

Since I consider a job in Kiev, Ukraine, I would like to know if anyone know about the availability of Vegetarian food in Ukrainian restaurants and supermarkets, or maybe in health food stores. I heard it is more difficult to find vegetarian food in Eastern European countries then in e.g. the UK.

Taivo is 100% right on, but I will add the following.

Finding "vegetarian" food is not at all difficult in Ukraine as meat is very expensive. Many of their dishes are made with only vegetables, so you will not starve. But YOU will have to be responsible for finding out what is in the food you eat.

And yes, if you are served meat in a household, you should eat it or be considered rude. But if your hosts know that you do not eat meat, they will accomodate you – ** just make sure they know ahead of time.**

It will be a bigger issue if you do not eat dairy. Eggs, cottage cheese, milk, sour cream – all are common ingredients. If you eat fish, that eases things as well.

And to read the labels, you will need to read Ukrainian. Although Russian is understood in speech by everyone, most of the labels will all be in Ukrainian.

And no, nothing will be labeled vegan or vegetarian. You also will not find things like vegetarian meat patties there – although they are commonly made in the home. In fact, you will find much fewer "prepared" foods in the supers there, but the upside is that the produce is fresh, organic, and tasty.

Cost is an issue seeing that he is 120 lbs. Non-vegetarian food IS NOT an option. Any recommendations?
Okay I didn’t think I NEEDED to add this BUT dogs are NOT carnivores!!!!!!! They are omnivores. Reseach shows that dogs live longer, are heathier and have fewerallergies on a vegetarian diet.

It depends where you are. I assume you are in the US, so you might have to mail order it.

Try V-Dog – http://www.v-dogfood.com/
Also Vegan Cats sell dog food – http://www.vegancats.com/
Several brands including Ami from Italy – http://www.veganessentials.com/

In the UK people can try a range of brands from http://www.veggiepets.com/

I hope that is helpful

I have just become a vegetarian, but i can’t find any resturaunts with food for people like me. what do you suggest.

Most restaurants have some sort of vegetarian option, although you’ll probably get sick of eating salads, veggie burgers, and cheese-based dishes over and over again.

Souplantation, a.k.a. Sweet Tomatoes, is a buffet chain that specializes in salad and soup and the like… California Pizza Kitchen has some tasty vegetarian options. Also, Indian and Southeast Asian (Thai, Vietnamese) restaurants are likely to have lots of vegetarian options; Chinese and Japanese also to an extent.

As for shopping, try a store like Whole Foods Market, Wild Oats, or Trader Joe’s.

As we all know Muslims must only eat food that are Halal. But just curious whether can they take chinese vegetarian food?

Being a chinese, I don’t deny that plenty of chinese food contain pork. But if chinese vegetarian food contains that, then it’s not really vegetarian right? so would muslims consider it okay to eat that?

Some may and have no problems with it. But in Chinese cooking, many times the vegetables and meats are often stored side by side and cooked in the same Wok’s. Some strict observers of Halal may have a problem of knowing the same Wok was used to prepare a pork dish before his Vegetarian dish. If he were to see them actually clean and thoroughly scrub the wok before, which rarely happens in Chinese cooking, he might.

What culture has the best vegetarian food?

In my opinion, it’s a definite toss-up between Indian, Ethiopian and Middle Eastern. I absolutely love Indian because of the way they spice everything and there’s such a wide variety of flavors. I just got back from a trip to California and there I went to a place called Rahel. . .it’s an Ethiopian vegan place on Fairfax. . .and we didn’t get to eat at all the restaurants I listed because we kept going back there because it was so exquisitely delicious. There’s one in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as well and a couple in Chicago. Then my boyfriend is Middle Eastern, so he gets to show me what is authentic and everything and their food is amazing as well.

There’s also this restaurant in San Francisco called herbivore that has a wide and varying selection of vegan foods and it is amazing. Because of them, we couldn’t eat at all the restaurants we listed in that area, either.

Oh, and I almost forgot. . .if anyone is ever in Chicago, try Soul Vegetarian East on 75th Street. They are the "African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem" and they cook up some mad vegan "soul" food and literally everyone who has gone there has given it amazing reviews.