I'm probably going veggie, maybe, but don't hold me to it.

Emp_Fab

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

RaymondLin

Fish only taste fishy when it isn't fresh.

Go to any sushi resturants in Japan and it smells of nothing, and the Japanese are BIG on hygiene.  

LuttiS

In the last few years we dramatically reduced our meat intake. At home we basically eat no meat, only the occasional bit of chicken. We do eat fish, but other than that it's mostly veg based cooking. 
We will eat meat if we go out/other peoples houses etc, and that's it really..  We weren't ready to go cold turkey so we started reducing at home and it's just grown from there. 

Steak used to be my favourite thing ever, i honestly don't remember the last time i had one, and seeing one on a plate doesn't have me salivating. I really don't miss a lot of meat. It also makes going out that much more of a treat, we don't go out very often (young child) so when we do we can really enjoy it, we get our fix and then usually remember why we don't eat meat at home

Point is, go slowly and soon it will become normal and habit to just not have meat. And as everyone else has said, don't broadcast it.. just not worth the hassle.

SteveRobinson

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

I don't think so. Fish can feel pain and distress.

Bivalves on the other hand although defintely animals, don't appear to suffer from being poached in white wine with some parsley and shallots. https://medium.com/@TheAnimalist/on-the-consumption-of-bivalves-bdde8db6d4ba

Mussels are also very sustainable

digitalscream

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

If you're going to stay with fish, then tuna steak (still slightly pink in the middle) should help you past any withdrawal. It's pretty much the only fish I like.

Snap

Gassage said:

Snap said:

@Emp_Fab welcome to the veggie world.

One thing I have noticed over the last couple of years is that fewer people you meet feel the need to interrogate you about the reasons behind being veggie. That is really tedious, as are preachy vegans.

I stopped eating meat for the same reasons as you, and have never liked fish (it stinks and tastes of fish ffs!)

Avoid binging on fatty stuff like cheese, and pre prepared food.

Get a decent set of spices and herbs, get your head round how to use them, and eat fresh. Have a do at the various grains like bulgur, quinoa, kamut etc- all full of protein and fibre.

Take a vitamin supplement - so you don't run low on b vits and iron. Just in case.

Tofu - horrible if you don't cook it right. If you dry fry it first, it toughens up and loses the sogginess. Smoked tofu is good.

Tofurkey - watch this stuff, it's dead salty.

Aubergines - there is a knack to cooking them, if you put them on some kitchen roll and rest something heavy on top of them for 30 mins or so, the water presses out of them and they aren't soggy when you cook.

Get to know your lentils - different types have different consistency. Basically red go soup/dhal like, puy are meaty.

Dried veg vs tinned. Load of baloney. You take all this effort of soaking your kidney beans or chick peas overnight to find they taste exactly the same as tinned ones.

benefits? Your colon will be cleansed after a while. Also be aware you may experience great volumes (both in size, duration and decibels) of flatulence as your bowel adjusts to new challenges!

As closing arguments go, pass me some bacon.

pmsl, you pork loving beast!! How very dare you.

Snap

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

Gibber. You're not a vegetarian.

Pescatarian, flexitarian = arse-atarian, Made up nonsense for people who want a label.

Either you eat things that have had a mother, or you don't. And who really cares? But......

IMO fishing is pretty rank and cruel, that's why I don't eat it. Well that and that it stinks and tastes yack, and stinks your house out.

As for shellfish - dirty buggers, who eats this filth? It's like beetles and bogeys. Welks, cockles, mussels, all this skanky stuff. Bloody rank. Oysters!! FFS it's all like bowls of phlegm and chewy bogeys. You nasty filthmongers!

thumpingrug

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

You need to change the thread title dude as you ain't going veggie if your eating fish.  And your understanding of biology and the central nervous system is a long way from accurate.  

LastMantra

Fish are more like vegetables than cows 

viz

LastMantra said:

Fish are more like vegetables than cows 

To be fair he said the gap between a vegetable and a cow is bigger than the gap between a vegetable and a fish. 

Made me laugh too though, twas a funny phrase!

tone1

I have meat about once a week... all the choices I make are usually meat free.... For example, I’ll choose to have an egg and mushroom bap if I’m at a burger wagon or an egg and cress sandwich if I find myself in Tesco at lunchtime. Mrs tone1 might do a chilli with lean mince at the weekend, but that’s about it. I did watch the game changer program which I found very interesting, but as my friends pointed out it wasn’t very scientific. 

WiresDreamDisasters

I'll fucking eat anything. Beef, chicken, poontang, ass, etc. All the food groups!!

LastMantra

viz said:

LastMantra said:

Fish are more like vegetables than cows 

To be fair he said the gap between a vegetable and a cow is bigger than the gap between a vegetable and a fish. 

Made me laugh too though, twas a funny phrase!

Yeah wasn't having a go, just thought it was funny is all 

EricTheWeary

I see the labels like vegetarian, vegan and pescatarian as helpful as in they help if you are going to someone’s house for dinner, looking on food labels, looking at menus...but labelling yourself as a vegetarian/ vegan/ pescatarian doesn’t grant you access to a club or even a set of rules for living. 

Generally speaking eating less meat is good for you, good for the planet and good for the welfare of animals. Every little helps as they say...

LastMantra

I seem to have just gone off meat. Hardly eat any these days. Just doesn't seem to taste as good as it used to. 

EDIT ;  saying that a lot of vegetables/fruit don't seem to taste as good either. Maybe my taste buds are knackered. 

Emp_Fab

thumpingrug said:

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

You need to change the thread title dude as you ain't going veggie if your eating fish.  And your understanding of biology and the central nervous system is a long way from accurate.  

I don't care about the accuracy of the title.  I don't care for labels.  It's not about the label, it's about what I eat.

I think to start, I'm just going to eat a lot less meat rather than follow a strict vegetable only regime.  See how it goes like...

And what was your point about biology and nervous systems?

octatonic

Emp_Fab said:

thumpingrug said:

Emp_Fab said:

I eat fish, as in cod & chips and prawns.  I've never really liked the taste of 'fishy fish' though.  I'm not sure what to do about the fish side of things.  I mean, in terms of feelings and sentience, they're closer to vegetables than, say, a cow is.

You need to change the thread title dude as you ain't going veggie if your eating fish.  And your understanding of biology and the central nervous system is a long way from accurate.  

I don't care about the accuracy of the title.  I don't care for labels.  It's not about the label, it's about what I eat.

I think to start, I'm just going to eat a lot less meat rather than follow a strict vegetable only regime.  See how it goes like...

OK, so run me through this...

You are making a choice based on ethics because you don't want to be responsible for the death of any animals, but you're happy to eat fish?
I realise you don't want a label on it but you put a label on it in the thread title and the initial post.

You asked for "Are there any vegetarians here who have any tips or recipes for the newly converted?"
The first bit of advice would be to stop eating animals.

If you want to eat less meat then do that- you aren't a vegetarian though, and people will be rightly confused when you put that label on it.

Snap

Flexitarian is the most stupid pretentious term. A made up word. So, let me get this right - you eat what you want, but aim for a balanced diet, but eat any food source? Right.....so that's just, err, a "person"

nonsense, good and proper. 

Emp_Fab

I said I'm not sure what to do about fish.  ... And I am allowed to shift my goals you know!

I'll edit the subject accordingly.

Kilgore

Emp_Fab said:

I said I'm not sure what to do about fish.  ... And I am allowed to shift my goals you know!

I'll edit the subject accordingly.

So you've bought all the gear. Books, Tofu press(wtf!), etc. Have you actually cooked any vegetarian meals yet?

This is cars all over again isn't it?

 Will you have to take 8 trains to Cornwall to purchase some obscure legume that you've read about on the Internet?