I used to be a vegetarian and really miss it. Lately I have been feeling very bad about the animals that were killed. So I would like to change back to veggie, but there is one new thing in my life and that is my husband.
He does not require meat at every meal, but he is used to eating it, and will ask for a roast or a chicken or something, probably a couple of times a week. I also make him sandwiches for his lunch and they have meat in them.
I know I can go without the meat myself; i will be fine without it. But he is still at the point where he feels like he needs or wants it, and he does not have the same convictions I do about the animals. (He does care about them but does not take it as seriously yet.)
I know I can't force him to go veggie, and I don't mind making the meat for him on a limited basis; after all he is my husband. But I would like to transition our food to more of a vegetarian diet. Does anyone know of ideas on how to do this? I think if I had more ideas of specific dishes we could eat, dishes that would satisfy him, it would be easier.
Also I should note we have a very limited budget, so I do not have a lot of money for specialty foods or some of the fancy things that a lot of "vegetarian" magazines feature. Now, meat is pretty expensive too so it would be good to cut down on that, I realize.
Thanks folks for reading this post and for your help!
Addition in how to make the gluten... =)
Navasi Mataji already explained everything in how to make gluten. =) but also to make it longer, after rinsing it, when the water becomes clear, you can make small pieces of ball dough (just make it round, about half the size of a fist) and just drop it to boiling water to make it last longer... it can actually last for weeks... and it somehow expands too... Hope that helped.
Your servant,
Rukmini Priya devi dasi
Wow!
That's amazing Rukmini Priya!
I never heard of that! How cool!
Of course when I was making it, it was a pretty new thing to us all.... so there was not much else that we knew you could do with it at that point in time....
How nice.... I bet it's much more able to absorb flavors also. :)
Also great that it can last so long, that would help a lot I would think since it takes so long to make it.
Navasi
Curd is the Word
I understand exactly what your talking about regarding prices.
For the modern aspiring and newly vegetarian it is very expensive. Fortunately that is not the end all, the expensive processed veggie foods that are found in the health food store are not the only option. There are many so many dishes in Hare Krishna cooking.
one word, "Curd"
homemade fresh cheese, tofu like curd, or paneer is very nice and very cheap. Most American devotees (former carnivores) love any good curd sabji (vegetable dish).
How to make curd. quite easy. Boil some milk, make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan while cooking to prevent burning. Bring the milk to boil and then add lemon juice, (the bottled lemon juice, no need for it to be fresh) you add the lemon juice to it until you see that the milkiness is fading and it begins to turn in to curds and whey. If you put to much lemon juice then it will have a strong lemony flavor. You just need enough that the milk become translucent. Then you need a cloth, cheese cloth, a sari, or any lightweight cloth that does not bleed any dye. Line a pot with a strainer and a cloth on top of the strainer. Strain the curd and tie it up in the cloth. You can then hang the curd filled cloth over your sink or place a heavy pot over the curd filled cloth to squeeze out the excess whey. If you just let it hang for a hour or two it will strain out nicely and the curd will become solid. Then you have curd. With it you can cube it and fry it. Mix it in with the spagetti. You can grill up a curd steak. or marniate it. I highly suggest looking into Kurma's cookbooks, for they are easy and the dishes are inexpensive. Hare Krishna
Ys
ncd
Beautiful!
Oh, this is just wonderful, Nityananada Chandra......
Yes, curd is the most perfect food, very realistic in price and very satisfying for someone who is trying to become a vegetarian.
You have done a beautiful job of describing how to make it and how to use it...
You can also make it with citric acid from the heath food store, or an Indian store will usually have it also, and that reduces the problem of the lemon flavor. (and it's very inexpensive)
It makes me so happy to see this :) :) :)
Navasi
And what to speak of Gluten,
And what to speak of Gluten, sometimes a little too meaty for my taste. I don't know how to make it. A lot devotees here from the Philippines know how to make it. There is a devotee who just got on Connect from the Philippines let me ask her. HK
I know how :)
I know how to make it, we used to make in huge quantities for the vegetarian Prasadam restaurant we had in San Diego (for the temple there) it was mostly my project (the restaurant) with help from other devotees of course.... so I surely learned how to make wheat gluten because everyone really loves this substitute for meat, I mean those who are not vegetarian or who are trying to be...
So, we made tons of it....
So if this devotee you are asking doesn't know how, I will be happy to describe the process.... :)
Navasi
Oh yes please do tell,
Oh yes please do tell, haribol
Okay :)
How To Make Wheat Gluten
First you have to get stone ground whole wheat flour, you can't make it with the finer whole wheat flours.
Use like a 5 lb. bag to start with, it's easier to work with and you can always do more at a time once you get used to it....
Make a dough, like bread dough, using water (nothing else), just enough to make a normal soft dough, not sticky.
Knead your dough several times until it is nice and smooth and well mixed.
Then get a large pot that can hold a lot of water and has lots of room in it, you will need it.... you don't have to use a pot, it can be a large bowl also, but the deeper the better.
Put the dough in the bowl and fill it with cold water enough to cover the dough by about two times, meaning you'd have the pot filled up past the dough and another time again... about (doesn't need to be exact here).
Then let it soak in the water for about an hour.
After it has soaked, come back to the dough and start working it with your hands in the water....
It's sort of like kneading and squeezing and pulling all at the same time.
You are working the bran out of the dough.
When the water starts to become very milky looking, pour it off. You can keep this water and use it as a base for soups, etc... because of the bran content, it has a lot of nutrients in it, so if you can avoid throwing it away, that's good.
Most anything you would use water for in a recipe (except something sweet or with a delicate recipe, you can use this water in).
Refill the pot with more cold water and start working the dough again.... then when the water becomes cloudy, pour it off again.
You have to repeat this process 4 or 5 times before all the bran is removed and the dough turns to gluten.
You will know when this happens because the water will stay clear, and there will be no more bran in the dough.
Don't get scared, it makes a small amount in relation to the original amount of dough, but the cost of flour is pretty low.
I know it sounds very tedious, and in a lot of ways it is, that's why it's good to make enough to use for several dishes... you can refrigerate it and it stays fresh for a couple of days.
Also, once you get into the habit of doing it and you're used to it, it seems a lot less tedious.
Then after you are done with all this working of the dough, just flatten out what's left and cut it into pieces... whatever size you like.
The smaller pieces are better for cooking, maybe 2 inches, because they tend to absorb the flavor of the dish you are making better. A big piece of it is not the best way to use/cook it, unless you slice it very thin.
After it's cut into pieces this way, you can put it into any recipe you are using as a replacement for the meat.
Just use it as you would do with the meat.... you can fry it or boil it in a soup, or bake it in a casserole .... you can even grind it up and use it that way....
You can always chant Hare Krishna while you are making it too, and then you'll be less bored with the process and also you'll have done some nice chanting. :) :) :)
Hope it works out! :)
Love,
Navasi
Wow! Thank you!
Hare Krishna my friends! Thank you soooo much for the wonderful tips and recipes!
I am going to print out your replies so that I can try doing these things in the kitchen. I went to a dairy with my husband one time and we saw some curds for sale; he mentioned that he likes them. So if I could learn to make them, that would be great!
I have never heard of making wheat gluten but it sounds like something I could do. I make bread already, and that is tedious at first but not hard once you learn how. I bet the gluten is the same.
Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart for helping me. I am really enjoying this site and the great people here.
Jai shri Krishna!
So Welcome! :)
Hare Krishna, Dear Rebecca,
You are so welcome, and I feel certain that I can speak for everyone else that contributed to this thread when I say:
"We are so happy we could help" :)
That's so great that you are already making bread dough and you have seen curd before.
I think you'll find that making gluten is actually easier than making bread (at least to me it is) because you don't have all the rising and kneading and it's not as delicate as bread making is.
So, you should do fine with it if you are already making bread.
I hope your husband really loves the new vegetarian meals you make for him Rebecca, he's fortunate to have such a nice devotee wife who's trying to help him learn how to do without meat. :)
Hare Krishna! :) :) :)
Love,
Navasi