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theevilchemist elsewhere on LJ I mentioned that one of the things I want to do to reduce my gallbladder symptoms is to eat less meat. It's something I've actually wanted to do for years anyway; getting the cattle prod of physical pain is a pretty effective kick in the butt to get on that. So to speak.
So the reason I say "wanting to" as opposed to "trying to" is that I really suck at changing my eating habits.
For one thing I hate cooking. I hate digging through recipes and trying to figure out from the description what might appeal to both Axel and me. I hate searching for the one elusive ingredient that always seems to be impossible to find. I hate left overs moldering in the fridge because I couldn't get it together to use up the last of something or because I can't figure out how to combine the left-overs from three previous experiments into a single meal just to get rid of them. Meat is mindless, you slather in garlic and slap it on the grill and there's dinner taken care of.
It occurs to me as I'm typing this that I'd probably love cooking if it was something I got to do once in a while. It's the tyranny of having to feed myself every damn day that makes it exhausting and sucks all the fun out of it.
So started off by buying a couple of cookbooks from restaurants where I eat once in a while, because I figure then I can try the food out and I'll know what I'm aiming at before I attempt to prepare it at home. That's step 1. Step 2 would probably be, you know, cracking the cover.
But cookbooks are pretty general and restaurants have a team of people making food in large enough quantities that stuff doesn't really go to waste. So this is the part where I turn to people on my f-list and ask you all to throw in your two cents. I know a lot of people on my friends list are major foodies. Some of you are vegetarian or vegan. And whether you're working right now or not, I'll bet that all of you really get the, "I want to be able to come home from a 40+ hours work week and just stick something in my damn mouth without it turning into a major project, thanks."
Dislikes:
I can't tolerate wheat. Other than that I don't seem to have any allergies. Rice, corn, barley, spelt, all OK.
I can say that there is petty much nothing I won't try, but there are things that I am less likely to try. I've tried a dozen or so recipes for eggplant, cauliflower and zucchini and the only way that I found them edible was as tempura. So if a recipe has a lot of those vegetables in it, it is going to go to the bottom of my list of things to experiment with. Oh yeah, and we ate a ton of okra a couple of summers ago and I got heartily sick of it. Having said that, there are very few things I won't enjoy if they are chopped up small and cooked in a curry.
If there are onions or celery I am going to put them in the blender. Love the flavours. The textures drive me around the bend.
I used to hate brussel sprouts and beets but I haven't tasted them in decades so at this point I don't know. My taste buds have changed a lot over the years as I get exposed to more things so it's entirely possible if I ate them now I'd love them. (I used to hate avocados and olives, now I can't get enough of them.)
Likes:
Tomatoes are my favourite food. And peppers. Brocolli. Any kind of peas and beans. Love spinach, kale, pretty much any green leafy vegs. Never met a nut or bean I didn't love. Love mushrooms but they have to be cooked.
I love hot food, and food that is spicy even if not particularly hot. I love garlic lots but not as much as Axel. But then I don't think anybody could possibly love garlic as much as Axel.
Other stuff:
Looking at this list it looks like it should be pretty easy to find things to eat. The big complication - other than the aforementioned "Oh Christ, do I really have to do this again?" reaction - is that I really only cook on weekends. I'll make a big pot of something, divide it up into dishes to take it to work and then stick it in the freezer. This works really well with dishes based on beans or root vegetables, but most dishes that have a lot of veggies in them don't survive the freezer well. And you can only eat so much chili, especially when it's almost 40 degrees outside.
So hit me. I'm sure other stuff will come up as I read your comments. Lets talk about cooking.
ETA 1: Things we already eat are curry and pasta. Having said that, my current recipes are pretty straightforward tomato-sauce based so variation is good.
Another thing I thought of after posting this; I'm not a big fan of "I Can't Believe It's Not Chicken" or whatever the call the current crop of meat-substitutes. I'm not morally opposed or anything, I just find them expensive.
ETA 2: New icon!
ETA 3: I should probably have mentioned that I'm looking for vegan rather than just vegetarian. I've developed an antagonistic truce with my lactose-intolerance but I'm the food prep for both me and Axel and he hates cheese. Also I want to watch my dietary cholesterol consumption since gallstones are formed directly out of cholesterol.
ETA 4: I work nights. There is no "after work" for me. I eat my main meal of the day at work so that's why I need food I can pull out of the freezer for today's dinner.
theevilchemist elsewhere on LJ I mentioned that one of the things I want to do to reduce my gallbladder symptoms is to eat less meat. It's something I've actually wanted to do for years anyway; getting the cattle prod of physical pain is a pretty effective kick in the butt to get on that. So to speak.So the reason I say "wanting to" as opposed to "trying to" is that I really suck at changing my eating habits.
For one thing I hate cooking. I hate digging through recipes and trying to figure out from the description what might appeal to both Axel and me. I hate searching for the one elusive ingredient that always seems to be impossible to find. I hate left overs moldering in the fridge because I couldn't get it together to use up the last of something or because I can't figure out how to combine the left-overs from three previous experiments into a single meal just to get rid of them. Meat is mindless, you slather in garlic and slap it on the grill and there's dinner taken care of.
It occurs to me as I'm typing this that I'd probably love cooking if it was something I got to do once in a while. It's the tyranny of having to feed myself every damn day that makes it exhausting and sucks all the fun out of it.
So started off by buying a couple of cookbooks from restaurants where I eat once in a while, because I figure then I can try the food out and I'll know what I'm aiming at before I attempt to prepare it at home. That's step 1. Step 2 would probably be, you know, cracking the cover.
But cookbooks are pretty general and restaurants have a team of people making food in large enough quantities that stuff doesn't really go to waste. So this is the part where I turn to people on my f-list and ask you all to throw in your two cents. I know a lot of people on my friends list are major foodies. Some of you are vegetarian or vegan. And whether you're working right now or not, I'll bet that all of you really get the, "I want to be able to come home from a 40+ hours work week and just stick something in my damn mouth without it turning into a major project, thanks."
Dislikes:
I can't tolerate wheat. Other than that I don't seem to have any allergies. Rice, corn, barley, spelt, all OK.
I can say that there is petty much nothing I won't try, but there are things that I am less likely to try. I've tried a dozen or so recipes for eggplant, cauliflower and zucchini and the only way that I found them edible was as tempura. So if a recipe has a lot of those vegetables in it, it is going to go to the bottom of my list of things to experiment with. Oh yeah, and we ate a ton of okra a couple of summers ago and I got heartily sick of it. Having said that, there are very few things I won't enjoy if they are chopped up small and cooked in a curry.
If there are onions or celery I am going to put them in the blender. Love the flavours. The textures drive me around the bend.
I used to hate brussel sprouts and beets but I haven't tasted them in decades so at this point I don't know. My taste buds have changed a lot over the years as I get exposed to more things so it's entirely possible if I ate them now I'd love them. (I used to hate avocados and olives, now I can't get enough of them.)
Likes:
Tomatoes are my favourite food. And peppers. Brocolli. Any kind of peas and beans. Love spinach, kale, pretty much any green leafy vegs. Never met a nut or bean I didn't love. Love mushrooms but they have to be cooked.
I love hot food, and food that is spicy even if not particularly hot. I love garlic lots but not as much as Axel. But then I don't think anybody could possibly love garlic as much as Axel.
Other stuff:
Looking at this list it looks like it should be pretty easy to find things to eat. The big complication - other than the aforementioned "Oh Christ, do I really have to do this again?" reaction - is that I really only cook on weekends. I'll make a big pot of something, divide it up into dishes to take it to work and then stick it in the freezer. This works really well with dishes based on beans or root vegetables, but most dishes that have a lot of veggies in them don't survive the freezer well. And you can only eat so much chili, especially when it's almost 40 degrees outside.
So hit me. I'm sure other stuff will come up as I read your comments. Lets talk about cooking.
ETA 1: Things we already eat are curry and pasta. Having said that, my current recipes are pretty straightforward tomato-sauce based so variation is good.
Another thing I thought of after posting this; I'm not a big fan of "I Can't Believe It's Not Chicken" or whatever the call the current crop of meat-substitutes. I'm not morally opposed or anything, I just find them expensive.
ETA 2: New icon!
ETA 3: I should probably have mentioned that I'm looking for vegan rather than just vegetarian. I've developed an antagonistic truce with my lactose-intolerance but I'm the food prep for both me and Axel and he hates cheese. Also I want to watch my dietary cholesterol consumption since gallstones are formed directly out of cholesterol.
ETA 4: I work nights. There is no "after work" for me. I eat my main meal of the day at work so that's why I need food I can pull out of the freezer for today's dinner.