So You Want To Be a Veggie? Here's my Top Tips on How to Introduce Vegetarian Food into Your Diet

Thinking of going veggie but scared you'll be lost without chicken nuggets? Read on - this is for you! I've gone through several phases of being a hard-core vegetarian, and spent several months eating as a vegan too! For the past two years, I've been pescatarian (just fish!) and have loved it. Until a few months ago, I thought I'd never eat chicken again! But I've come to realise that my body needs more protein than I was getting, so I'm slowly allowing myself to re-introduce small amounts of other meats into my diet. However, I still enjoy the benefits of vegetarianism, both for my body and for the environment. If you - like me - want to do your bit for the planet, or just for yourself, but aren't quite able to make the leap to being a full veggie/vegan, here are my top tips for how to ease yourself in! Keep reading if you're ready to kick the asparag-ass out of old habits!

My number one tip would be 'don't be too hard on yourself'. Old habits are hard to break, especially something you do daily - like eating! - so don't worry if you slip up a lot at the beginning. Setting out an easy starting challenge, like eating one vegetarian/vegan meal per week, maybe on a designated day, will help you get into a good routine. You could then increase the amount of days you don't eat meat until you've cut it out completely!

My second tip would be to use other people to your advantage. Get inspired! Follow food blogs, veggie accounts on Instagram and Pinterest and talk to people you already know who have a vegetarian lifestyle. If you go out to eat, try to avoid meat, and instead use it as an opportunity to try something new - let someone else do the hard work of cooking while you're still getting into it! Maybe then you'll be inspired to go home and recreate it.

There's so many fantastic meat-replacement goods out there now - going veggie is easier than ever! So my third tip would be to try and replace your old favourites rather than cut them out entirely. Instead of normal burgers, try a veggie burger, instead of chicken nuggets, try Quorn nuggets - the options are endless, and they're all available in the supermarket! However, one thing I have discovered about eating veggie is that these substitute items can get expensive - therefore, if you're on a budget, maybe try out some classic vegetarian meals instead.

My final tip is to keep it simple, and with my favourite no-meat meal, chickpea curry, that's very easy to do. Its super simple to make, really quick and so so tasty! Here's my recipe:

What you'll need:

Rice

Canned chickpeas

Curry sauce - homemade or shop-bought

Spinach

Cauliflower

Onion

Olive oil

Butter

1)

Finely chop up an onion and begin frying it in a large pan with some oil and butter until soft

2)

Drain the chickpeas and add them to the pan, fry until soft

3)

Boil desired amount of rice in a separate pan for around 8-10 minutes

4)

Once the chickpeas are nearly soft, add the cauliflower and fry

5)

Add the curry sauce to the frying pan. You may wish to use some tomato puree here and any other spices you fancy

6)

Add the spinach to the frying pan and fry until it wilts

7)

Drain the rice and serve!

This meal is so quick and easy, can be catered to your tastes - if you like it spicy, make it spicy! - and is fab to bulk-make and freeze if you're busy. The ingredients are healthy and affordable and the recipe can be adapted to suit you! It can even be made vegan by removing the butter and using a vegan curry sauce or making your own. Give it a go to kick off your veggie journey!