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(not who you responded to, fyi) I've noticed that veggies are hugely important to making me feel good, probably because of the fiber and the fact that I'm eating them instead of processed crap. It drive me crazy, though, trying to find recipes that have lots of veggies, but still a little bit of meat. I like meat, and no desire to become a vegetarian of any sort, I just want to have 90% veggies, 10% meat, or something around that. It is really hard to find that balance in recipes. I usually just take a recipe and add a ton of veggies. That works, kinda, but I really wish it was easier to find recipes that already figured that stuff out. I got an Instant Pot for xmas, and while it isn't worth the hype, I've found some good recipes for it. One is Chicken and Dumplings. Really tasty, but I added red pepper, green pepper, celery, carrots, and onions to the recipe, and greatly reduced the dumplings. It took about 4-5 tries before I found a new version of the recipe that we liked. I'd like it if I could find that recipe straight up. "High Veggie" recipes, or something. |
I'm mostly vegetarian - I eat fish once or twice a week. but I use meat replacements. it makes it slightly easier, but not completely. Before this, I cut down on meat greatly - I had gallbladder problems and later got that organ removed, so digesting meat is weird for me. My digestive system is happier this way.
Stir-fries are good. In many recipes that you have small bits of meat (diced chicken, ground beef, and the like) you can replace part of the meat with veggies. It doesn't take a lot of meat to add flavor or get your protein. Soups are generally flexible. Pasta sauces can take a lot of veggies in them (a stick blender will make the texture smoother). Simple dishes of meat with sides are a great way to add veggies since you can easily adjust your portions. Grilled cheese - or toasted cheese made in the oven, especially open-faced - gives some veggies.
Another great way to make sure you get veggies is to limit meat to one meal a day. Or simply make sure you look at other meals and snacks to fit them in. Eat fruit instead of drinking fruit juice in the morning. Snack on bell pepper or carrots. If you look at intake through the day instead of individual meals, it might be easier to achieve. You can average through the week as well so you have more flexibility. That might mean you have some nights with fewer vegetables and others that have little to no meat.