Weight-Loss Meat substitutes?

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amy1985

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In a lot of recipes I find, the amount of meat they put in is staggering. 1.2kg meat for 4 people, is an example of one I've seen. It's nuts, it's expensive, and it's very bad for a diet, but I'm not always sure how to rectify that.

One of the things I sometimes do is radically reduce the amount of meat and leave the rest of the recipe as it is. But this doesn't always work- sometimes you end up with too many of other ingredients and the recipe then needs balancing out. So in that case, what would one use to balance out the recipe? (I'm looking from a low calorie perspective, but this may help others taking other approaches) I'm not talking about meat/ protein substitutes, I'm thinking more along the lines of vegetables, like potato in a stew. What kinds of things have or would people replace (part or all of) the meat in a recipe with, and in what kinds of recipes?
 
Something that isn't really a meat substitute but can be used to make the recipe meatier or more chunky? (Not Tofu, tempeh, or soy right?)

I hope I'm understanding.

Besides potatoes, there's mushrooms, eggplants and large/small beans maybe.

Did that help hun? :(
 
Um.... just leave out some of the meat, and increase other ingredience???
like, rice, pasta, beans, veggies whatever.
It REALLY depends on the specific dish.
 
amy1985 said:
One of the things I sometimes do is radically reduce the amount of meat and leave the rest of the recipe as it is. But this doesn't always work- sometimes you end up with too many of other ingredients and the recipe then needs balancing out. So in that case, what would one use to balance out the recipe?
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To me, it's not really clear what you're refering to. If you could list an example of whatever it is you're refering to, that would be great. I'm thinking that maybe you should make the serving sizes smaller, and add a side dish or salad, if you don't want so much meat in your diet. Freeze or refrigerate the rest for a later date!
 
Sorry for not being clear, and thanks for perservering despite my lack of clarity.

Here's an example of the kind of thing I'm thinking of (and an even harder example, because most vegetables don't hold up well in a slow cooker, which is how I make this dish): It calls for a kilogram (1000g, bit over 35 ounces) of meat for four people. I try to have at most 125g of meat/ day (and really for red meat should be pitching it at closer to 80g), and so this is just far, far too much (I've seen worse examples- there are some chicken recipes that call for 1.2kg or 1.5kg of meat for four people). This is a problem I have a lot, although some recipes do work well if you just reduce the meat (I'm fairly sure that casserole wouldn't).

So what I want to do is add some sort of vegetable which will bulk up the recipe (I'm aware not all vegetables will work in all recipes) if I slash the meat content by half or even more (for that meat casserole, I'd be looking to slash to something like 400g). I figure I'm getting enough protein (and other meat-nutrient) from the meat, which is why I don't want to replace with tofu or similar vegetarian meat substitutes (which is what I find when I've tried to find the answer on Google). I know what I could do is just reduce all the contents in proportion, but I'm not a confident enough cook to do that for the most part (I can reduce meat, and sometimes if the dish is small I can add vegetables and make it say 6 rather than 4 servings- but fixing it to, say, divide the sauce by 10 then multiply by 4 boggles the mind).

It's probably a difficult question to answer without all the specifics (and I'm continually finding recipes that do this, of all sorts. I don't want to say "I've found this recipe, it has too much meat, what now?" every time I do it, that'd get old really quickly).

Potatoes, eggplant and mushroom would definitely work in some recipes though.
 
Since that recipe appears to have a sweet component to it, I'd suggest adding vegetables that you'd find that compliment sweet dishes, like a stir fry. Broccoli, snow peas, long fresh green beans, or green peppers would probably do the trick. Even water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and baby corn might be a nice addition. Honestly, I'm not sure which veggies hold up well in a slow cooker.
Here's an idea: search for other slow cooker recipes (especially vegetarian ones), and see which vegetables are used. You'll probably find what you need there
 
I haven't tried it yet, was just looking for a general principle so I could give it a go at some stage in the future. But I think I will give it a go in the near future- I'm in the mood for some stew.
 
I think mushrooms are a good sub in - if you don't have a hubby who hates them like mine ;)

They have a sort of 'meaty' texture to them, they hold up pretty well volume wise, and they're cheaper by volume than meat.

Of course, it probably depends to a degree, but I think in something like a casserole or stew they'd work pretty well. For a sweeter mixture you could add maybe raisins or stewed apples or something?

Eggplant is another hardier vegetable you might try. And I also like using sweet potato to fill things out. Also you can look into quinoa - it's sort of a grain that's higher in fiber & protein than rice & barley, but you can use them in kind of similar situations...

Hmmmm, stew :D
 
I tried the specific recipe above (with 400g beef, and substituted the rest with more carrot, more onion, potato, and portabella mushroom)- the mix of veg/ meat was good. (The problem was the amount of stuff, and needing to cover it with water- effectively doubling the liquid in the slow cooker. Came out incredibly watery, although it's definitely a good flavour. I also replaced the jam with half a tin of prunes in juice, which I blended, to lower the calories)
 
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