Reducing meat consumption is something which I know a number of people have said that they are going to do in the past. It seems to be something which people say around the new year. Recently, we have cut massively down on our meat consumption. We have gone from eating meat around 4/6 times a week on average. To now maybe having meat once a week. In 2022 I can see myself going fully veggie. This may just be me and my family eating meat occasionally this all does depend on what they want to do, however. Today I am going to be sharing with you some of the ways we have managed to cut down our meat consumption. Including our two children who are 6 and 2 now.
Do it slowly
We did not intend to cut out meat at all. We started actually by doing meat-free Monday. This got us used to having meals that did not include meat. Whether this be a meal which was made using vegetables or one which you make using meat alternatives. We found that we were doing a mixture and some of the meat alternative meals where better than their meat counterparts. Both of the children were eating these meat-free meals which was a bonus. Plus, there was no huge completely removing meat products out of our diets more so for the children. Over time we started adding more of the meat-free meals into our meal plan.
Reduce one meat type at a time
This is again something which we did for example I found some amazing meat-free mince. I must admit there is a couple of brands which we love when it comes to mince. I found that it had a lot more flavour. This was one of the first switches which we made. Then when people were happy with this we started to look at another element of meat which we ate. What I seem to remember was sausages slowly we found alternatives for nearly everything. Even meat for sandwiches. I do not feel like we miss out on anything since we have done these changes. We have found that the alternatives have helped us when we have started our veggie journey. Avoid using them too much as they're usually highly processed.
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Vegetarianise Your Favourite Dishes
This is a great way to help reduce your meat intake without really noticing it. This is something which we have done for a number of dishes now. I think one of the meals which we started this with was spaghetti bolognese. We just made it with meat-free mince this something which we have done to stir fry's with Quorn pieces instead. This is also a good way to get your children eating meals that may be meat-free. If you are not really wanting to make two meals for the family one with meat one without.
Meal Plan
Meal planning is something which we love to do anyway it helps massively when you are a busy family. However, not eating meat means that it is bit harder to grab something when you cannot be bothered to cook. The number of ready meals is reduced. So, knowing what meals you are going to have for the week helps massively. It also means that you are going to be able to know what you need to pick up when you go to the supermarket. Rather than trying to run out and grab something last minute.
Research
Research some recipes which you want to learn to cook. This may be looking at being able to cook more Mexican food for example or a different vegetable that you want to learn how to cook with. Over time you will become more comfortable with cooking with new ingredients and maybe new cuisines. This is something which you could experiment doing even if you are not looking to cut down on your meat consumption at the moment. Learning new recipes is something that can be fun. Of course, it can be healthier too, something to think about if you are looking to lose weight.
the new year. You could use your library to borrow some recipe books which may be predominately veggie meals. We have also found Pinterest to be great for recipes as well. Of course, there are blogs which you could visit as well.
Is reducing your meat consumption something which you are thinking about doing in the new year. Hopefully, this has helped if you are thinking about reducing your consumption. I hopefully will be sharing more meals which we make on my Instagram very soon
