How to Become A Vegetarian

How To Become A Vegetarian

Have you ever contemplated becoming vegetarian, but didn’t quite know where to start? Keeping a vegetarian diet seems to be an impossible feat, when we’re up against the mouth-watering meat cuisines all around us. I mean, let’s face it, right? Most of us didn’t exactly grow up in a society that promotes vegetarianism. If anything, what society has largely promoted is the consumption of meat; what with the onslaught of huge meat manufacturers and the convenience of meat on the grocery shelves in the recent decades…not to mention the lack of vegetarian recipes that would out-do the taste experience of a succulent T-bone steak grilled to perfection!

But if you are serious enough to become vegetarian, you really don’t need to worry about being deprived of a great-tasting meal anymore (trust me, I was a voracious meat-eater myself just a couple of years back, and I was just as faithless about starting this diet!). With the growing population of vegetarians in the world in the past few years, markets have started to open up to this new food demand. Notice the ever-increasing availability of vegetarian products, as well as menus at the restaurants? At this rate, vegetarianism can only enjoy more and more popularity and convenience in the years to come; and you can bet on it.

Of course, realistically, you wouldn’t be dining out or ordering take-outs every night, just to have a good fill of delicious vegetarian food. You would want to be able to prepare your own home-cooked meal for convenience, economy, or even for the fun of creating your own delightful veggie meals, right? But how do you make your vegetables taste so satisfying that you wouldn’t have to think twice about giving up that meat diet for good? Well, you will have to start experimenting with recipes. The only way to get good at anything is to practice doing it! As with any other goal you want to attain, you have to start somewhere.

But let me tell you where I started, first of all. I started with a strong purpose that kept the desire alive for me to take up the vegetarian diet. My own purposes for wanting to become vegetarian were: to maintain a healthy, light, and energetic body; and to do my own share in helping to decrease the outrageous mass-killing of animals and their deprivation of a natural environment, for human consumption (or, should I say, over-consumption?). Now I don’t know what your purposes are for wanting to change your diet, because honestly, there are as many reasons to go vegetarian as there are vegetarians in the world. But I assure you that without a strong sense of purpose for what you intend to do, you will never be able to stick to this new diet permanently. I have personally seen so many of my friends fail at keeping this diet because of lack of purpose for sticking to it. So first, know your purpose.

Once you’re clear on your purpose, the next challenge will come into play. How do you start taking up this diet without being tempted by the meat that producers seem to stick under your nose the minute you step out your door? You may just be casually walking out your office door at lunchtime, on your way to a café that serves great vegetarian paninis, when the first store that greets you at the corner is KFC, releasing a thick aroma of deep-fried, crispy chicken to entice you. I know how that feels!

Well here’s the thing about it: during your first stages of transition into the vegetarian diet, you will be tempted. I’m not discouraging you, by any means; I’m simply stating a fact, so that you can be aware of what you will be (or perhaps already have been) up against, instead of holding a ‘Superman mentality’ that nothing can pull you back into the meat-eating world, ever again… and then giving up the vegetarian diet all-too-soon because you didn’t manage to keep your resolve. The best thing to do if you want to keep the vegetarian diet permanently in your lifestyle is to transition into it slowly.

Don’t change your diet overnight. I can tell you from experience that this never works. I gave up on vegetarianism myself many times, out of frustration, because I wanted to do things quickly, and completely rid my life of meat, right then and there. I later on discovered that, just as in the process of giving up smoking or alcoholism, so does the body need to adjust to the food changes we administer to it. If you have been eating meat for most of your life, don’t expect that you’ll instantly love the taste of vegetarian dishes. In the first place, vegetarian dishes have a different texture to that of meat. Try simply starting out with 1 or 2 vegetarian meals a week, and go from there.  Having nice vegetarian meals in restaurants may be a good idea during the first stages of your transition, as this starts to instill a positive mindset in you about vegetables; they can taste great!

While your palate is getting used to the flavors and textures of vegetables, start looking up those vegetarian recipes that look good and easy enough for you to try. There are literally thousands of recipes available on the Internet for the vegetarian, and great cookbooks are increasing in availability as well. Experiment with recipes. If you find that they don’t taste quite as good as you’d expected, don’t let this deter you. This is only a cause of your being so used to cooking with the flavors and textures of meat; or if the case is that you aren’t experienced in cooking at all, then all you really need is practice and a little more experience in flavors to get those great ideas onto the plate. And remember, vegetables have their own unique taste for your palate as well, so they can’t be compared to food as different as meat.

In time, as you incorporate more and more vegetables in your diet, your palate preferences will change. Additionally, when you learn to use natural flavor-enhancing techniques, such as adding spices or nuts, and combining vegetables of various textures and flavors into your cooking, your meals will start to give you a taste experience that rivals that of meat dishes. Experiment with other countries’ cuisines as well. Countries like India, Morocco, China, Israel, Mexico, and many others, have been enjoying a host of delectable home-cooked vegetarian dishes for centuries. You will never run out of new dishes to try cooking.

I’m not a professional chef myself, but I do cater to Yoga Introduction seminars on occasion, for tourists traveling in my area who are curious about the Yogic lifestyle (which, as most of us know, includes a vegetarian diet); and you would be surprised how many comments I get from people, telling me that my meals are absolutely superior to the meat menus offered by the restaurants in town! They always come away from the seminars I cater, with the invigorated feeling of having eaten a delicious vegetable meal, with a sense of health and well-being to accompany it.

So stick to that vegetarian diet, no matter how much time you need to completely transition to it. With faith, patience, and a bit of experimenting and creativity, you will be sure to enjoy the process – and one day be surprised, as I was, that becoming a vegetarian wasn’t such an impossible feat after all!