Battling the insatiable cravings of meat for a newly converted plant-based human. My Q’s your A’s

A

aandrews

New member
Hello there, thanks for engaging with my semi promiscuously titled post! I’ve been plant-based to varying degrees since January 2020. The deal I worked out with myself at first was that I’d allow myself to have 4 meals with animal products a week, then 3, then 1. Now I’m at the point where I don’t eat animal products at all, minus the 2.5oz of prosciutto I allowed myself last weekend.

It’s going great. I’m losing weight (down 8 healthy lbs since January 1). I’m getting in shape. I’m hitting all my macros. And I feel fantastic. But I can’t shake the cravings for meat. I cook well, I’m not robbing myself of good tasting or well textured food. I’ve perfected the art of cooking tofu any which way. My questions are:

When you were new to being fully plant-based, did you experience these road bumps and how did you overcome them?

What are some highly satiating whole foods meals you eat either regularly or as a cheat?

Are there fake meat products you’ll break the bank for so you can have the occasional feeling of eating meat without the consequences?

*It should be noted, I have very little experience with replacement meat products like Beyond etc. My understanding is that those too aren’t really good for you when it comes down to it.

Thanks so much for reading!
 
@aandrews I LOVE beyond burgers and sausages. I prefer them over beef by a long shot. I still struggle with missing ground pork and chicken in soups and sauces ( I haven't been vegan very long), I think partly just because it's what I've eaten all my life and, well, change is hard lol. Watching Earthlings (pretty gruesome) was what made me finally do the full switch and that helps curb my cravings, but sometimes... I just really miss meat.

I guess I'm saying I know how you feel. I do think it will get easier, but in the meantime Beyond meat is definitely my friend. Oh, and Miyoko's mozzarella is great for pizza! I hope this helps :)
 
@folajay That’s two for Miyoko’s mozz! Change is SO hard. I also grew up with lots of meat on an average American diet. Seems like I need to get on the Beyond train, that sausage sounds interesting.
 
@aandrews One of the best things to do when you’re experiencing cravings is to inspect them with curiosity. You can call it meditation, but it doesn’t have to be along any specific doctrine or practice - the act of examining what is happening within you is extremely freeing from the impulses that we have. It’s not about “not craving meat”, it’s about not suffering because of a craving. When we look inward at an experience we’re having, with two basic principles (observe, and observe what follows) we can realize amazing things.

The typical experience is to “turn inward” (literally just close your eyes, and take stock of what’s occurring in your body and your mind) - quickly you will notice impulses (sometimes it’s something like an itch to scratch, sometimes it’s something like hunger). As you observe these impulses or feelings, you can observe your reaction (typically for me, I find an impulse urging me to act in some way, and I see that I often assign negativity or positivity to doing or not doing that urged action). As we observe these relationships with our experiences, their power lessens greatly.

I’ve been vegan a little under a year, and what’s really worked for me is to look at all my cravings and feelings as opportunities to understand my self and the experience of being me. It has freed me to begin to know who I am... and with an understanding of who I want to be, I can see the differences between my feelings and my goal as the path to being my best self (rather than a path of suffering).

Let me know if any of that is unclear, but my basic point is: sit with your cravings, seek to observe them with curiosity, you will quickly find more control than you felt before.
 
@aandrews I did have some cravings at first so I ate some fake meats. Field Roast sausages hit the SPOT. Now I’m mostly whole food plant based. I just hit 4 years and the smell of meat and dairy now makes my stomach turn.
 
@aandrews Nope. I wachted Cowspiracy, Forks over Knives, Dominion, 101 reasons to go vegan and Gary Yourofsky's speech. After that I didn't touch meat ever again. Never craved it because vegan dishes are so much more flavourful. I go to restaurants often with my girlfriend and damn that's delicious.

Never touched fake meat, I eat whole foods plant based. It has more fiber, vitamins and minerals and just trying to stay healthy that way.

My advice switch to whole foods plant based. Eat a whole foods plant based diet so eat oats, whole wheat pasta, brown rice, potatoes, lentils, kidney beans, chickpeas! Here's a typical day of eating for me. I eat a high carb low fat diet with 3600kcal and 170g of protein
 
@aandrews Something that helped me was learning and educating myself on meat. How it affects your body, the animal, and the environment. This was VERY eye opening. I did not crave meat after this process.
 
@aandrews This probably won't be helpful but I'm vegan, not plant-based, so I personally never had any cravings for non-vegan food. I realized the horrible pain innocent animals go through and once I fully made the connection, it wasn't "food" to me - it was violence. We treat innocent animals worse than the most evil humans on this earth. Animals have a central nervous system so they feel physical pain and they also are able to feel terror, fear, empathy and love. Animals suffer tremendously to end up on our plates. Animals don't want to die.

If you want to stop experiencing cravings for meat, the best way to do so is to watch slaughter house footage. Watch DOMINION. Or if that's too much for you, there are instagram accounts that show similar things. Look up the insta account @thesavemovement and scroll through their pics.

this is a link to a really good speech on the ethical reasons to go vegan. However, the most important part for someone to watch that isn't yet vegan is just 2 minutes at 24:35 it's not graphic. There's no blood, no killing, nothing like that. But I think watching those 2 minutes at 24:35 will really help you stop craving meat.

Take care. Thank you for reducing your animal consumption.
 
@simond Hey there, thanks for the comment. For clarification I’m vegan for all intents and purposes- I don’t consume animal products of any kind. I find saying I’m “plant-based” to have less negative connotation and allows me to drive the conversation towards what that means and looks like to those who aren’t down for the cause. Personally, I find the touting of animal rights in the wrong context to be pretentious.

No need to convince me of the consequences of eating meat, hence why I’ve used that specific word in regards to finding ways to satiate myself. For years I’ve been very much in tune with the food system via management in restaurants that prioritize ethics over price points. “On Eating Animals” by Jonathan Foer helped with that too.

Anyways, if you have any relevant insight towards satiating meals you make at home I’d love to hear about them!
 
@aandrews Okay, well you only said plant-based which is why I made an assumption, but thank you for clarifying.

The Beyond Meat burgers and Sausages taste a lot like real meat. I'd highly recommend if that's what you're going for. Field Roast burgers are also a win. They are juicy, fatty and filling. Gusta sausages are also INCREDIBLE but they're only available in Canada.

Also, I've personally never tried the Impossible burger because I've never seen it in Canada, but a lot of people swear by it. I know you're asking for meat, but if you're cravings cheese, miyokos is legitimately incredibly. They're not available in Canada so I ordered them online via VeganSupply and they taste so creamy!

I'd recommend making a vegan lasagna. I personally have made lasagna a lot of times when I'm trying to impress others. I use Yves for veggie ground (but I think it's only available in Canada). I always put a small spoonful of vegan mayo (I use the hellman's vegan mayo) in my veggie ground, along with premade pasta sauce of course. I always put a spoonful of mayo in just to add more fat content and make it more satiating. I find that when you have so many ingredients in a lasagna, it's super satiating and you can't tell the difference between a meat lasagna and a well made vegan one! Obvi, I add veggies and sometimes black beans too. As well as vegan cheese.

I'm sorry if this wasn't more helpful. Good luck on your plant based journey! 😉
 
@simond Now THIS is where it’s at. Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions. It’s hard to know what brands people swear by now that there are so many of them out there. Super helpful!
 
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