hello I m new to being pro-veg for only about 3 months now. I chose it not for anycertain belief, but mainly because I don't really like eating meat, except fishi do like fish. Its mainly a texture thing for me. So my question is does anyone have any advice for me as far as substitution for protein? iron, etc? I hae read some books and websites about these things but, its so much better when you hear what really works for other people. so if any one can help me. that would be really nice. thank you!!! aslo if anyone has any quick and easy recipes that would be good too!

Welcome to VB! :hi: There are lots of meat alternatives such as tofu, tempeh and seitan. Search around VB for threads and recipes involving these.

:hi: While you do certainly need some protein, you don't need nearly as much as the meat-industry shills we know as the USDA would have you believe. If you eat eg. whole grains and some tofu/seitan (I *love* seitan) you should be fine.

There's a restaurant in Seattle that makes a vegan Bounty of the Sea that is unnervingly fishlike.

Protein can be obtained by: Nuts, Beans, Whole Grains and Wheat products, Soymilk, Tofu, some veggies, and meat substitutes; Gardenburger, Boca Burger, and Morningstar are popular brands of soy burgers.The average 18 year old adult female should get approx. 45-50 grams of protein per day.
*An example of lack of protein- brittle nails, dryer looking hair, fatigue, muscle mass and/or reduced immunity

Articles on Protein:
http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/protein.html
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/nutshell.htm#protein
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/protein.html


Iron can be obtained by: Dark Green veggies like Spinach, Broccoli and Sprouts, Blackstrap Molasses, Fortified cereals and breads, and things like nuts and dried fruits.
*Iron-deficiency symptoms include pale skin, brittle fingernails, fatigue, weakness, difficulty breathing upon exertion, inadequate temperature regulation, loss of appetite, and apathy.

Articles on Iron:
http://www.veganhealth.org/sh#iron
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/nutshell.htm#iron
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/iron.html


Vegetarian Nutrition information in general
http://www.eatright.org/Member/PolicyInitiatives/index_21026.cfm
Recipes:
www.vegweb.com

You can get protein from lots of places! Beans (good and cheap!), nuts and nut butters, tofu, textured vegetable protein (also good and cheap!). There are bunchs of good recipes here and at www.vegweb.com. Welcome to VB!

Protien is important, but people are just usually too lazy to research that it doesn't come from only animal sources. Iron is the same way.

I am vegan, and I haven't taken a supplement yet. I feel fine, look fine, and I am in pretty darned good health, as far as I know. *Knock on wood!*

Just make sure you get the high-protein natural sourced foods.

Good answer lilgirl252729 !!! Very thorough. :)

I eat lots of nuts and seeds for my protein, as I don't like tofu.

Nuts, seeds, beans, whole grains, veggies, fruit deep leafy greens is where I like to get my protein and iron (among other things). :)

If you freeze extra-firm tofu (NOT the silken kind...I found that out the hard way) it gets a fish-like texture. It responds very well to marinating and stir-frying. There's a great recipe on foodnetwork's website...search for "Tofu" then narrow the search to "Good Eats."