I'm usually not a big adherer to the fasting ritual surrounding Lent. In fact, my go-to joke has always been that I gave up organised religion for Lent years ago and it just stuck. However, this year I will be showing my respect for Jesus by only eating vegetables. It's what he would have wanted, I'm sure. Now, I've had meat-free meals before, I've even had meat-free days, but to last 40 days and 40 nights without wrapping my lips around a succulent pork chop or chicken breast I'm going to need a plan of attack.
Step 1: Arm yourself with facts
It's a well known fact that most vegetarians substitute meat with other ingredients such as pretentiousness and lecturing others. If you have any hope of laying off the sausage for 40 days you're going to need solid facts with sharp edges to throw at people when they inevitably ask you why you're doing this. So, head on over to PETA's '30 day pledge' website to arm yourself with a holier-than-thou attitude. If you can tell someone with a straight face that you've given up meat because you looked a cow in the eyes and realised he was looking back then you'll know that you're well on your way to becoming a bone fide vegetarian.
Of course, there are actual benefits to going vegetarian aside from a sense of superiority. You'll decrease your risk of cancer by 40%. You'll reverse damage to your cardiovascular system caused by eating too much animal fat. And my favourite fact about going vegetarian has nothing to do with your health but rather with the future of humans on this planet. If everyone gave up eating meat overnight, the amount of resources freed up by not having to feed livestock could sustain 10 billion people; you could ostensibly eradicate world hunger. Now there's a fact that will make any meat-eater bite his tongue.
Step 2: Plan your meals
Meat is what flavours your food with flavour. Without meat in your diet you run the risk of having some very bland meals indeed. An example of this is the unassuming garden salad. Some lettuce, tomatoes, onions and maybe some grated cheese. Throw some sliced grilled chicken on top of that and you've just made this dish 1000 times better. When you're working with meat, flavour is easy. When you're working with veg, you've got to work for it.
The worst thing you can do is eat too much of the same thing. You might have enjoyed eating bacon every day but if you think you'll last longer than three days eating nothing but chickpeas you've got another thing coming. The best way to make vegetarianism enjoyable is by mixing it up constantly. Here is what I'll be eating for the first week of Lent:
Wednesday - Veggie lasagna (with aubergine, courgette and spinach)
Thursday - Mushroom risotto
Friday - Green curry (with tofu, bamboo shoots and bean sprouts)
Saturday - Three-bean chili
Sunday - Quiche (leek and mushroom)
Monday - Polenta salad
Tuesday - Veggie burgers (made from chickpeas)
Step 3: Discover vegetarian restaurants
Most restaurants aren't particularly vegetarian friendly. There's usually a single option tucked away at the back of the menu for the non meat-eaters. However, vegetarian restaurants are on the rise and chances are you've walked by a few and you just didn't notice because there wasn't a smell of caramelised pork wafting out the door. You should check out some veggie restaurants. Not only will it give you some ideas for what to cook at home but it'll also taste a lot better than what you're cooking at home. Cooking vegetarian dishes is quite hard and it takes a good bit of practice.
Eating vegetarian is a lot cheaper than eating meat so you'll tend to find that your grocery shopping bill will drop quite a bit. Why not use those extra earnings to treat yourself to a tasty veggie restaurant meal.
Stay tuned for veggie recipes to come.
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