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Improve
your diet by trying meat substitutes
January 12, 2006
Suzanne Havala Hobbs
There
was a time when soy burgers were the subject of ridicule.
Now people are singing their praises.
“If more people realized how easy, fast, convenient,
healthy and good these products really are, they'd stop making
fun of them, try them and see that you don't have to spend
half a day in the kitchen cooking to put a great meal on the
table,” wrote Fran from Wake Forest in an email message
to me recently.
Fran has a point.
I frequently coach readers on ways to make more simple meals
from scratch at home. It’s a good way to get more fruits,
vegetables, beans and grains into the diet and less trans
and saturated fat.
But there’s a large and growing category of convenience
foods that can also have a place in a health-supporting diet:
meat substitutes.
A substantial amount of grocery freezer case space is now
reserved for veggie burger patties, meatless beef-like crumbles,
hotdogs and sausages, and other processed meat substitutes.
And contrary to what you may have experienced in the past:
They taste great.
“I think people need to stop having preconceived ideas
and start opening up their minds. These products are continually
being improved upon. They're healthy, good for our environment
and believe me, I spend A LOT LESS money each week on my groceries,”
wrote Fran.
The products may be meatless, but the food companies that
market them aren’t catering to vegetarians. They’re
targeting what the industry calls “meat restrictors”
– shoppers who want to lower their saturated fat and
cholesterol intakes by cutting back on meat, while not necessarily
cutting it out completely. Most products are made from soy
but some are made from vegetables and grains.
Some popular picks:
* Chik patties and nuggets. Kids and adults love them. Morningstar
Farms is the brand most often seen in supermarkets. Use the
patties for hot sandwiches, nuggets as a fun finger food.
One drawback I see: Eating healthy nuggets may reinforce requests
from kids for the junky ones.
* Corn dogs and hotdogs. Pretend you’re on a carnival
midway or just make beans and franks.
* Cold cuts such as meatless sliced deli turkey, ham, beef
and bologna. You’ll find a wide variety in natural foods
stores, and some brands – such as Lightlife Foods and
Yves Fine Foods – have made their way into some conventional
supermarkets. Meatless cold cuts are usually stocked in the
refrigerated section.
* Meatless bacon and sausage. Try Lightlife Fakin’ Bacon
Strips or Morningstar Farms Veggie Breakfast Bacon Strips.
Make BLT sandwiches or crumble some onto a spinach salad or
German potato salad. Morningstar Farms also makes meatless
sausage links and patties – staples in my house for
years.
* Meatless crumbles. Use them like ground beef in pasta sauce,
chili, taco and burrito fillings or to make Sloppy Joe sandwiches.
Morningstar Farms is a brand often found in conventional supermarkets.
* Veggie burger patties. They come in a huge range of flavors
and styles, from those that resemble beef patties to those
clearly made from a blend of vegetables. Some are spicy, some
are bland. There’s something to suit every taste. What
they have in common is that they’re quick and they’re
good.
The other thing these products have in common: They’re
far better for your health than their meat counterparts. No,
they’re not perfect: Most processed foods, including
some of these, are relatively high in sodium and low in fiber.
Still, all things considered, for taste, convenience, cost
and health, meat substitutes can have a place in a healthful
diet and can even improve your diet if they replace the “real
thing.”
So enjoy them now and then. They’re one compromise between
convenience and nutrition worth making.
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