As per title. My brain is not working right at this moment so I need ideas. Tomorow lunchtime I will be cooking for a bunch of folks who will winge if I cook only vegetarian food. Must be healthy and must be inexpensive. Also we have been having summer likr weather so stews and soups probably out. I am vego myself so don’t have a lot of meatified ideas.
They would probably bitch about salad also.
I just can’t think at the moment of antthing suitable. Oh and we have a Hindo and Jewish lasses so no beef or pork product. Nuts and anthing seedy out too.
Any help will be appreciated.
Pasta with tomato sauce. It’s 100% vegetarian, but most omnivores won’t have any problem with it. If you’d like, you can add TVP to the sauce and tell your fellow vegetarians what it is-- The meat-eaters probably won’t even know the difference. But it’s fine even without the TVP.
Make pasta primavera, and serve with salad and lots of garlic bread. Roast a few packs of Italian sausages for your meatatarians.
Italian sausages are not going to work for the non-pork eaters. My usual solution is to do something like marinated grilled chicken.
There are chicken/turkey sausage alternatives out there, in different flavors that would go well with Italian. I’ve always liked making all vegetarian/vegan dishes with meat sauteed/grilled/roasted separately. Then it’s all available for the veg people and the meat people can just add all the meat they want.
Mexican is also a fun option, just use ground chicken/turkey instead of beef for the meat filling. Beans for all, and many TVP’s come in a chorizo or other Mexican/taco flavor that would be great for the veggie folks. All the fillings are separate so people can just add what they want. Get crunchy taco shells along with soft corn and flour tortillas, salsa, diced tomatoes, avocado, onion, sour cream, etc.
Shredded chicken works much better than ground, if you’re going that route.
I’m an idiot!
What’s TVP? Google is being unhelpful.
Textured Vegetable Protein.
There are a ton of things that are adaptable.
Watch sausages at all - even the chicken kind will sometimes have non chicken casings. If you have people keeping kosher, you might also have the meat/dairy issue (not in the same dish).
Mexican dishes - if you bring tortillas, meat, refried beans, tomatos, cheese and lettuce - everyone can do fine assembling their own off what they can eat.
Pasta dishes - we do this all the time because you can have a bowl of pasta, a bowl of GF pasta (if that is an issue) a red sauce, and a bowl of meatballs. Or sub around as appropriate (pesto, grilled chicken).
You can make several huge sandwiches on rounds of fococcia - brie and ham with spinach; grilled red peppers, hummus, onion; turkey avocado and cheddar.
Home made Pizza!
I personally like TVP in sauces and soups, but I’d think twice about trying to pass it off as meat. Its texture isn’t quite right, and if you get just a little more than the optimal amount in there, it’s going to turn the meat-eaters against you.
I’ve had good luck with lasagna - if you make it with (well-drained) eggplant and mushrooms, that will give it good body. A lot of garlic bread and some salad (it can fly under the radar if you have a good amount of other food) will round out the meal.
Beer Butt Chicken
Not only is it easy to make and tastes delicious. It’s a conversation piece. Depending on how many guests you have, you may need more than one though.
Or you could go sea food, How about Spicy Tuna Patties
OrShrimp Creoleif your budget allows.
I should warn you, if you are cooking any of the above recipes yourself, you will be tempted to try and that may be the end of your vegitarianism. Especially if you do the Shrimp Creole. It is devine!
Skewers on the BBQ. I put marinated tofu on some and chicken on the others, along with capsicum, onion, mushroom zucchini, cherry tomatoes.
Can I nominate this thread for best (or possibly worst) username / OP title ever?
I think the homemade pizza or skewers on the BBQ are both excellent ideas. Allows you to mix and match for a wide variety of tastes. Mexican assemble-your-own is also pretty good.
Falafel, hummus, tahini, tabbouleh. Shakshuka. Bourekas. Baklava for dessert.
You know - ordinary food.
Risotto! It’s a “fancier” dish, but not expensive. Only time-consuming. Make it with veggie stock, add some good veggies (mushrooms? There’s a lot of mushroom risotto recipes. I’ve used asparagus to excellent effect, and will be making one with broccoli later this week) - with the butter and the parmigiana, I really doubt anyone will complain that there’s no meat. Or you could have some garlic chicken (and maybe some grilled portobellas) on the side for mix-ins or as toppers.
Eh, the first time I ever had TVP, it was in spaghetti sauce, and the only way I could tell that it wasn’t ground beef was that it was served by a person I knew to be vegetarian. Though maybe there’s some degree of skill that goes into that.
Besides, I’m not saying to “pass it off as meat”: If anyone asks what it is, you tell them. You just don’t need to specify for those who don’t ask.
The last time I was juggling such a diverse dinner audience, I did fajitas. I cooked the onions and peppers together, and cooked chicken, steak, and shrimp separately. We also had beans, rice, cheese, sour cream, guacamole and shredded cabbage. So there was no way anyone could go hungry, regardless of what they were willing to eat.
Quiche is another possibility I’ve used, if your vegetarian types will at least eat eggs and cheese. While I love ham and bacon in there, they’re really not necessary. Sun-dried tomatoes, spinach and artichoke hearts make a tasty vegetarian quiche. If you have enough people, you can make one for carnivores and one for vegetarians.
But one of your criteria is cheap, and you can’t beat spaghetti with a vegetarian sauce for cheap.
Easy is to make risotto with butternut squash soup as half the liquid (and chicken stock if you aren’t vegetarian for the other half, otherwise water or vegetable stock). Add parmesan to finish.