Hello all,
So, one slightly annoying factor when starting out to be vegetarian is that it seems like there aren't very many vegetarian-friendly places to eat. While there ARE vegetarian-friendly restaurants and options, there aren't that many menu items or they are all very similar. I decided it was best for me to start cooking. So, I wasn't the greatest cook before I went veg. Still not the greatest cook now, but, my skills are defiantly getting up there. To be honest, I love cooking for myself. It is such a stress reliever for me and I know whatever I make will be healthy, tasty, and made in a clean environment. When I first went vegetarian, I actually got food poisoning from Chipotle. Ironically, I got their veggie fajita there and I spent all night and the next day visiting the white shrine in my bathroom frequently and the one at the hospital too. What they think happened was the same person was handling the raw meats and the veggies and didn't change gloves and contaminated my food with bacterias that were out of my body for about 4 months. Jerk.
So now I make my own and BETTER fajitas. :)
Ingredients:
2 sweet peppers (color of your choice) I like the yellow and green ones.
1 yellow onion
1 package of sliced mushrooms (I use Green Giant)
1 can of organic black beans
white/brown rice (even taste good with no rice if you want to be carb conscious).
Wrap of your choice (White, Wheat, Spinach)
vegetable oil
sea salt (or regular table salt is fine - I just think sea salt has a stronger taste.
black pepper
garlic powder
cilantro
Paul Newman Salsa (optional)
sour cream (reg or vegan) (optional)
Boil rice in a hot pot drain and let it sit. Make the rice first because the veggies don't take nearly as long (30 minutes).
In a frying pan, pour vegetable oil but not a lot. Only enough to lightly cover the bottom. We don't want our food swimming in grease and getting soggy because of it. That is too fattening and gross. I start with a small amount and add as I see fit. I then let the oil heat up and dump the sliced peppers, onion, mushrooms into the hot oil and let them start to sizzle. I then sprinkle on top some sea salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. You don't need to use a certain amount, just be smart about it. Not too much salt though. We don't want to boost our sodium intake and drown out the natural flavor of the veggies. I let the veggies soften but Dont let them get too soft because then they will sog and be too flabby. This should take no longer than 10 minutes because you still want them to have some of their original texture. About a minute before I take them out, I add some fresh cilantro. I LOVE cilantro so I do go crazy with it. Chipotle adds it in the rice but I don't eat a lot of rice or sometimes I don't even add the rice because I want to be carb conscious. So to keep the flavor, I add it with the veggies Tangent below....
*******When you're vegetarian, you're pretty much limited to a carb diet. Veggies and fruits are complex carbs. The good carbs. Eat these carbs all day long. Simple carbs are like bread, wraps, muffins, rice (pretty much things that you are baking). Those carbs make the other carbs look bad. Brown rice has more fiber so it is better than white rice for sure. So if you want to be healthier with this, make brown rice instead of white. Or be super duper healthy and no rice at all and just the wrap. For lunch today, I actually ate my left overs minus the wrap because I ate it yesterday. Got to moderate your carbs because it can make you gain weight if you are just munching on bread all day****
Get a wrap ( I used a spinach wrap). I feel like my body digests those easier. Whole wheat is a better option. White ones really aren't that good for you and lack nutritional value, but the option is there. Lay the wrap flat and fill it with the veggies. Feel free to add salsa or sour cream. Wrap it up and get chompin'!
Alternatives:
No wrap and just eat some sauteed veggies with rice.
Wrap and no rice
No wrap or rice just the veggies (be careful with this - you cant escape all simple carbs and you do need to have something in your body. If you're going to skip any of the above, skip the wrap and go for the rice. The rice is in its original form. That's how I judge it. The wrap had to be molded and folded.
Skip sour cream or go with vegan or light cream.
Last night for dinner I ate the rice and the wrap. Today for lunch, I ate the rice, no wrap and no sour cream. Healthier and lighter.
Enjoy!
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