How To Prepare Healthy Vegetarian Menus

If you want to get started in vegetarian eating, ask your doctor to design a healthy menu according to your needs.

Vegetarian eating doesn’t have to be boring or bland. In fact, there are many healthy and tasty dishes that will appeal to all palates. In this article, we explain the keys to preparing healthy vegetarian menus without missing any nutrients. As well as some menu ideas to start this diet from today.

A complete vegetarian diet

We often hear that a vegetarian diet is a health risk because it is deficient in minerals such as iron or calcium. However, this is not true when the diet has been designed by a nutritionist.

The calcium

Milk and its derivatives are not the only foods that contain calcium, if we have decided to do without them.

Sesame, for example, provides about the same amount of calcium as milk. Green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, seaweed, whole wheat bread, oatmeal and dehydrated fruits are also rich in calcium.

In addition, to assimilate calcium correctly we will need vitamin D, which we will obtain directly by sunbathing, but also other foods such as egg yolk or shiitake mushrooms.

The iron

Iron can be obtained from the following foods: fruits and nuts, whole grains, including wholemeal bread, as well as green leafy vegetables, seeds and legumes ,  chickpeas, beans, lentils or others.

To assimilate it correctly, we recommend taking vitamin C, for example, dressing meals with fresh lemon juice.

Vitamin B12

Many people who do not want to consume dairy or eggs wonder how to obtain this vitamin. Well, we also find it in the following foods: tempe, miso, algae and beer yeast. We can also value taking it as a supplement. You can find ready-made products that already contain it.

The protein

The main sources of protein are meat, fish, and eggs. But we also have multiple vegetarian sources of protein.

You can choose legumes, seitan, whole grains, nuts, seeds or mushrooms. Plus, plant protein is easily digested, rich in fiber, and doesn’t strain the liver or kidneys.

Preparation of healthy vegetarian menus

First of all, we must ensure that they are complete and balanced meals. So we must always  make sure that in each meal we include the following types of food:

• Fruits and / or vegetables, alternating raw and cooked every day
• Starch or whole grain cereal. For example ,  potato, pasta, rice, bread, quinoa, millet, oatmeal, couscous , semolina, corn, spelled, etc.
• Vegetal protein.  Milk or dairy derivatives, eggs, legumes, mushrooms, avocado, nuts and seeds, raw or sprouted.
• Fats  Cold pressing oils, olive, sesame, coconut, sunflower or flax. Nuts, whole dairy, egg yolk, avocado

In addition, we recommend consuming some of the so-called superfoods daily . These will help us not to lack any nutrient.

• Spirulina  One of the best superfoods thanks to its properties.
• Seed sprouts.  They are very nutritious and rich in fiber and protein.
• Beer yeast. Provides minerals and vitamin B12.
• Flax oil  It helps to obtain the fatty acids that fish would provide us.

Menu examples

In order to get into vegetarian food, some proposals for complete menus that contain everything our body needs are the following.

• A plate of lentils with brown rice and a varied salad dressed with olive oil.
• Whole wheat pasta with cream sauce, mushrooms and nuts, and fruit.
• Integral pizza with cheese, tomato, onion, olives, pepper and seitan.

• Peas with cooked potato and mayonnaise and fruit salad
• Sprouted alfalfa tortilla sandwich and green pepper
• Aubergines stuffed with onion, cheese and tomato sauce and arugula and parmesan salad
• Lentil salad, wild rice, cherry tomatoes, grated carrot and guacamole.

• Spinach with pine nuts, raisins and mozzarella cheese .

It is important, above all, to take into account the importance of always maintaining a balanced diet and consult a specialist about any changes you want to make in your diet.