Do you think a meal is complete without the vegetables?

Caribbean girl

Caribbean girl

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If I were to eat a meal minus the vegetables, I would feel as though something was missing from my meal. I would have the starch and the protein, but for me, no meal is complete without vegetables on the side. The more health conscious among us may prefer to have a small amount of starch, a little protein, with vegetables being the biggest part of the meal.

I find that in most restaurants they would tend to serve dinner with protein as the main part of the meal. The vegetables would just take up a small portion of the meal.

Eating vegetables take getting used to, so it is a good idea to have children eat them from an early age so that they would not find them unpalatable when they grow older.
 
On the other hand, there are some compounds in vegetables that younger bodies can't digest as effectively, so perhaps that's where the natural tendency of children to be picky eaters came from; the stereotype of young children are those averse to veggies. If anything, growing older has given me cravings for veggies that I used to despise.

That said, yeah, on a budget or on a laziness... we can throw in a carb, a protein, and call it a day! A side of veggies is more like a plus... something to cut the grease of the meat, something to add a bit of extra flavor to the carb...

But I've been reading some awful things about the starches that have filled most of us up so regularly, and have even really paid attention to notice the "sugar crash" effects of a carbohydrate-based diet in my own body. My beloved pasta!

So I may give a go at having a protein-and-vegetable based diet for a while. It should be a challenge for cooking, too! Gets me out of the comfort zone! So far I'm thinking...

Breakfast
- chayote, luffa, and/or green papaya omelette with herbs

Lunch
- burger patties with broccoli and cauliflower

Snack
- anything pumpkin is fine by me!
- peanut butter and banana

Dinner
- Give me my carbs back, please, I'm meant to crash at this time of day and I'm missing my carbs just writing this meal plan draft...
 
I agree that having to buy vegetables regularly really puts a dent in your budget. Some are more expensive than others though, so I tend to stick to the least expensive ones, but at times would still buy the others. The leafy green vegetables are the best, like spinach for instance, and also lettuce. Tomatoes are my favourite where vegetables are concerned. I am not a cucumber fan and tend not to buy them regularly. I would have to say, though, that although I like to take my meals with vegetables, having to cut them up is the hardest part. After that is done, I am good to go. Sometimes when I go shopping, I look for vegetables that are packaged and already sliced up, but I do not always see these.

I guess a good idea would be to try growing my own vegetables, at least one or two for a start.
 
i dont really mind at all. i dont eat salads really but when its on my plate ill eat it. but im lazy to go and make a salad just for my side dish. i sure eat my proteins though.
 
To me a meal starts with the veggies and then the rest is simply a fill in. My meals are primarily veggie, I eat very few meals that don't have veggies in them.
 
In this household you would eat very little if you took the veg out of our meals!

Lunch today would have been plain bread (if you removed the veg) and your evening meal would have been pastry and nothing else! :laugh:
Tomorrow you might fare a touch better because we are likely to be having peanut butter sandwiches for lunch, but again your evening meal would be non-existent.
Breakfast would be about the only meal you could eat here, without milk that is, because we have soya milk which would technically count as made from a vegetable/bean!
 
A meal is not a balanced meal without vegetables. I can product a hearty meal just by cooking an assortment of vegeables. They can be served with pasta, rice, beans lentils, potatoes or on their own in a delicious casserole, stew or a rich sauce. Who needs meat?

If only for good health, it's important to include vegetables in as many meals as possible. Children who refuse to eat them can be fed veg blended into a tomato pasta sauce or nutritious soup
 
For me, it depends on what the main dish of the meal is. If its meatloaf or pot roast, for example, then yes I most definitely want to have a vegetable on the side. If the meal is a pasta dish or enchiladas then no, I don't feel the need for a vegetable. I always try to get servings of vegetables to my family in some way or another. If we don't have a side of veggies, then I will make a rich tomato sauce to go over the pasta noodles. If I don't take that route then at the very least, I will leave a bowl of carrots out for everyone to snack on before dinner.
 
I do feel this way, but I wouldn't say all the time. Whenever I eat fried chicken, for example, I rarely crave for vegetables, but for most other dishes, I think having vegetables on the side is a major plus.
 
I do think this way but it's definitely not my preference. To remedy this I tend to make at a minimum a small green salad to go with absolutely any meal so those who would like some veggies can have them. I think having a veggie of some sort is a smart idea because it can fill you up and possibly stop you from overeating carbs or other parts of the meal that aren't as good for you but honestly some days I just want a big bowl of pasta and don't care about eating healthy.
 
Other than the bacon butties we usually have on a Saturday morning, every meal I cook has vegetables in. I have four children and I try to give them a variety of vegetables to try and make sure they have a healthy and balanced diet. They all like most vegetables so I am lucky. A lot of the meals I cook are vegetarian, even though nobody in the house is a vegetarian. Tonight I will be making a roast beef dinner and serving it with roast potatoes, carrot and swede mash, cauliflower and parsnips.
 
Without the vegetables I would not feel satisfied as that is where the vitamins and minerals are found. My body seems to know right away if I have not eaten good nutrients and makes me feel like I have to keep eating till I eat something that has nutrients I need.
 
As a vegetarian, there are days I don't always have vegetables! I can eat a meal without vegetables and still be healthy. Sometimes I have veggie sausages and mash, or a baked potato with egg mayonnaise. Often I cook for myself so cooking a side portion isn't always efficient, so I tend to use frozen vegetables for that reason. Vegetable do make a meal healthier, but I don't feel it completes the meal always.
 
Caribbean girl said:
If I were to eat a meal minus the vegetables, I would feel as though something was missing from my meal. I would have the starch and the protein, but for me, no meal is complete without vegetables on the side. The more health conscious among us may prefer to have a small amount of starch, a little protein, with vegetables being the biggest part of the meal.

I find that in most restaurants they would tend to serve dinner with protein as the main part of the meal. The vegetables would just take up a small portion of the meal.

Eating vegetables take getting used to, so it is a good idea to have children eat them from an early age so that they would not find them unpalatable when they grow older.
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Fist of all protein is found in vegetables. For some reason (maybe the way we where taught) we separate the protein as meat and don't include the protein that is in vegetables. Spirulina(a sea plant) has more protein than red meat, without any of the violence. The protein myths has to go. http://foodmatters.tv/articles-1/the-miracle-superfood-packs-more-protein-than-red-meat
 
I admit, I feel awkward if my meal, especially dinner, is lacking vegetables. It goes back to being a little kid and my dad always saying "add some color to that plate!" He'd get on my case for not having my veggies and that stuck with me.
 
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