- 4
- 10
- Joined Sep 10, 2010
The daycare I work at has a couple children who don't eat meat for religious reasons. I'm looking for ideas on what to make them for lunch that contains protein. It would have to have simple (and inexpensive) ingredients.
Informative and well written post. Thanks.no vegetable source of protein gives the body enough useable protein ON ITS OWN.
Just to clarify this a bit, because it is the crux of vegetarian nutrition.
Animal flesh (and associated products, such as eggs) contain what is called a complete protein. This means that the single product contains the range of amino acids necessary for human health and wel being.
With one exception, vegetables have incomplete proteins. That is, they contain only some of the necessary amino acids.
But here's the key: If you combine any grain with any legume, you create the same complete protein found in meat. Primative cultures intuited this, which is why there are some many global variations of things like rice & beans.
So, it's not a question of whether vegies provide enough protein, but whether they provide the right kind. Mixing and matching grains and legumes assures that they do.
The exception, btw, is soy. Soy is a complete protein, which is why it plays such a strong role in modern vegetarian diets. I mean, let's face it. Nobody actually likes tofu.
Cori: I can't believe that the owners would have accepted children with special dietary needs and not had you consult with the parents. What sort of folk are you working for?
In Italian, there is the expression "fried air" which they use for bull, or what we often call "a lot of hot air", in other words, when people talk and it all sounds so good, but really there's nothing behind it, on the principle that if you fry ANYTHING it tastes good. No doubt, breaded and fried, even tofu is palatable, and sort of tastes like... fried air. (It;s not that tofu tastes bad, it's just that it's like biting into a hole in the flavor of your dish!I recommend crisp frying tofu cubes and then simmering in some sort of savory sauce. Serve them as finger food or with more sauce over rice or noodles. Prepared well, tofu is a dish that makes kids smile.
In Italian, there is the expression "fried air" which they use for bull, or what we often call "a lot of hot air", in other words, when people talk and it all sounds so good, but really there's nothing behind it, on the principle that if you fry ANYTHING it tastes good. No doubt, breaded and fried, even tofu is palatable, and sort of tastes like... fried air. (It;s not that tofu tastes bad, it's just that it's like biting into a hole in the flavor of your dish!
I eat tofu regularly and I'm a meat-lover. Tofu IS delicious and perhaps you've been introduced to it in a negative way (perhaps by over-enthusiastic vegetarians/vegans) sthat make you think of tofu as an alternative food. Another thing is the type of tofu you've been eating might not appeal to you. Try to stay away from the firm tofu and try some of the softer kind (it should be as soft/softer than flan).
1. Take the tofu out of the fridge.
2. Drain.
3. Cut into cubes.
4. Plate, drizzle with soy sauce and a splash of sesame oil.
5. Serve.
The original post by Cori never implied a question of any problem with her employers or the parents of the vegan children.Cori.....there are more kids these days growing up vegan then we would suspect.
Gypsy, I don't think anyone questions that. But it isn't the issue. If your kids were vegan (or kosher, or diabetic, or gluten-intolerant, or had any other special dietary needs) would you just send them off to school without consulting with the cook or nutritionist or whoever was in charge of feeding the children?
To me it is unconscionable that 1. the parents would do so, and 2. that Cori's bosses would allow it to happen.
One thing we have to keep in mind is that these kids, like kids in any household, have certain distinct preferences; that there are things they eat joyously, and things they won't touch. And that most kids are suspicious of unfamiliar food.
So, let's look at those fried tofu cubes (yeah, yeah, Siduri, I know. But they pretend that tofu is not only palatable but delicious). If we posit that, for some reason, the adults do not serve tofu at home, or that they do, but never fry it, I guarantee that if served it at daycare the kids will stick up their noses at it.
I'm sorry, but, to me, this is not a nutritional issue. It's a parental responsibility issue.
I get the feeling that when people think "healthy eating", BDL, what they really mean is self-deprivation.Too bad the rest of the world never figured out how to eat well without meat. If they had they'd be eating things like beans and tortillas; lentils and rice; moros y cristianos, hummus, babaganouj, and tabbouleh, and adding a few other vegetable along side. But no. They haven't. Or those sorts of meals would staples all over the globe.
Can't have the protein without tofu, apparently.
BDL