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The Sustainable College Eater’s Dilemma
By Andy Kroll
Fox News
One of the toughest aspects of my month of green living is eating less meat. Trading chicken, beef, lamb and the like for tofu, stir fries and the occasional protein bar has proved far more difficult than anticipated. And depending on the location and your own budget, eating less meat can be even more challenging, as I’ve learned in the past couple of weeks.
Today’s lunch: A Wendy’s side salad. Oh for the days of hamburgers… Photo by Andy Kroll
My parents are vegetarians. (Well, my dad is, and since where one goes the other often follows, my mom is quickly joining the veggie ranks, too.) When I visited them this past weekend, meeting my low-meat goals (I’ve cut my intake by 75 percent) was easy—protein vitamin shakes, breads and fruit for breakfast; salads and vegetarian sandwiches for lunch; and often tofu stir fry or occasionally fish (which my folks haven’t entirely given up) for dinner. On the drive home from their house on Monday, I thought to myself, I could do this whole vegetarian thing no problem.
Then I got back to school. The semester is nearing its end, I’m busier than I’ve ever been, thus time to cook is limited – if present at all. As a result, I eat out and on the run for probably a majority of my meals. And after two weeks of trying to eat mostly vegetarian meals with only a spare few servings of meat, what I’ve learned is this:
It’s really difficult to eat healthy, appetizing meals without meat on a college student’s budget.
Yes, there are fantastic vegetarian restaurants in Ann Arbor—but they’re hardly cheap for a college student trying to stretch out a dollar. And the vegetarian offerings at other restaurants are mostly delicious, but those places are usually sit-down establishments, which isn’t conducive to a busy college student’s schedule.
So what I’ve ended up eating as of late are a lot of slices of veggie pizza (delicious but a bit too greasy), paltry side salads from fast food joints and innumerable peanut butter sandwiches.
For anyone knowledgeable about food policy or rising obesity rates in the U.S., the dearth of quick, healthy food options is old news. But having not paid too much attention to what I eat until joining the legion of Michael Pollan acolytes and then beginning this project, I never realized how little healthy food is available for busy people on a budget. And, to be honest, the healthy-ish food out there right now—the salads and baked potatoes—tastes pretty awful. Not to mention that this kind of fast food usually comes packaged in excess amounts of plastic and paper all stuffed into an oversized paper bag bound for the garbage can.
So what to do for a college student-turned-semi-vegetarian? I could pack my own lunches with more vegetarian meals, which I plan to do when my schedule lightens and the next paycheck arrives. I could suck it up and learn to enjoy the Wendy’s “side item” offerings more; after all, my baked potato and plain salad cost a mere $4.50 or so today. I suppose moving back in with mom and dad is an option, but I’ve already done that once, and my parents have replaced my brother and I with dogs and a cat; us kids are old news.
A reader of one of my earlier posts was nice enough to send me a few vegetarian recipes, and I intend to use those soon. But do any other readers have some suggestions for a veggie-minded, cash-strapped, hectic college student? I’d love to hear them if you do with a comment here or an e-mail at akroll [at] umich.edu.
April 15th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
My fiancee doesn’t eat meat (picky eater, not your usual vegetarian), so I have pondered the same questions. It is a challenge to travel, as most of the options for eating on the road are fast food, and the only vegetarian options are either horribly bland or deep fried. I hate trying to prepare intricate and healthy meals every night, so I’m usually trying to figure out how to cut some corners, with limited success.
I have found a decent solution as far as a quick lunch goes, though. I discovered a good variety of dried instant rice and noodle bowls at the grocery store. Much tastier than ramen noodles (also acceptable), and most are vegetarian. I generally find them on the aisle with the rice and in the asian foods section.
I general, looking to the east can yield a lot of good ideas for vegetarian eating. Indian, chinese, and other asian cuisines tend to have a lot of good options for the meat-free diet. Also, rice noodles are delicious.
April 15th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Make a large pot of rice every few days and use different canned beans and cheap frozen vegetables to produce a healthy, filling meal in only a few minutes. Some cheese to sprinkle on, maybe a basked squash on days when you have time . . . mmm!
April 16th, 2009 at 8:45 am
Meat is one of the greenest products on the planet…the animals are all natural (unless you add things) and they are all biodegradable… yet you seem to be advocating processed and pre-packaged foods as a “green” alternative…
April 16th, 2009 at 10:10 am
I have been a vegetarian for twelve years and went through college in that time. I basically lived off of Ramen noodles and grilled cheese sandwiches during my freshman year, the results were not so good. My sophomore year I went a different route. I bought as many starchy, sometimes high fiber sides as I could (lentils, pasta, rice) and added to them frozen or canned vegetables. Also, making breakfast healthy was of big importance, yogurt and some kind of high fiber multivitamin cereal or granola pretty much saved me. There are also a ton of meat substitute items marketed toward vegetarians that can be somewhat on the costly side. If you use half portions and mix them with other things (starchy sides and vegetables) they make a very complete and satisfying meal without being too expensive, and they are sooo easy to prepare. They also kick the meat cravings some new vegetarians experience. Good luck with your endeavor!!
April 16th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
I don’t eat out much, but I would second the advice to scope out Asian cuisine. My partner eats a lot of burritos and tempeh burgers as well, which are cheap and filling options. I snack on almonds and other nuts throughout the day, and you can keep them in a small container in your bag for a portable protein fix. Humus and falafel are also typically available on college campuses.
April 17th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
When I first decided to ‘go vegan’ I also found it difficult to find affordable, easy, and tasty food. After a while, though, I realized that there really are a ton of options for vegans. Amy’s makes some really good veggie burgers and frozen meals that taste great and can be ready in about one minute. Also, a lot of grocery stores sell dehydrated noodle/veggie combos that are very affordable and can be cooked in about a minute (I can’t recall the brand at the moment.) And of course a fresh apple, orange, or banana is always a healthy snack. If you have a few more minutes, Compassion Over Killing has an Easy Vegan Recipes booklet for free on their website (cok.net or tryveg.com) that has tasty meal ideas that are easy to make. Hope this helps!
April 17th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
Well there is always the option of a quick trip, once a week, to the grocery store to buy raw vegetables. Chop the top and bottom off a bundle of celery, wash, (possibly pack up for later eating -at- the lab, instead of running out from it), eat. I personally find it much more flavorful than any lettuce based salad. Carrots take a bit more time if you decide you want to peel them, but since a lot of vegetables have more nutrients in the peel than any other part, and they are just about as tasty with a quick hand-scrubbing under cold water, why bother?
Raw, un-adulterated vegetables are easy, simple, cheep, and full of nutrition.
If you want something a bit more… dish like, that would take only a few minutes to prepare (often less time than standing in line at a fast food place if you’re headed home for the night), you might look into a simple pseudo-recipe.
1 can of beans (I like black, but you could use many kinds)
some rice (how much is up to your taste)
some pre-prepared salsa in a mega-jug (lower unit cost than the smaller jars)
Preparation steps:
1. (optional) If you didn’t follow the above advice of cooking rice once or twice a week, cook it now.
2. Combine.
3. (optional) heat in microwave
This would give you your starch, protein, fruits AND vegetables, AND a lot of flavorful spices. Oh, and in some areas steel cans (for beans), and plastic bottles (for the salsa) are completely recyclable, and several grocery stores have organic beans available, for just a bit extra, if you can fit that in your budget. Preparing (mixing) based on 1 full can as your starting point can give you multiple meals worth, depending on how much you eat at a sitting.
As for eating out options, you might look into subway. They have turkey, sea-food, or even completely veggie subs, and with their $5 foot-long deal on right now, any of these can be purchased to fill you right up in a far more satisfying way (in my opinion) than a side salad and a baked potato. You can even put it on 9 grain bread with honey and oat coating. Mmmmmm.
All they wrap it in is a bit of wax paper, and you can tell them not to bag it, or recycle the plastic bag they put it in. I use walmart or Bakers drop-offs for this, so I can recycle plastic bags even with apartment living.
Or, hey, bring your own reusable bag!
Still not sure I understand how avoiding meat is more “green” though.
April 17th, 2009 at 2:34 pm
Meat is not “Green”. The Animals impact, as well as the amount of crop grown to feed the poor animals, on our planet is anything but greeen. Do your homework before triumphing the “meat movement” Were not buying it. Literally!
April 18th, 2009 at 1:17 am
Hmmm I’ve been a vegetarian for almost my entire life, including college, and didn’t have a problem. Maybe I’m just used to vegetarian foods. But I eat sandwiches of many kinds, tuna or one of a bunch of different vegetarian sandwiches (you can come up with some really good combos). Yeah mcdonalds is pretty much out except their salads are decently good. I can almost always find a good vegetarian option. Pastas, pizzas, stir fries, salad, omletes (and a ton of different breakfast foods which can be anytime foods) even from Dunkin Donuts, and on and on. I eat a ton and run a lot and it usually works out…
April 18th, 2009 at 4:02 am
Get some tortillas and frozen vegetables (peppers, onions, broccoli, carrots, squash, beans, etc.). Get one big skillet and some oil, fry up whatever vegetables/beans you want, and put them in a tortilla. Diced tomatoes and sprouts are good if you have a few more minutes. This is maybe 10 minutes of prep time and frozen vegetables are cheap. Shredded cheese and salsa are good on burritos too.
April 20th, 2009 at 3:52 am
I would stop eating meat too if it wasn’t so darn tasty! How healthy is vegan? My granddad lived to be 99 and ate ham and eggs every other day. Will you live longer? Have you thought about the fact that man has evolved for millions of years as a carnivore? When my mother eschewed her breast milk to give me the new and better formula, it was wrong as I did not get the proper immunity protection, but she believed she was doing right. Do not go against what man has evolved with through the eons.
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
Steven, actually meat is one of the least green products. We all know animals poop. The nitrogen, phosphorous and salt from that waste oh-so often times gets dumped into rivers, lakes or ocean coasts kills any kind of vegetation.
Also, for every 1 kg of beef requires about 16 kg vegetables (i.e. wheat or whatever it was fed), but by skipping meat, it allows for there to be more food in all.
While certainly packaged goods aren’t too sustainable, the best choice when possible (and financially feasible) is organic vegetables.
April 24th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
91% of soy is genetically engineered. I’d rather eat beef, thank you.
April 25th, 2009 at 2:56 am
Instead of spending a couple bucks on a baked potato at Wendy’s, why not buy a 10 pound bag of potatoes at the grocery store. Rinse one or two, put them in the microwave for 8-10 minutes (flip in the middle of cook time)… baked potato.
Like others have said, big batch of rice on the weekend, maybe a pot of some form of beans, look for sales on frozen veggies or canned veggies and stock up, add the sauce of your choice. You’ve got hot meals that can be made into bowls or wraps – filling and nutritious.
April 28th, 2009 at 10:15 am
My girlfriend and I are both vegans. I was a vegetarian for a year before going vegan about two months ago. We don’t have the capability of cooking at home, so we eat out every single night. We don’t make all that much money either, both working near minimum-wage, and only about 45 hours a week combined. Taco Bell is very, very cheap if you order the right thing and you can substitute any meat with beans or whatever. I used to get the 1/2 LB. Cheesy Bean & Rice Burrito… In some places it is $0.99-$1.29 and you only need two at the most.
As far as a meal to make, there is a brand of noodle bowls called SimplyAsia. At the end of the ingredients, most of them have the word, “VEGAN” in bold, red letters.
Also… It makes me sad that Steven will most likely not check back here. His ignorance may never be corrected.