A vegetarian who eats meat

Secretly I am aiming to be (as a friend of mine calls herself) 'a vegetarian who eats meat.' It's not that I don't like meat, it's just that I think as a society we just eat too much of it which leads to all sorts of knock on problems for the environment and in turn for human health. I actually really like meat, but getting the good quality, humanely-raised stuff can be very pricey. I am trying to use the "Pay more. Buy less." philosophy.

Now anyone who does all the cooking for a six foot two man raised on meat and three veg will know why this ambition has to be secret. Announcing to the family that we are going to drastically decrease our meat intake would not go down well. It has to be done covertly, gradually and so deliciously that no one even realises.

The trick is that no one should feel hardly-done-by. Timing is all important and spacing out the meat free meals is critical. I am noticed if I do more than two in a row! I throw in a steak now and then for every one's iron levels. I think on average we are having two meat free dinners a week. Often we are having low-meat dinners where meat is a garnish rather than a central ingredient. I am finding it quite creative, but also a lot of work. Somehow you really feel you need to compensate for no meat. I find myself using a lot more preparation dishes as I try to keep things interesting.

I'm not the only one doing this. Rhonda and others at the Down to Earth Forum are working on a 50% less meat challenge and Gavin Webber has reduced his meat consumption by 80%. However, it has to be said that Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstalls attempts to go meat free over on whole summer has been one of my greatest influences. His Veg Everyday book is one that I consult every day for inspiration and recipes.

This version of Chachouka is one that I love doing. Though, surprisingly, my kids are happy to eat the spiced version sometimes I leave out the spices and make more of a pepperonata. I still keep the idea of baking the eggs (chook not duck) in at the end though, as I love those runny yokes. With all that red capsicum, it must be brimming with Vitamin C. However, this week, I'll be doing lots of soups. Somehow, being able to dip toast in your veges makes them so much more appealing to the young ones!

A Few of My Favourite Foods

• Pancetta.
• Quinoa.
• Spelt.
• Heirloom varieties of White Peaches.
• Blueberries.
• Properly cooked Brussels Sprouts.
• Chèvre.
• Marinated Chèvre.
• Homegrown cucumbers.
• Laksa.
• Thai food of all kinds.
• Chocolate Mousse.
• Poached eggs.

A taste of the East...

Since I've been having a lot of page views from Russia lately (you know who you are)* I thought I'd write about our little slice of Eastern Europe right here in Australia. Those outside Australia might be surprised to know how powerful the two major supermarket providers are. Coles and Woolworths are so dominant that it is very hard for the smaller chains (Franklins, IGA) to effectively compete. In recent years German chain Aldi has really given the big two a run for their money.

It takes a while to get used to shopping at Aldi. Looks like a bit like a warehouse, with groceries sort of stacked in boxes on pallets rather than shelves. There is only one choice for everything and not as big a range of items. I often find it annoying that I can't get everything I require there and have to go to another shop anyway. Some people say that Aldi is MUCH cheaper, but I am not sure. Apart from some items, I think the prices are comparable to the generic brands in the other supermarkets. Perhaps, if you buy a lot of processed food you make big savings, but because I don't buy these things, I wouldn't know. I can certainly see that their model is designed to keep costs low so that they can offer the best deal on price.

Like generics in other supermarkets, I think many of the items are actually produced by the same factories/companies that make the major brands. They also say that they refuse to stock items with the Southhampton Six and other artificial colours which is a really good thing. However, as a dedicated reader of labels, I don't like not having choice. Obviously I make the choice when I walk in there, but if I don't like a particular additive in an item, I don't have anything else to choose.

There is something particularly German about the place - and I'm talking East Germany before the wall fell! The practicality of it, the lack of visual merchandising or appeal, the surly way your groceries are pushed at you rather than packed for you and the total disapproval you feel aimed in your direction if you are unfamiliar and do the wrong thing. It makes it very easy to imagine I am back in Moscow!

*I'd like to believe that my opinions have international fame and appeal, but I fear it is the work of spambots employed by Russian crime gangs intent on stealing my personal information. Identify yourselves!!

Supermarket Wars

Here is an interesting article about the current relationships between the supermarkets and their suppliers. A nice reminder that any low prices that we might see are not because of the benevolence of the big two supermarket chains.

Chickpeas

Chickpeas are my latest "thing"!

Until recently, I never really knew what to do with them. Apart from hommus, of course, and maybe the odd tin added to a stew or casserole. But after getting the River Cottage Veg Everyday Cookbook for Christmas, my horizons have been expanded. I have to be very careful here. Clearly, I could eat them every night, but if I go overboard my husband will refuse to eat them and we'll have something like last years quinoa episode all over again.

Here's how I have been enjoying them:

• A delicious African Dip recipe given to me by a friend. Basically, use a mortar and pestle to bash together chickpeas, garlic, lime, salt, cumin and coriander into a rough dip.
• Another friend found this recipe for one of the most delicious vegetarian recipes I've ever eaten. Moroccan Chickpea Bake. Sen-scrummy-sational! But don't let the yoghurt curdle, as I did. It didn't affect the taste, but the look of the dish was pretty gross.
• The Carrot and Chickpea Pita Pockets recipe from Veg Everyday - the orange zest and cumin make the dish zing.

I've been buying tinned organic chickpeas, but a clever friend told me that she soaks and boils dried ones then freezes them in 400g lots. So when a recipe calls for a tin she just whips hers out of the freezer. This is much more economical and so I'll be making a trip to the co op soon so that I can do just that!

Call to Arms

I saw something so sad today. It was this:

I am not a great photographer - especially when risking my life with an iPhone by the side of the road - but you should be able to get the idea. A whole field of nectarine trees knocked over and yellowing. It wasn't a storm or a freak wind. It wasn't rain or flood. It was economic reality.

I was on my way to Enniskillen orchard when this sight made me break so hard that I would have had an accident had there been a car behind me. So while I was buying apples and honey from John MacGuire I asked him why the trees had been torn down. He said that this farmer, his neighbour, couldn't sell that variety of nectarine anymore. They were an old fashioned one - perfectly good for eating and cooking and every other use you could think of - and the farmer couldn't sell them. They had become unprofitable. Perfectly productive trees, perfectly good fruit. John thought his neighbour was probably going to plant something in its place that would be more saleable.

I asked John what could stop something like this. He said one thing that would help was if the government was able to do something about the "situation" with Coles and Woolworths. He said that orchardists are getting the same price for peaches, apples and nectarines as they were 20 years ago. They were forced to accept the prices, because of the duopoly system. The Big Two could just threaten to go overseas and buy for much less. No increase in 20 years despite the farmers dealing with massive increases in things like wages, fuel and, oh, the cost of living!!

This, and a few encouraging friends who've tuned in recently, are my inspiration to ramp up the blog again. I have been doing quite a bit of supermarket shopping lately, but I am back on the bike and ready to do what I can to stop this sort of thing happening.

Daily Bread

I can't find you the link to the exact radio story I was listening to yesterday, but it was regarding this story.

I don't have a great lot of sympathy for Goodman Fielder who are named in this story as the company trying to find a way to make bread last 10-14 days so they don't have to do expensive daily deliveries. They are a multi-million dollar, multi-national company who are in the business of making money for their shareholders. Except, of course, for the fact that they are victims of our supermarket duopoly system in Australia. The big supermarkets are continuing their war for our wallets by discounting the "basics". They sell bread for $1 a loaf. At first we think "What a bargain!". Then we taste it and realise $1 is a lot to pay for something with the taste and texture of cardboard! But with the cost of living rising we are on the lookout for a deal and keep going back for more. But in the long term we suffer.

We suffer because $1 is less than the cost of production. When supermarket suppliers are squeezed like this they have to compromise. Though technically bread is just flour, water, salt and yeast, they add fats, emulsifiers and preservatives to the bread to make it keep longer. The product that we get is perhaps better named "modified bread product".  Then we suffer because adding all this other crap to food isn't good for us. As much as governmental regulators can call these artificial things "safe" they haven't stood the test of time. Flour, water, yeast and salt have been nourishing humans for thousands of years...that's what I call a reliable long term study.

So what can you do? Firstly, don't buy the cheap stuff! Resist the packaged stuff as much as you can afford and go to a good bakery. Read the ingredient list and look for a product with just the basic ingredients. This might mean that you use the bread a little more sparingly at home, but you are using your grocery dollars to send the message that you want real food.

Secondly, make it yourself. Rhonda's tutorials at Down to Earth are great guides to get you started. If you are worried about the time factor, consider a bread-maker or take a look at Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's ideas to work sourdough bread-making around a busy out-of-home working life.