The many reasons to choose a vegetarian diet might range from animal welfare, environmental concerns and personal health. Some individuals choose to refrain from meat during most meals and indulge in meat infrequently. Cutting down on your meat intake may lower your cholesterol level and could help you to lose weight.
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It may seems daunting when you transition to a vegetarian diet. Creating a meal plan for the week and shopping wisely according to a shopping list will help cut down your costs considerably. Fortunately, many vegetarian options are low in fat and inexpensive, such as beans, vegetables and tofu. Mock-meat products are at the higher end of the vegetarian budget, but they are still cheaper then their meat counterparts. Take advantage of cheap, seasonal produce by shopping at local farmer's markets or joining a local Community Supported Agriculture initiative. CSAs allow you to share the produce, milk, eggs and cheese of local farmers for a small monthly fee. Another way to cut down on costs when eating vegetarian is to turn leftover meals and vegetables into creative new dishes. For example, add the remains of last night's stir-fried red pepper to today's leafy green salad.
Breakfast
Eating a vegetarian breakfast is a no-brainer, since most of your usual breakfast choices are already cheap and veggie-friendly. Make sure that your breakfast gives you a good start to the day and includes protein, fiber, whole grains and ideally fruit or vegetables. A piece of whole wheat toast spread with peanut butter eaten with a fruit and yogurt smoothie will give you a sustained energy boost throughout the morning. If you crave the traditional eggs and breakfast meat meal, substitute the breakfast meat with fake bacon or fake sausage.
Lunch
Take advantage of cheap, seasonal produce to create a low-fat and inexpensive salad for your lunch. Add a generous helping of dark, leafy greens and throw in chopped vegetables of your choice. Avoid fattening salad dressing and opt for a squeeze of lemon, lime or an olive oil and balsamic vinegar combination. Vegetarians need to make sure they are getting enough protein. To up your protein intake add beans, nuts, tofu or tempeh chunks to your salad. Couple the salad with warm slices of pita bread and a healthy dip, such as hummus, black bean dip or guacamole.
Dinner
Vegetarian dishes do not have to be bland or tasteless. Some veggie dinner dishes may already be in your cooking repertoire, such as pasta primavera, bean chili, vegetable minestrone soup, eggplant Parmesan and stir fries. One cheap vegetarian dinner staple is a modified curry or stew. Start with a bean, legume or pulse of your choice -- chickpeas, navy, pinto, kidney, lentil -- and add sauteed onion and garlic. Add a tomato or vegetable stock base, vegetables and season to your taste using herbs and spices. Some examples of widely used vegetarian spices include curry powder, cumin, turmeric, lemongrass, ginger and coriander. Freeze leftovers and serve the next day for lunch to cut costs.
Snacks
Keep healthy vegetarian snacks with your throughout the day to fight sugar cravings. Good choices include chopped vegetables, dried fruits, nuts, chopped fruit, and low-fat and cereal bars.
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