My FIRST EVER vegetarian week!

As I've mentioned in my previous blog entry, July 1st of this year marked my 6th year as a pescetarian. When I decided to give up eating meat, I originally intended to stop eating all kinds of meat including seafoods. However, Tita Tessa (gf of my Uncle Aries who's been a vegan for more than a decade now) advised me to have a "transition phase" thus the pescetarian diet.

Fast forward to July 2011, I again planned on giving up seafoods because I had an assumption that Indonesia will be very friendly with vegetarians since it is a Muslim country (I bought books including vegetarian cookbooks and researched information on the nutritional aspects of being one). Much to my disappointment, though most of the restaurants do not offer pork, chicken and beef are the highlights on the menu. Believe it or not, in my 2 years of stay here in Jakarta, I've only been to a vegetarian restaurant ONCE (not counting the vegetarian burrito that I normally buy in a food court nor the vegetarian meal given by a vegetarian parent). We (Angie and I) really planned our schedule just to try this vegetarian restaurant that is nearest to our place. Fortunately, Loving Hut did not disappoint! :) But we haven't had the chance to visit the place again because of our schedule (spell TRAFFIC in South Jakarta!).

I know that it is possible for me to cook my own food but I had so many reasons for not doing so, hehehe :D Since I anticipated that my schedule will still be a bit lighter after the Lebaran (Ramadhan) break plus I've discovered a grocery store that sells veggie meat, I decided to have a feel of how it is to be a vegetarian for a week.

After I attended the sunday service, I excitedly and hurriedly proceeded to Grand Lucky Superstore which is right across the building where the church is located! :) The week before I left for Manila for the Lebaran break, I've already "discovered" that they sell veggie meat / meat analog :) This is what my cart was filled with:



I really don't drink milk ( I am mild lactose intolerant, mild because I do eat ice cream and other food with milk BUT
I vomit when I drink milk! But I want to give soymilk a chance and I want to "train" myself to drink milk
 so I bought a box of it :)






Sa sobrang excited (at gutom!) e nakalimutan ko nang magpicture before I start eating. Ayan ang ebidensya!
Yes, that is RED rice! :) A little different for those who are used with white rice (ME!ME!ME!) but
it eventually gets better and definitely the healthier option :) 



 

I am happy to say that I've prepared all the dishes above except for the lower right. FYI, the yellow rice is what
Indonesians call nasi kuning (nasi for rice and kuning for yellow). It is made with rice, turmeric and coconut
milk. super yummy! :) 



These are some of the juices that I've made :) See the green smoothie at the middle (citrus breeze)? Wonder why
it's green? That's because I've added basil with fresh dalandan juice :) I maximized the use of spinach and
basil in preparing my fruit & veggie smoothies :)

 Syempre, hindi mawawala ang mga realizations ko! Hahaha! :D

1) Cooking is fun! I rarely cook that's why my close friends and family who know me so well really laugh at the idea of me cooking! :) pero hindi naman sa pagyayabang ha, nakapagluto naman na ako ng pininyahang manok, adobo at sinigang dati (as in dating dati pa! hahaha!) at sa awa ng Diyos e buhay pa naman mga tao sa bahay! :p Seriously though, I enjoyed cooking especially after tasting what I've prepared and realizing that I can create something :) I am actually considering learning how to bake, hmmm.....

2) Cooking requires passion, time and dedication. Since I am technically a non-cook, it usually takes me 1 hour to prepare my main meal for the day! That very simple spaghetti or the black pepper steak with broccoli shown above took me almost an hour EACH to prepare. For me to have a decent meal, I have to wake up at 5am to prepare/cook my food so I will be done by 6am to start preparing to go to work. I never realized na ang pagbabalat pala ng sibuyas, paghihiwa at paghuhugas ng mga gulay take so much time! But like what I said in number 1, it felt good to "create" something edible, hehehe :)

3) I know what I put in my mouth. Literally speaking, I do know what food I put inside my mouth. From the tiniest piece of garlic and onion to the amount of liquid aminos (vegan substitute for soysauce) and how the meat was prepared, I know all of those things! I am sure how healthy my foods are and I only have myself to blame if I end up eating unhealthy food!

4) I am grateful to the web and blogs who've been very generous with their recipes. I will be honest and say that I owe GOOGLE a lot! If I am not sure with what I am doing, I just google them and voila, it will lead the way! :D See the sandwich above? I got that recipe from Saab Magalona's blog and the sandwich was really good! (wheat bread, tomato, basil leaves and cream cheese). Most of the fruit and veggie smoothie recipes that I used came from simplegreensmoothies (via IG) but I normally tweak them based on what is available in our ref. Salamat sa internet! :)

5) I am inspired to share what I know. Though I admit that I don't know much about cooking, my overly-excited-cant-wait-to-broadcast-it-to-my-friends self just can't contain my "healthy" discoveries :) I have already bullied inspired my cousin, Ate Jenny, to buy her own blender so she can prepare her own fruit and veggie smoothies. At sosyal sya ha, 2 in 1 juicer/blender ang binili! Good job! :) Sa totoo lang, sa susunod naming potluck get-together (surprise bday party for someone, sshhh) e balak ko ng magdala ng sarili kong luto! Saan kaya ako kumukuha ng lakas ng loob ano?! :D

6) I can't wait to share it with my family (and future kids). O wag ma-excite, hindi po ako buntis! Hahaha! :D I am just excited with the idea that my future kids will be exposed to a healthy lifestyle. Ang swerte-swerte nila sa nanay nila!! Ah eh grabe po ang hangin dito! :D Pero seryoso na, naniniwala kasi ako na kapag ang bata ay nasanay o lumaki sa healthy lifestyle (food and physical activities) e hindi mo na kailangan na pilitin sila kapag medyo malaki na kasi yung healthy food na ang default nila kumbaga :)

I can't wait to learn and try out more recipes recommended by friends and/or found on the net. Please feel free to share any recipes that you have (preferably vegetarian recipes) :) Let us exchange recipes (ayan e kung may mapupulot kayo sa akin! Hahaha!) :D

I never imagined that I will say this but.... Happy cooking! :)

Happy 6th Year Anniversary to Me! :)

Today marks my 6th year as a pescetarian. According to pescetarianlife, a pescetarian diet excludes land animals and birds, but includes fish, mollusks, and crustaceans in addition to fruits, vegetables, plants, legumes, nuts, and grains.  Eggs and dairy may or may not be present in the pescetarian's diet.

I've been asked a thousand times about what made me decide to follow this diet (pescetarian + minimal dairy as much as possible), hehe :) Though majority of the people who adopt this kind of diet (up to the extent of being a vegetarian/vegan) say that their love for animals and/or advocacy against animal cruelty made them stick to their diets, my reason was mainly for my health :) I am blessed to have an uncle (including his girlfriend) who led by example and showed me that it is possible to enjoy one's meal without meat. At an early age, I've tried dining in a lot of vegetarian restaurants in the metro as well as accustomed to a household that respects "our" kind of diet.

To celebrate my 6th year anniversary, hehe, I will be mentioning some of my favorite vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly restaurants:

1) Good Burgers. This is where I go to when I am craving for a burger :) Though it is not a vegetarian    joint, they offer veggie patty :) A little pricey especially if you are a student BUT definitely worth it!

taken from the site above 

I've only tried their branch in Maginhawa Street, Quezon City because this is the most convenient to our place but they also have branches in Pasig and C5 road. Check this site for the exact address. 

2) Blissfull Belly. I happen to "live" in Katipunan ALL MY LIFE before i started working abroad :) When I say "live", I meant I spent my college life + 6 years working life there! However, I only "discovered" this vegetarian restaurant when I started working along Katipunan Avenue. This place is jam-packed mostly during lunch time because they already have regular customers :) 

MY Must-trys: Sisig and Carrot Cake! I remember this time when I brought their sisig in my workplace and asked my colleagues to try it without telling them first that it is vegetarian sisig. After a few minutes of eating with much gusto, they suddenly remembered that I do not eat meat and asked me if I went back to eating meat. They were so surprised when I told them that it is vegetarian! One point, hehe! :) They have the best dairy-free carrot cake too!!! That was actually the first time I started appreciating carrot cake! :) 

taken from here via google.com

3) Pipino Vegetarian Food (by Pino). This vegetarian restaurant is known for their creative dishes as well as pleasing-to-the-eyes interior :) I've eaten here a couple of times (given its location, hehe) and I must say that apart from their yummy food, the place also uplifts your mood instantly! Thanks to the very creative person behind it, Ms. Alessandra Lanot. I don't know her personally but I know some things about her because of her blog :)

MY Must-trys: (their very famous) Watermelon steak, (all flavors of) Ice Cream and Lemongrass, Ginger & Cucumber Cooler! 

taken during one of our visits :)

As always, I've only tried their branch in Teachers Village, Quezon City but I've heard that they opened a new branch in Jupiter Street, Makati a few months back :)

You may check their site for more info :)


4) Greens Vegetarian Cafe & Restaurant. This is one of the first vegetarian restaurants that I've been to (courtesy of course of my Tito Aries and Tita Tessa) :)  I must say that this restaurant was sort of a deal breaker for me! I suggest that if you have plans of bringing a non-vegetarian friend and introduce him/her to vegetarianism, this is the BEST place to be! The foods are NOT intimidating because they are patterned after the regular food that we know (examples are Relleno, Escabeche and Embutido among others). The place is also very relaxing because of the bountiful plants surrounding the place :) 

MY must-trys: Relleno, Barbecue skewer and Baklava. 

taken from the site above

You may like their page in facebook for more information. 


5) This is not a restaurant but a site that will give you the information of all the vegetarian/vegan restaurants ALL OVER THE WORLD. This is what I visited when I was having a hard time looking for a vegetarian restaurant in Jakarta, sad but true :( 

Presenting..... 

welcome page of happycow.net

Now, you can search for a veggie restaurant near your place! Just click http://www.happycow.net/

Lastly, allow me to share my before and after experiences and the frequently asked questions as a pescetarian :)

1) The most frequently asked question question is "Did you lose weight?". The answer is NO! I did not lose weight. Actually, not to discourage those who want to lose weight, I gained weight upon adopting the pescetarian diet. However, the weight that I gained was brought about by my love for RICE. Yes, I do eat too much rice. Ika nga nila e "karpintero" rice. I admit that this is still a continuing struggle for me, huhuhu.

2) So why then did I continue with this kind of diet if I keep on gaining weight? In my opinion, not everything is about WEIGHT. Yes, it matters but one should not be equating being healthy with being thin. I know some people who are thin but have bad health :( Exhibit A: You will be surprised to see a "thin" person trying to catch his/her breath after a few steps on the stairs! I am not saying that I am almost-like-an-athlete-I-can-do-full-marathon healthy but I am happy to say that with this kind of diet, I am still able to run, bike and do other physical activities :) So yes, for someone who is "picky" with food, I am actually healthy :)

3) I feel lighter. During my meat-eating days, I can almost feel my tummy bursting after eating too much. Consequently, I feel so sluggish! These days, though I feel full after eating I do not feel the sluggishness that I used to feel. How do I know that I am gaining weight? Not because I feel heavy but because my clothes are getting smaller!!! :D

4) Where do I go from here? 6 years ago, I wanted to be a VEGETARIAN. Meaning, no meat (including seafoods) at all! However, upon the advice of Tita Tessa (who has been a vegan for almost 2 decades now) I started with being a pescetarian. She told me that I can use this as a transition to being vegetarian because it will be very difficult for me to change overnight. Today, after 6 years, I am still a pescetarian, hehehe :) I want to slowly end my transition and ease into vegetarianism, hopefully soon (since Jakarta is not a vegetarian friendly city and I live on my own now, I have to be prepared with this).

5) Is it expensive? I am not going to lie and say that adopting this kind of diet is cheap. Just like anything that we give importance to, it comes with a price. But if you will think about your health as an investment, then it will be easier to accept. Let me just clarify that this kind of diet may or may not be expensive depending on one's lifestyle. Vegetarian restaurants in general are slightly more expensive than a "regular" restaurant so if you happen to eat out A LOT, it will really be expensive. BUT if you will manage to prepare your own meal at home, it will be way cheaper! Vegetables and fruits are definitely cheaper than beef, chicken and pork so please do the Math! :D

We are very fortunate that Philippines has A LOT of vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly restaurants so let us use it to our advantage! :)

Happy HEALTHY eating! :)