The word Flexitarian is the combination of two words: flexible and vegetarian. This word was coined by the famous dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner in 2009 in her book. According to her, you don’t have to avoid meat completely. However, you can be a vegetarian most of the time and still you can eat steak or a burger if you crave it. By eating more vegetables and less meat you can lose some weight and improve your overall health.
If you want to follow a flexitarian diet, you need to increase the intake of plant-based diets and decrease the intake of meat and dairy products.
All plant-based foods are excellent sources of protein including beans, nuts, vegetables, fruits, grains, and seeds.
If you don’t want to be a pure vegetarian, because you love burgers or meals made with meat, the flexitarian diet is suitable for you. Although this diet is flexible, you need to follow some guidelines regarding how much and what types of meat you should be consuming.
Being a flexitarian diet beginner, you can consume 9 to 28 ounces of meat every week. Try to consume lean meat like skinless chicken or turkey and avoid processed meat like bacon, sausages, and ham because they are high in fat and salt with few vitamins or minerals.
What Are The Guidelines For The Flexitarian Diet?
The flexitarian diet is generally a health-focused diet. And if you are planning for opting flexitarian diet, you need to limit your consumption of processed foods and added sugars.
Following are the basic guidelines for the flexitarian diet
- Eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
- Consume more proteins from plants than animals.
- Avoid processed foods.
- Eat organic and natural forms of food.
- Cut down on sugar intake.
- Choose healthy snacks with proteins and essential nutrients.
- Opt for plant-based milk like almond milk, oat milk, and soy milk
These are the basic principles for plant-based diets and there are no hard and fast rules. Being a flexitarian beginner, never get confused with vegans or pescatarians. Because vegans don’t eat meat at all and pescatarians eat fish only. So being a flexitarian you can eat both meat and fish but within certain limits.
What Are The Best Flexitarian Breakfast Ideas For Beginners?
According to a study, a flexitarian diet has many benefits as it helps maintain body weight, boost metabolism, prevent diseases like diabetes and maintain blood and sugar levels.
For beginners, it might be difficult to decide what to eat for breakfast. We have listed 5 best flexitarian breakfast ideas for you
Number One: Chocolate Chip Pancakes
These flexitarian chocolate chip pancakes are so delicious and moreish. You can enjoy these tasty pancakes with honey, bananas, and nuts. The recipe is very simple. You can use either oat milk or almond milk. You can have these fluffy pancakes in the morning or for dinner. These pancakes are ideal for you especially when you are in hurry.
These pancakes will help you feel full all day.
Tips To Make Soft And Delicious Pancakes:
- Combine fresh oat milk or almond milk in a bowl and mix apple cider vinegar
- Always try to milk dry and wet ingredients separately
- If you don’t have chocolate chips, you can use the chocolate bar and crush it.
- When you fry your pancakes, we recommend you add half tsp of butter to the pan. This will make the outside of your pancakes golden brown and pancakes will not stick to the pan.
Number Two: Grilled potatoes with mint sauce
On the basis of nutritional value and filling nature, potatoes are ideal for plant-based diets. Most flexitarians love to have potatoes for their breakfast. Grilled potatoes are much healthier than fried ones. They are great to be served with mint sauce or some baked veggies. Besides this, you can customize it with your favorite herbs and spices.
You can eat these grilled potatoes as a part of a flexitarian diet along with some fresh fruits, orange juice, or coffee.
Tips For Grilled Potatoes:
- Try russet potatoes because these are the best pick for grilling.
- For the crispiest potatoes, grill the wedges on the grates.
- Season potatoes with salt, black pepper, herbs, or spices.
- The easiest and fastest way to grill potatoes is to parboil them before grilling.
- Add other boiled vegetables with grilled potatoes to make it healthier.
Number Three: Bean Salad
Beans are nutritious and excellent sources of protein, iron, fiber, and vitamins. Bean salad is the easiest breakfast idea that will satisfy your cravings and keep you healthy. Take a medium bowl of beans, add some lemon juice, mix slices of cucumber, and sprinkle some fresh spring onions and green chilies. You can also add some salt and spices to make it tastier. Grab a spoon and enjoy your healthy bean salad breakfast. You can have this salad with a strawberry or banana smoothie.
Tips To Make A Good Bean Salad:
- Soak beans in cold water before cooking them. Soaking will help you to cook beans quickly.
- Try some fresh crunchy vegetables to make bean salad healthier and tastier.
- You can add your favorite sauce.
- If you are craving something meaty, you can add 1 or 2 sausages or boiled chicken.
Number Four: Vegetable Sandwich
A sandwich is a perfect idea for a flexitarian breakfast. Vegetable sandwiches are low in calories and full of nutrition. If you are looking for a healthy breakfast that will help you to maintain your healthy weight, vegetable sandwiches are best for you. Try to make your sandwich using brown bread instead of white bread.
You can use cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, onions, and cherry tomatoes to make your sandwich perfect.
Tips To Make Vegetable Sandwich:
- The easiest way to make a perfect and healthy sandwich is by adding your favorite fruits and vegetables.
- Lettuce, olives, avocados, onions, and sprouts are great toppings you should try.
- If you want to keep your sandwiches low in calories, you can use a spread with low calories like mustard sauce.
Number Five: Oatmeal
Oatmeal is one of the best and most healthy breakfasts for flexitarians. Oats are high in nutrients and rich in fiber and antioxidants. Starting your day with oatmeal can help you to reduce your appetite. With plenty of fruits and nuts topping, oatmeal can be the best flexitarian food for beginners.
Tips For Making Oatmeal:
- In order to make your oatmeal bowl tastier, try to top it with spices like cinnamon and ginger spice.
- Add some frozen berries or dry fruits to make it more delicious and healthier.
- Add almond or soy milk instead of dairy milk.
- Soak oats before cooking
The Bottom Line:
Most nutritionists prefer a flexitarian diet because it encourages you to consume more plants and less animal fat. A flexitarian diet is not about restricting yourself from meat, however, it is all about eating more plant-based foods with few meat products.
Also Read: 6 Easy And Healthy Snacks Ideas To Satisfy Your Untimely Cravings