Food substitutes...................sensible or grim?!

I guess it would be lower calories but I hate cauliflower so yuk!

Rice isn't bad for you though is it? I looove rice, and I do like cauliflower, but I've not thought of them as interchangeable ? What about brown rice if you're worried about the healthy option?

If you like cauli I can't see any issue with doind this - surely it's just habit that means chilli = rice?

I can see the point if you're going for a low carb diet, definitely. If it's just looking at calories, I'm not sure rice is high in calories anyway?

L
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I like to have salad instead of rice with chillis/curries, to stop them feeling so 'heavy'

L
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Or just less rice and more sauce?

Personally I need my carbs and I'd be hungry again within an hour if I had a meal with none whatsoever.

It's the carbs thing for me rather than calories, though having looked it up, there is roughly 100kcal saving to be made too

H has said he is up for it so we'll give it a bash.

it is funny how easily you get accustomed into eating certain foods with set side dishes / accompaniments

at least you don't think I'm bonkers!

I do think you're bonkers ? Rice with chilli and cheese on it is delicious - I wouldn't mess with it ?

Carbs are good! They fill you up and some other, erm, scientifically good for you type stuff!

There is something to be said for low-carbing though. Protein definitely fills you up far more efficiently, and when you cut out/down on carbs, you get released from that 'must eat more carbs' feeling you get.

L
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I've definitely found it easier to lose weight when eating more protein and less carbs, but if I had a meal with no carbs at all, I think I'd be struggling not long after.

Like everything with weight loss, I find banning/avoiding things altogether makes me (psychologically) crave them more. Everything in moderation imo.

Also if you are calorie counting and/or watching sat fat then I'm not sure eating more meat is the way to go.... Just a gut feeling (as a mere veggie ?).

ETA just seen you're having veggie chilli - ignore me! The sat fat thing is an important consideration with Fatkins - style programmes though.

Do you mean simply to serve chilli with some cauliflower on the side or are you going to present the cauliflower in a rice-ish way?

Personally I'm not a fan of excluding food groups- you need to eat carbs and it seems to me more sensible to eat the correct amount of each food group rather than excluding things and making odd substitutions. While I agree it's good to look at your habits and make changes, it doesn't follow that any change at all is a good one. Personally I think cauliflower chilli or cauliflower bolognese sound a bit grim- I'd rather have a bit less rice or spaghetti and a big green salad on the side. If something tastes crap, you won't stick to it.

Having said that, you may love it- nothing to lose by trying.

agreed, and according to this http://annecollins.net/carbs-beans.htm kidney beans are friendly and lower carb than other varieties

I'll let you know later if it was a mistake!

You know what, it worked really well

Bizarre at first but certainly no culinary disaster. Think I may be tempted to embark on further substitutions in the future

I've used cauliflower to substitute rice in the past when I was doing a low-carb diet and it didn't bother me at all. I mean, the whole low/no-carb diet is pretty extreme anyway so everything seems a bit weird! ?

I've recently tried using the "substitute" Quorn "bacon" rashers but they're absolutely vile and I won't be buying them again.

I like Quorn 'mince', but I've never tried the 'bacon' - it just looks wrong! Have you any other substituting tips I could try? I'm trying do away with them all, just to be a bit more aware what I'm consuming

Nice to know I'm not alone on this one ?

If I feel a bit bloated, I'll sub rice for cold grated carrot, dressed with some lemon juice. It's really tasty and refreshing. I also like diced cucumber and tomato as a rice sub.

Slightly off topic & really not helpful in eating more healthily, but the quorn sort-of-pork pies are quite yummy!The deli style "meats" can be quite nice in a sandwich with cheese and coleslaw, but again, not really helping you with eating healthily. I'll get my coat ?

I think it's Real Eat that make the best fake bacon. However, the best fake bacon is still nothing in comparison to actual bacon. You could always try turkey rashers instead of bacon though. Quorn chicken strips make good fajitas too

L
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