I changed our half-meat, half-veggie family diet to one that is mainly veggie-based after Chinese New Year this year.
The change was inspired by Dr Junger’s Clean book. Followed by reading up a bunch of books on raw foods and healthy eating. Plus testing out new recipes.
It is more than that. I started to throw away processed foods (canned, packaged foods) and began to introduce whole foods to my children, especially raw and unprocessed foods.
As for me, I started off by getting rid of my afternoon snack and coffee. Doing this alone had already helped me shed some of my weight.
I am not a full vegetarian per se. I still have animal products on weekends (Even so I try to eat free range and grass-fed chicken and wild fish). But for weekdays, our diets are all plant-based.
I could see improvements in a matter of weeks. I am leaner now and never feel so good. A healthy diet can help keep your children from getting sick too.
Let’s take a look at the changes I have made to our family diet.
Foods Excluded
Foods we are trying to minimize or get rid of.
- Eggs
- Pork
- Chicken
- Fish
- Seafood
- White Flour
- Canned Foods
- Packaged Foods
- Biscuits and Cookies
Food Alternatives
Instead of using animal-based, refined, and processed foods, we use whole foods as alternatives. Such as…
| Butter | Hummus, Almond Butter |
| Cow’s Milk | Almond Milk |
| Salt | Sea Salt |
| Sweetener | Maple Syrup, Honey, Blackstrap Molasses |
| Cooking Oil | Grape Seed Oil, Olive Oil |
| Bread | Flourless Bread (We use Adventist Sprouted Bread) |
New Foods on Our Dining Table
Besides the usual fruits and vegetables, I have added the following in our diet. These foods are new and we never consumed before. And even some we’d never heard of before.
- Almond Nuts
- Sesame Seeds
- Flax Seeds
- Lentils
- Chickpeas
- Salads
- Juices
- Smoothies
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Sunflower Seeds
- Millet
- Quinoa
- Buckwheat
- Turmeric
- Cumin
- Tempeh
- Mints
- Avocados
- Walnuts
- Buckwheat Flour
- Spelt Flour
- Miso
- Mung Bean Sprouts (home grown)
- Asparagus
- Beet Roots
Our Family Meals
A typical day (weekday) usually goes like this:
Breakfast: I take only juice or smoothie in the morning. J and K will take some juice or honey drink. If they want more than just juice, J and K take rolled oats, flourless bread, fruits, or homemade muffins or cookies.
Lunch: I used to pack lunch but the cost of take-away food is ridiculously high now and I prefer to cook at home. More healthy minus the cost. I rotate these meals for lunch: pumpkin and carrot porridge, soba/millet/pumpkin/multigrain noodle soup, pumpkin/banana french toast, salads, cereals/oats, fried brown rice bihun (vermicelli), or pancakes.
Dinner: Rice is a staple food for Asians. We always have rice at home. I now mix brown rice with buckwheat, millet, and quinoa. I sometimes sprinkle ground flax seeds on the rice. The rice is usually served with two vegetable dishes and one salad. On some days, I cook soup with watercress or radish or carrots or potatoes or lotus roots. I also prepare tofu sometimes.
That’s what we have for our meals. Nothing fancy but basic, wholesome foods – all from Mother Nature. Sometimes I try out new recipes. Some are welcomed by the kids, some… unfortunately… are not.
If you need vegan recipes, check out my favorite resources: 101Cookbooks.com and Post Punk Kitchen.
Final Thoughts
You can have a wonderful, shiny healthy diet plan but you won’t stick to it for long if you lack commitment.
Before you begin the journey to healthy eating, find out the compelling reason why you want to do so. It can be you want to raise healthy and disease-free children. Or you want to avoid the pains and sufferings of a cancer patient. Or you just want to have brilliant health and bursting with energy.
Whatever it is, once you find the reason, the rest is easy.
