Can you tell me about TVP?

[worm761]

So I am looking for healthier and cheaper meals. I was looking into getting some TVP. I have read about it on here before. The thing is, I can't find it in town. No one even knows what it is. So I have to order it off the internet. I looked at Amazon but there are so many choices. I don't know if one is better than the other or what price point I should be looking for. Where is the cheapest place to buy it?

Thank you for any help you can give me!

 

[jeffmilw]

Wish I could help... but, I don't know what TVP meals are.

 

[wryManhattan]

TVP--texturized vegetable protein

I can usually find it in bulk in my natural foods store, so I don't have a particular brand I buy. Do you have a food co-op or Seventh Day Adventist church in your area? The LDS church may be able to help you as well. Contact them--they may be able to direct you to local resources.

As for a trustworthy brand to try, Bobs Red Mill products are always excellent quality and a good place to start. It works best if you use it in conjunction with some other ground meat (unless you're completely vegetarian, of course.) I used to buy it frequently, but it gave me some stomach troubles. I tend to use lentils as a meat extender/replacement now.

 

[jjan]

You can buy it even on Amazon (they carry Bob's Red Mill brand as well). I highly recommend TVP- this coming from a very non-vegetarian.

 

[worm761]

What is the texture and taste of lentils? I know I can get those at any grocery store. I can't do beans since they have a mushy texture.
Do the lentils absorb the flavor of whatever they are being cooked in?

 

[SDSorority]

What is the texture and taste of lentils? I know I can get those at any grocery store. I can't do beans since they have a mushy texture.
Do the lentils absorb the flavor of whatever they are being cooked in?

Yes. Not as much as tofu can, but it's much healthier. I'm not really going to go into specifics, but there is SO MUCH soy in our diets because it's a subsidized crop (like corn) that often times is GMO unless you buy organic. Avoiding as much soy as possible will help your health. Sure, there are 'health benefits' to soy, but we're getting too much of a semi-ok thing. We avoid it all together, and LIVE on lentils, black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, etc.

THAT said, TVP often has MSG in it, so we avoid that as well.

And we ARE VERY vegetarian

 

[wryManhattan]

Depends on the lentil. The basic brown lentils don't really taste "beany" to me and I cook them a range of ways. For dal, I'll cook them until they completely fall apart and make a mostly smooth soup. With ground beef (like in chili), I'll cook them until they start to break down a little (20 minutes or so?--they get more grainy than mushy). For salads, I cook them until just done so they hold their shape. I've used the red/green/yellow ones on rare occasion, so I'm of little help there.

My favorite dish with them is mujadara--just lentils and onions, but soooo yummy (Mark Bittman's recipe is a good one, he has a lot of great lentil dishes.)

 

[worm761]

If TVP has MSG in then I can't have it. I didn't even think to check! I have high blood pressure and we are controlling it with diet, exercise and low dose meds so far. Trying to get off the meds.

wryManhattan~ can you use the lentils in things like taco meat or sloppy joe without changing the taste and texture too much? I am trying to reduce the amount of ground beef that we eat. It just isn't that healthy but I have kids too so still need kid friendly and picky eater friendly foods.

 

[wryManhattan]

Yep! Do it all the time. Start with a 75/25 mix and then shift gradually to more of a 50/50 mix and then you might be able to move to mostly or all lentils at some point. It works especially well in saucy foods like sloppy joes.

It also occurred to me that you may want to try cooking beans at home. Far less mushy than the ones you get in cans.

 

[budbeerlady]

Also with the tacos I do TVP and I throw some rice into the mix. Makes it stretch, used to do that back when we used ground beef.

 

[funnygarcia]

MMMMmmm My meat eater 18 yo son actually prefers lentil tacos over ground beef variety.
The recipe I use is from the Eat at Home blog
http://eatathomecooks.com/2009/05/lentil-tacos.html
We don't add the salsa, tried it with a taco packet instead of the spices but not as good.
I cook the lentils until I can mush them a bit. Works great for tostadas.

 

[averill94]

I use Bobs Red Mill...umm pretty sure it does not have MSG.

 

[Svhadden]

Yes. Not as much as tofu can, but it's much healthier. I'm not really going to go into specifics, but there is SO MUCH soy in our diets because it's a subsidized crop (like corn) that often times is GMO unless you buy organic. Avoiding as much soy as possible will help your health. Sure, there are 'health benefits' to soy, but we're getting too much of a semi-ok thing. We avoid it all together, and LIVE on lentils, black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, etc.

THAT said, TVP often has MSG in it, so we avoid that as well.

And we ARE VERY vegetarian

This.

I totally agree. These days, finding non-GMO corn or soy is almost impossible, and one or the two of them is present in almost 70% of the grocery store products we buy. 70%. We don't use TVP for many reasons, but mainly because we've found that we can sub for meat with mushrooms, beans, lentils, etc...all of which have been mentioned.

Ours is a vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free home. It's a challenge, but we make it work.

 

[akcire]

wryManhattan~ can you use the lentils in things like taco meat or sloppy joe without changing the taste and texture too much? I am trying to reduce the amount of ground beef that we eat. It just isn't that healthy but I have kids too so still need kid friendly and picky eater friendly foods.

Not to change the subject....but have you tried ground turkey? I started using it years ago in heavily sauced dishes like lasagna. Now I don't ever buy ground beef.

Once a month when my Dad eats with us I will buy a 1/2 lb of ground sirlion and mix it once cooked with 1 lb of ground turkey.......even he doesn't notice the taste if I mix them this way. My father hates turkey, not even on Thanksgiving.

We

 

[GottaLuvMickey]

If TVP has MSG in then I can't have it. I didn't even think to check! I have high blood pressure and we are controlling it with diet, exercise and low dose meds so far. Trying to get off the meds.

wryManhattan~ can you use the lentils in things like taco meat or sloppy joe without changing the taste and texture too much? I am trying to reduce the amount of ground beef that we eat. It just isn't that healthy but I have kids too so still need kid friendly and picky eater friendly foods.

My husband HATES vegetables. He claims he can taste "lettuce juice" after he takes a leaf of lettuce off of a burger (ummm... it's water honey) But I started making this recipe for tacos and even he loves them! I passed the recipe on to friends and I have only gotten rave reviews and everyone thanks me for sharing the recipe that I accidentally stumbled upon...

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/tasty-lentil-tacos/detail.aspx

 

[GottaLuvMickey]

Oh, and if you're trying to eat healthier I would suggest checking out the Happy Herbivore cookbook or HappyHerbivore.com Yes, it's vegan recipes, but things can be changed slightly to taste. She uses a lot of agave nectar as sweetener, I refuse to use agave so I change it out with honey or maple syrup. But either way, there are a lot of really yummy and REALLY simple recipes there that I highly suggest!

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

He claims he can taste "lettuce juice" after he takes a leaf of lettuce off of a burger

This made me because I'm the same way if ICEBERG lettuce has touched anything I'm eating (burgers, tacos, salads, etc.). Not sure if it's the taste or the smell of it, but I can't stand it when the kitchen of a restaurant, puts it on then tries (unsuccessfully!) to take it off ... like I'm not gonna know - especially if it's shredded and they miss a few pieces!

ROMAINE or LEAF lettuce is fine, though.

 

[wryManhattan]

Not to change the subject....but have you tried ground turkey? I started using it years ago in heavily sauced dishes like lasagna. Now I don't ever buy ground beef.

Once a month when my Dad eats with us I will buy a 1/2 lb of ground sirlion and mix it once cooked with 1 lb of ground turkey.......even he doesn't notice the taste if I mix them this way. My father hates turkey, not even on Thanksgiving.

We

I'm OK with ground turkey, but don't like the stuff they often add to the lean to improve flavor.

We can get good quality, locally raised, partially grass fed, antibiotic/hormone free Jersey beef for $3.75/lb. The taste is so much better than anything I can get in the super market, I use that and just make sure I drain it well. Because the taste is so rich, it's much easier to use less of it.

 

[GottaLuvMickey]

This made me because I'm the same way if ICEBERG lettuce has touched anything I'm eating (burgers, tacos, salads, etc.). Not sure if it's the taste or the smell of it, but I can't stand it when the kitchen of a restaurant, puts it on then tries (unsuccessfully!) to take it off ... like I'm not gonna know - especially if it's shredded and they miss a few pieces!

ROMAINE or LEAF lettuce is fine, though.

Are you serious?! I seriously thought he was the ONLY one on this planet who thought "lettuce juice" has a taste! Yeah, he doesn't complain about it when it is romaine or leaf lettuces, just iceberg... Too funny! I will have to remember to tell him when he gets home from work tonight...

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

I use Bob's Red Mill TVP

I purchase mine at Meijers (Michigan)

Love it! I generally add it in with meat to stretch meals and make them healthier... example, tacos, spaghetti, basically anywhere you would add ground meat.

My family is fan of it. Even my picky teenage son will eat it.