Vegetarian alternatives - soy instead of beef healthier?

Vegetarian and vegan foods have experienced a veritable boom in recent years. More and more meat eaters are more likely to resort to herbal alternatives. Vegetarian burgers, soya-bean schnitzel or tofu sausages are not just found in the organic food store, but are now even available in the supermarket.

Vegetarians do not have to do without sausages
According to the Vegetarian Federation, about seven million vegetarians and around 900,000 vegans live in Germany. But many meat eaters always refrain on their steaks or sausages. For example, an older study by the universities of Hohenheim and Göttingen showed that more than one in ten said they were occasional vegetarians. Mostly it is health reasons that cause people to eat vegetarian food. Even on sausages, steaks or burgers must not be waived, because the vegetarian kitchen has also herbal alternatives, which were summarized in a message from the news agency dpa.

Soy is a valuable protein supplier
The best known is certainly soy, which is available in different variants. The vegetable fat and high protein content of soybeans are a very valuable protein source. For soybean meat, protein from the soybean is isolated, degreased and structured under high pressure. This gives it a meaty, fibrous texture. Tofu, a quark made from soybean, gets a cut-resistant structure by pressing. Tofu can be processed and prepared in a variety of ways and is part of numerous foods, such as tofu sausages. Somewhat unknown is Tempeh, originally from Indonesia. To make it, the soybeans are fermented by adding a mushroom. This creates a solid mass.

Meat substitute from Seitan or Quorn
Especially in health food stores you will often find meat substitutes, which consists of seitan. This is obtained by washing out the starch from wheat. The protein that remains has a fibrous, cut-resistant structure. The home-grown alternative to soy is the protein-rich seeds of sweet lupine. From the plant, which belongs to the pulses, a mass comparable to the tofu can be produced: lupine. Quorn, which is obtained during the fermentation of a mold, has been a popular vegetarian alternative to meat for years, especially in the Netherlands. As dpa writes, the mushroom protein is processed industrially to meat substitute.

Healthy vegetarian diet
Tofu, Seitan and Co. are both commercially available in their original form and already processed. Vegetarian and vegan ready meals have long since left their exile in the health food store and are now also available in supermarkets. The food industry is increasingly focusing on health-conscious consumers. And the plant-based diet is always healthy. Various scientific studies have concluded that a vegetarian and balanced diet can reduce the risk of diabetes, cancer, heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. In addition, many vegetarians have better blood pressure and are less likely to be overweight. (Ad)

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