Bean-free Vegetarian?

[rootzdawta]

After almost a decade of a mainly plant-based diet, I'm realizing that I cannot tolerate beans.  No matter how many hours they are soaked, even cooking with kombu (sea vegetable) for hours till very soft, they set my insides off.  I can't seem to digest them even with the help of Beano or other digestive enzymes.  Tofu seems off limits too.  Not sure about tempeh. I've tried eliminating other foods in my diet to see if they are the culprit: dairy, just soy, and most recently wheat--all to no avail.  Testing at the doctor reveals that I'm not having allergic reactions to anything I'm eating (so no celiac) but I still thought I'd take out wheat to see if I'd feel better.  No go.  And my stomach upset has gotten progressively worse over the years.  

 

Without beans, I'm fairly sure that I can't continue on a mainly plant based diet (I eat fish 3-4 times a week and the rest of what I eat is beans in some form or the other) .  But I wanted to put this out there to see if maybe I'm being shortsighted and not seeing all the options.  TIA.  

[catnip]

You need a source of the amino acids that are supplied by legumes, but if you are eating fish 3 times a week, I cannot imagine that you are lacking in that department. Do you also eat eggs and dairy? What about grains? Quinoa? Even fruits and vegetables have some protein. I'd worry about a vegan who can't eat beans at all, but a pesci-vegetarian should be fine. Most seeds are rich in the same amino acids that beans have, as are peanut butter and other nuts. 

[rootzdawta]

Thx catnip for the reminder abt amino acids!  You're absolutely right.  Been looking around on the net for things like hummus and burgers made from nuts or seeds and I'm pleasantly surprised because many of them are raw which is a direction I've been wanting to move into for a long time.