what percentage of your diet is made up of legumes?

[caedmyn]

We're going to have to cut way back on our food budget very soon and I was thinking that eating more legumes would be a good way to stretch our food dollar. I'm curious as to what percentage of different people's diets are composed of legumes...do you eat legumes every day, or almost every day? At most meals? A few times a week? Once a week?

[Tcarwyn]

we eat very little legumes, my kids hate them ( they are not picky eaters at all ,a nd so I dont force them to eat beans)
We ea the occasional mexican dish, bean soup in the winter, or lentil pancakes....hummus, but that is really it

Maybe once a week/every two weeks...

Tanya

[quietserena]

I really try to have legumes for at least 3 meals a week. It's dropped off now that the local produce is all coming into season. In the winter, I have a bean or lentil soup for lunch almost every day.

[Flowergirl~]

We don't eat legumes on a regular basis. The last time I made legumes was a month and a half ago.

[gardenmommy]

We don't eat them very often, as they don't agree with me, even properly prepared. When we do, it is in something like chili, lentils with sausages, soups, or something similar.

[tboroson]

I love beans, but I have to admit, I don't use them a lot. Maybe once a week. We do love us some hummus, and black beans in mexican dishes, and chili and chickpea soups. But I'm too lazy to soak them properly (since the soaking in acid thing has utterly failed for me; keeping soaking water at 140 is laborious.) So we don't use them that often.

I always say I'm going to start using more beans... but I'm a slacker.

[JoyMommy]

To be honest, we're not a big beans fan. I like them but they make me feel undernourished, and dh doesn't like them so when I cook them i have to make a second dish for him. I only add a small amount of kidney beans when I made chili and black beans to my burritos, but I honestly can not remember the last time I had those. The thought just makes me lose my appetite. But everybody is different. Some people might do well on legumes, just be sure to soak them and do use stock and small amounts of meat with them to utilize the nutrients and the proteins better. They can really stretch your meat and help with your budget that's certainly true, just remember you still need some meat to get those nutrients.

[ConsCathMamma]

We eat a lot of beans--mostly black. We like them refried (in lots of coconut oil or bacon or chicken fat), but plain, too. Everyone likes them--even the toddler and one year old, and they are cheap! We usually eat them with brown rice and raw cheese somehow, and this month being unusually tight, we had them almost everyday--some days both meals! We've also had meat, but the beans have really helped us stretch our dollar this month. Trader Joes has a nice corn tortilla that is made from mesa (corn and lime instead of cornmeal), and as my husband LOVES them, it is a compromise I make on a regular basis. They are less than two dollars a package.

I will say, though, that this month I also let my clo go, and the combo of that and the less meat and such have made me a bit irritable--mildly like ppd. So, do be careful that you are getting everything you need because the negative effects of not getting everything your body needs can sneak up!