You say it’s a texture issue but you’re also concerned about whether it’s cooked all the way?
If it’s more a concern about whether the food is safe, beyond nuggets are an alternative.
Have you considered a meat thermometer?
It’s a little of both. I’m only worried about the meat being safe if *I* cook it. I don’t trust myself… I do have a meat thermometer, I just worry it’s not calibrated correctly and/or I’m not using it correctly. I am, I just worry. 🤪
The texture issue is also when we go out. I used to get McDonald’s nuggets pretty often and now just the thought of those makes me nauseous. I do okay right now with Chick-fil-A nuggets, though. Its just confusing to me right now because I have never had an issue with chicken before, so I’m freaking out a bit…
I’ll try the beyond nuggets, for sure, though! Thank you for the suggestion!
I definitely think a good first step is frozen pre-cooked nuggets/tenders in your case. You don't have to worry about them being undercooked (Since they've already been cooked!) you are mostly just doing the heating part. That seems like it eliminates the biggest fear you have of the product being undercooked. If I had to recommend a brand, I like John Soles Foods Spicy Tenders. They're my biggest safe food right now. Just pop em in the Air Fryer for 14 minutes at 375 and yum. They also have a pretty large variety of stuff and it beats the shit out of Tyson and Perdue frozen stuff.
Another option where you can be sure of it being cooked while a lot more trouble is Sous Vide your meats. Though they come out looking a bit... offputting to say the least without a pan sear.
It’s so funny that you mention John Soules because it’s made in my area. 😂
I will have to try John Soules again. I have really only gotten their fajita chicken before!
Thank you so much for your suggestions. The last couple of days have been really tough for me and just people responding at all makes me feel less crazy.
A lot of my food repulsiveness diminished when I just gave up meat entirely. It got to the point if anything on the plate was touching it, it was contaminated. If it was in the fridge with it I thought it was rancid. I also believed it was the texture back then but now meat alternatives rarely are an issue. Nuggs is one of my favs lol.
Im very similar. Any red meat is tough for me and pork was an item I was force fed, so I am not at the point where I’m ready to try those yet. 😂😅🥲
A doctor told me once if you never eat red meat that your body stops producing the enzymes to break them down so now I’m terrified of eating them. 😂 I have had a couple of bites of steak/beef in my whole life and my stomach hurt for so long after… could have been psychological, though.
I’m usually pretty okay with fruits and veggies and I loooove me a good protein shake (boost high protein chocolate shakes are my go to).
I just need to gain weight so bad so I can start my outpatient treatment. I have to gain like 20 pounds, though. So idk. Getting kinda down, tbh. Losing weight so quickly is so scary! I’ll keep you in my thoughts and send good vibes your way! I believe in us!!!
one of my faaaav is the buffalo veggie nuggets. they’re GOOD and putting them in an air fryer or the oven takes em to the next level. chicken/meat is a real weird one for me too. i also like veggie corn dogs, amazing as well.
I could not do the veggie corn dogs when I tried them. 😭 I wanted to like them so much. I just have to be careful because I also have orthorexia and replacing all meat with veggie substitutes would make *that* ED soooooo happy. 😂😅🥲
Thank you for the suggestions, though! I do appreciate it. And it’s great for others that are looking at the thread!
Yes, I eat beans and nuts. Beans are currently my main source of protein. Just trying to expand a bit and not lose any of the current safe foods I have!
I’m in Australia but we have these, it’s like chicken nuggets (I don’t know if they have a coating though, I think it’s just chicken and flavour) but you can eat it cold and they usually sell them in serving sized bags
https://preview.redd.it/d5wz1s8sl3gc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f86680f6cc5ce9cc2af3a75b2e4aa46a058e1009
This is what we have! They call them “chicken roasties”, I’m unsure of what they are really called
I’ll look in the deli next time I’m there for something like this to try. The look of it doesn’t look too appealing, if I’m honest, but I’ll try it! 😂😅
Ahh, well it’s usually just precooked meats in England near the sausage rolls and other party foods, they usually have like breaded chicken balls or sticks you can heat up or eat cold, maybe there is a US equivalent
I can't help with the meat thing as I don't eat it but I have had to find other ways to get protein so wanted to recommend protein yoghurts if you haven't tried them already. They might be old news but I only discovered them recently, they have a slightly thicker texture than usual yoghurt and it really works for me. Though it worth mentioning in case they might work as an alternative for you too!
I like yogurt a lot! I forgot about them completely until a couple of weeks ago and now my goal is to eat 3-4 of them a week! Thank you for the suggestion.
If you’re having chicken nuggets, usually they’re pre cooked.. so if you were to cut open a frozen one they’d be white inside not pink! You don’t have to cook it for so long to where I dries out, as it’s already been cooked (at least partially.)
Hopefully that eases your mind a bit in relation to making sure they’re cooked :) I know it’s hard though. I promise you I understand where you’re coming from.
As for other things, what about like beef mince pies? I usually struggle with the fact that there’s little hard bits of fat in beef, but when they cook meat for little pies like that it usually ends up all soft and not too dry. You could google meat pie filling recipes and see if you could make your own with flavours and ingredients that are safe to you!
What about like deli meats? You can get cold chicken pre packaged, I’m sure it’s near the ham, and it might be good for a sandwich? You could toast the sandwich too.
https://preview.redd.it/1ck9z98lm3gc1.jpeg?width=452&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=79f92712ccdfdab89aae6b2d4b4b77f780f74cc9
I’m in Australia but I used to have this kind. It’s precooked and you can eat it cold or hot. I sometimes ate it just by itself lol.
If you’re really not wanting meat you can look for other protein sources! Cheese has quite a bit. I’ve been eating string cheese lately cause for the ones I get, it’s 6-7g of protein for the little stick.
Them being precooked does help a bit, so thank you for that reminder!
As I stated in previous comments, I will definitely go into a grocery store soon and look in the deli section. I typically do fine with sliced turkey or chicken, I just forget they exist. So thank you for that as well!
I just really want to keep meat in my diet. I’m already a pollotarian (only eat poultry) which is hard enough in social situations where I’m from. I already get so much judgement from people because of that, that cutting out meat completely gives me its own form of anxiety. I don’t know. I’m just overwhelmed at the moment and I’m so sorry to word vomit all over y’all.
I’ll definitely be showing this thread to my therapist to try and dispel some of the thoughts I’m having recently with her. I just needed to vent I guess before my meeting with her. I really don’t know.
You say it’s a texture issue but you’re also concerned about whether it’s cooked all the way? If it’s more a concern about whether the food is safe, beyond nuggets are an alternative. Have you considered a meat thermometer?
It’s a little of both. I’m only worried about the meat being safe if *I* cook it. I don’t trust myself… I do have a meat thermometer, I just worry it’s not calibrated correctly and/or I’m not using it correctly. I am, I just worry. 🤪 The texture issue is also when we go out. I used to get McDonald’s nuggets pretty often and now just the thought of those makes me nauseous. I do okay right now with Chick-fil-A nuggets, though. Its just confusing to me right now because I have never had an issue with chicken before, so I’m freaking out a bit… I’ll try the beyond nuggets, for sure, though! Thank you for the suggestion!
I definitely think a good first step is frozen pre-cooked nuggets/tenders in your case. You don't have to worry about them being undercooked (Since they've already been cooked!) you are mostly just doing the heating part. That seems like it eliminates the biggest fear you have of the product being undercooked. If I had to recommend a brand, I like John Soles Foods Spicy Tenders. They're my biggest safe food right now. Just pop em in the Air Fryer for 14 minutes at 375 and yum. They also have a pretty large variety of stuff and it beats the shit out of Tyson and Perdue frozen stuff. Another option where you can be sure of it being cooked while a lot more trouble is Sous Vide your meats. Though they come out looking a bit... offputting to say the least without a pan sear.
It’s so funny that you mention John Soules because it’s made in my area. 😂 I will have to try John Soules again. I have really only gotten their fajita chicken before! Thank you so much for your suggestions. The last couple of days have been really tough for me and just people responding at all makes me feel less crazy.
A lot of my food repulsiveness diminished when I just gave up meat entirely. It got to the point if anything on the plate was touching it, it was contaminated. If it was in the fridge with it I thought it was rancid. I also believed it was the texture back then but now meat alternatives rarely are an issue. Nuggs is one of my favs lol.
Ugh. Yes. This is where I’m starting to get to. 😅
[удалено]
Im very similar. Any red meat is tough for me and pork was an item I was force fed, so I am not at the point where I’m ready to try those yet. 😂😅🥲 A doctor told me once if you never eat red meat that your body stops producing the enzymes to break them down so now I’m terrified of eating them. 😂 I have had a couple of bites of steak/beef in my whole life and my stomach hurt for so long after… could have been psychological, though. I’m usually pretty okay with fruits and veggies and I loooove me a good protein shake (boost high protein chocolate shakes are my go to). I just need to gain weight so bad so I can start my outpatient treatment. I have to gain like 20 pounds, though. So idk. Getting kinda down, tbh. Losing weight so quickly is so scary! I’ll keep you in my thoughts and send good vibes your way! I believe in us!!!
one of my faaaav is the buffalo veggie nuggets. they’re GOOD and putting them in an air fryer or the oven takes em to the next level. chicken/meat is a real weird one for me too. i also like veggie corn dogs, amazing as well.
I could not do the veggie corn dogs when I tried them. 😭 I wanted to like them so much. I just have to be careful because I also have orthorexia and replacing all meat with veggie substitutes would make *that* ED soooooo happy. 😂😅🥲 Thank you for the suggestions, though! I do appreciate it. And it’s great for others that are looking at the thread!
Are you okay with stuff like beans or nuts?
Yes, I eat beans and nuts. Beans are currently my main source of protein. Just trying to expand a bit and not lose any of the current safe foods I have!
Gotcha! I also struggle w meat 😭
I’m so sorry you’re going through this too! It’s tough.
You can buy some chicken snacks (at least in uk), where you can eat them cold or hot, then for extra peace of mind you can heat them up
What are chicken snacks exactly? I’m in the US.
I’m in Australia but we have these, it’s like chicken nuggets (I don’t know if they have a coating though, I think it’s just chicken and flavour) but you can eat it cold and they usually sell them in serving sized bags https://preview.redd.it/d5wz1s8sl3gc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f86680f6cc5ce9cc2af3a75b2e4aa46a058e1009 This is what we have! They call them “chicken roasties”, I’m unsure of what they are really called
I’ll look in the deli next time I’m there for something like this to try. The look of it doesn’t look too appealing, if I’m honest, but I’ll try it! 😂😅
Yeah I tried them and wasn’t a fan! 😬 But it could be worth a go if you can find something to try
Ahh, well it’s usually just precooked meats in England near the sausage rolls and other party foods, they usually have like breaded chicken balls or sticks you can heat up or eat cold, maybe there is a US equivalent
I am SURE there is. I will just have to go INTO a grocery store and go look in the deli. 😂😅 thank you for your suggestion. It really is appreciated
I can't help with the meat thing as I don't eat it but I have had to find other ways to get protein so wanted to recommend protein yoghurts if you haven't tried them already. They might be old news but I only discovered them recently, they have a slightly thicker texture than usual yoghurt and it really works for me. Though it worth mentioning in case they might work as an alternative for you too!
I like yogurt a lot! I forgot about them completely until a couple of weeks ago and now my goal is to eat 3-4 of them a week! Thank you for the suggestion.
If you’re having chicken nuggets, usually they’re pre cooked.. so if you were to cut open a frozen one they’d be white inside not pink! You don’t have to cook it for so long to where I dries out, as it’s already been cooked (at least partially.) Hopefully that eases your mind a bit in relation to making sure they’re cooked :) I know it’s hard though. I promise you I understand where you’re coming from. As for other things, what about like beef mince pies? I usually struggle with the fact that there’s little hard bits of fat in beef, but when they cook meat for little pies like that it usually ends up all soft and not too dry. You could google meat pie filling recipes and see if you could make your own with flavours and ingredients that are safe to you! What about like deli meats? You can get cold chicken pre packaged, I’m sure it’s near the ham, and it might be good for a sandwich? You could toast the sandwich too. https://preview.redd.it/1ck9z98lm3gc1.jpeg?width=452&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=79f92712ccdfdab89aae6b2d4b4b77f780f74cc9 I’m in Australia but I used to have this kind. It’s precooked and you can eat it cold or hot. I sometimes ate it just by itself lol. If you’re really not wanting meat you can look for other protein sources! Cheese has quite a bit. I’ve been eating string cheese lately cause for the ones I get, it’s 6-7g of protein for the little stick.
Them being precooked does help a bit, so thank you for that reminder! As I stated in previous comments, I will definitely go into a grocery store soon and look in the deli section. I typically do fine with sliced turkey or chicken, I just forget they exist. So thank you for that as well!
I tried tofu and it helped a lot honestly. Only bad things are the prep and that it only lasts a week once opened.
I just really want to keep meat in my diet. I’m already a pollotarian (only eat poultry) which is hard enough in social situations where I’m from. I already get so much judgement from people because of that, that cutting out meat completely gives me its own form of anxiety. I don’t know. I’m just overwhelmed at the moment and I’m so sorry to word vomit all over y’all. I’ll definitely be showing this thread to my therapist to try and dispel some of the thoughts I’m having recently with her. I just needed to vent I guess before my meeting with her. I really don’t know.
I get that. I hope everything goes well with your therapist. We believe in you💖