Easy Vegetarian Dinner Recipes
These vegetarian dinner recipes arent just meat-free. Theyre also delicious, healthy, inventive, and easy.
So whether you have a vegetarian friend coming to dinner, a teenager whos just sworn off meat, or are trying out a plant-based diet, there are plenty of great options.
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From flavorful sides to hearty mains, vegetarian cooking is easier than you think.
Say goodbye to boring veggie meatloaf or dreary soups. Say hello to creamy avocado alfredo, spicy mulligatawny, and fresh spring gnocchi.
And in case you thought veggie cooking was all about healthy foods, there are also a few fast food options in there like crunchy fries and takeout tofu.
With these nutritious and nourishing recipes, meat-lovers and plant-fans alike will go home happy.
So lets start planning your next veggie dinner party!
Lentil dal is the ultimate Indian comfort food. Its a thick, creamy, lentil-based stew thats mildly spicy and very fragrant.
Make this foolproof recipe, and youll feel the cold weather blues melt away with every spoonful.
Your kitchen will smell of simmering spices, and thats a very good thing.
Colorful and healthy, this pasta bowl isnt just vegetarian, its also gluten-free.
Juicy tomatoes, fresh spinach, and salty black olives are tossed in gluten-free spaghetti.
Serve with goats cheese or feta if you want even more flavor.
Vegan Dinner Ideas Everyone Will Love
For many people, the idea of preparing an entirely meat-free dinner can be daunting. But adding more vegetables to your diet or eating more plant-based meals does not need to be difficult or too time-consuming. And you don’t have to give up flavor to make delicious, entirely vegetarian meals.
My family eats the Mediterranean way, so we eat a little bit of everything including fish and dairy. But aside from adding more vegetables and grains to our meals, we also try to eat vegetarian or vegan two to three dinners per week .
If you are looking for some mouthwatering, nutritious, and satisfying vegan recipes that are easy enough to make any night of the week, I got you covered! I’m excited to share a list of 60+ easy vegan recipes and dinner ideas that even the meat lovers in my life love! I’ve included vegan dinner recipes, including dairy-free pasta dinners, comforting vegetable-loaded soups and stews, and quick vegan salads and side dishes.
If you’re looking for satisfying Mediterranean-style, plant-based meals, you’ll find them here. Plus, a few tips for how to stock your pantry to make vegetarian cooking easier and more accessible.
Spicy Kale And Coconut Stir Fry
Gluten free, vegan if you skip the eggs
I almost never comment on blogs, but after making this recipe for the second time in two weeks I knew I had to. This stir fry is amazing my husband said that he wanted to have it every week! Success! Thank you for your delicious recipes and gorgeous photos! Kate
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Sticky Vegan Sausage Traybake
This easy and versatile one-pot veggie traybake feeds two very hungry people easily and can be scaled up if you want to make it for a larger crowd!
Everyone will love this comfort meal brimming with caramelized onions, potatoes, vegan sausages and carrots.
Looking for a 30-minute family dinner thats quick and easy to put together?
These sloppy joes are made with lentils, veggies and a tangy tomato sauce plus, they are packed with protein. Use pre-cooked lentils to assemble them even quicker!
Vegetarian Recipes Even Meat
Thinkstock / zia_shusha
If you choose recipes that use these products to their fullest potential, you might even trick a few pro-meat folks into trying Meatless Monday or at least sampling the occasional vegetarian dish. For some cooking inspiration, The Daily Meal has rounded up its 12 favorite hearty vegetarian recipes that ditch the meat while satisfying even the staunchest carnivore.
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Flavorful Chicken Teriyaki Seitan
Featuring crispy pan-fried seitan chunks cooked in a rich sauce, this vegan teriyaki chicken is better than takeout!
This easy weeknight dinner is ready in only 15 minutes, high in protein and can be served with anything from rice and veggies to noodles or even used as a wrap filling.
This creamy and refreshing vegan chicken salad is quick and easy to make and ridiculously tasty!
A true crowd-pleaser for the whole family, its a great idea for portable lunches or potlucks, too.
Indian Vegetarian Recipes That Can Sway Meat
- Jasmine Kaur
While the hard-core meat eaters would prefer meat on most occasions, these vegetarian recipes will definitely may their hearts sway.
It is hard for a non-vegetarian to picture a delicious meal without a component of meat. Moreover, the diverse Indian cuisine is replete with luscious meaty dishes that one can devour. In such a scenario, the vegetarian delights tend to take a back seat. However, the meat-lovers are unaware of the flavours that certain veg dishes can add to their meal and tantalise their taste buds. Interestingly, certain vegetables like jackfruit, soya and mushrooms have a texture and taste that similar to meat which makes them their vegetarian counterparts.
1. Kathal Biryani
If youre an ardent fan of this one-pot dish, then you shouldnt miss out on its meatless version. The biryani replaces meat with kathal aka jackfruit and gives a delicious rice meal. While jackfruit is a nutritious vegetable, it is has a meat-like flavour that makes it suitable for biryani. Kathal and rice are slow-cooked together, with a plethora of spices which lend it the aroma and flavour. The biryani can be served hot alongside a bowl of raita.
2. Mushroom Masala
3. Soya Nutri Gravy
4. Mix Vegetable Korma
5. Cauliflower Chickpea Curry
6. Eggplant Curry
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Meatless Monday For Meat Eaters
Antonis Achilleos
The goal of Meatless Monday is simple: Inspire one day of meat-free eating each week for the sake of our health and that of the planet. The point is not to convert happy meat eaters into the most die-hard vegans, but rather to make even the staunchest steak lovers occasionally think twice before passing up a salad or scoop of vegetables in favor of meaty alternatives.
That said, we know how difficult not to mention downright boring it can be to fill up on a plate of veggies alone. So this week weve rounded up some of our heartiest, most flavor-packed vegetarian recipes to please even the most demanding of meat eaters.
One of the easiest meatless meals to make, pasta not only feeds a crowd but can be tweaked to your familys tastes and needs. Pictured above is Cavatelli With Tomato Sauce and Ricotta, a dressed-up version of typical noodles with sauce that can be made in just 30 minutes. Cavatelli isnt your average pasta its thicker, since its often made with cheese, so its naturally more filling than traditional spaghetti or penne noodles. Here its tossed with a simple but robust tomato sauce, laced with garlic and red pepper flakes for a touch of heat. Before serving, top each bowl with a spoonful of creamy ricotta cheese.
Butternut Squash Chipotle Chili With Avocado
Gluten free and vegan
This was soooo delicious! I served it to company last weekend and they scraped the pot clean, even though one of them usually prefers meat at every meal. My two modifications: I added one extra can of diced tomatoes with green chilies, and served with sour cream. My boyfriend keeps asking Are you sure there arent leftovers? Julie
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Tips To Creating Vegan Food Meat
Roasted Cauliflower And Lentil Tacos With Creamy Chipotle Sauce
Pulses are not just the heartbeats that we feel under our skin. In the cooking world, a pulse is the edible seed of a legume, plants that include lentils, chickpeas, dry peas, and beans. The USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council asked Kate Taylor of Cookie and Kate to contribute a recipe in honor of the United Nations International Year of Pulses in 2016. The recipe, Roasted Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos with Creamy Chipotle, won the National Signature Pulse Recipe for the U.S. in a Facebook competition.
To make Taylors recipe vegan, youd need to substitute the mayo with vegan mayo. The Minimalist Baker has a similar recipe that leaves out the lentils and includes a vegan creamy sauce using almonds instead of mayo.
Tacos, a food originating in Mexico, are typically made with corn tortillas. If you want to impress your friends and family, follow Food Empowerment Projects VeganMexicanFood.com recipe to make corn tortillas from scratch.
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Vegan Biscuits And Gravy
Here’s a comfort food that’s typically made with sausage, turned into a vegetarian brunch for meat eaters! Yes, if you’re a lover of biscuits and gravy they don’t need to be made with meat . Turns out, vegan biscuits and gravy are damn good. A thick, peppery mushroom gravy coats impossibly flaky biscuits. All we can say is: wow.
What Meats Do Vegans Eat
Vegans avoid eating any meat or animal products at all, including honey, dairy , or eggs. These and other ingredients are made from animals. However, it can be fun to try vegan meat substitutes and vegan foods that are made to resemble meat. SluttyVeganATL reveals on their Instagram account that their chicken-like drumsticks are actually made mostly of tofu skins and rice paper wrappers, coated in spices and flour, and deep-fried.
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The Best Vegetarian Meals For Meateaters
Think you’re going to suffer if you give up meat? Worried that being vegetarian means you can only eat salad? Think again my friends. This list of the best vegetarian meals for meateaters will prove you wrong and make you wonder why you ever ate meat in the first place. Not only are these completely meat-free, and many are even fully vegan, but they will fill you with such comfort and warmth that you will lose yourself in food heaven. So grab those stretchy pants and lets get eating!
Warning: You may want to grab a bib because drool is sure to escape your mouth.
Vegan Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni // Nothing screams meat-eater like Hamburger Helper! Now you can enjoy it in a healthy vegan way. Recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite.
Vegan Mushroom Philly Cheese // Now this gooey cheesy amazingness has got to get that drool going. Recipe by Kathy Patalsky.
Thai Style “Crab” Cakes // Not into real seafood but love the idea? Not a problem, because these mouthwatering crabless cakes will fill that craving like no other. Recipe by A Virtual Vegan.
Spanish Beans with Tomatoes // I call this warmth in a skillet. I kind of want to snuggle up right in the middle. Recipe by Veggie Desserts.
Black Bean Salsa Burgers// There’s no way you can pass up a good burger, and these take only 15 minutes to make! Sounds like a double win to me. Recipe by Veggie Inspired.
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You Can’t Get Enough Protein From Vegan Food
Tell that to a silverback gorilla!
Protein is available in a plethora of plant-based sources including whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, tofu and even kale and broccoli. A study in to food consumption in America found that vegans get more than enough protein.
Most American adults eat about 100 grams of protein per day, or roughly twice the recommended amount. Even on a vegan diet people can easily get 60 to 80 grams of protein throughout the day from foods like beans, legumes, nuts, broccoli and whole grains.” New York Times
Sweet Potato & Black Bean Veggie Burgers
Gluten free and vegan
I devoured one in a burger bun with cheese, red onion, tomato, gherkins and guacamole. I too love spice so I add a few birds eye chillies to my mole. My carnivore husband also was amazed at the flavour from them and was asking for more! This recipe will be one Ill use for a long time to come. Thank you so so much for sharing! Cat
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Chickpea And Potato Curry
Imma from Immaculate Bites offers the Trinidadian version of curry channa and aloo, or chickpea and potato curry. Instead of simply calling for curry powder, Imma links to their own recipe for Jamaican curry powder that reportedly beats the flavors of store-bought brands. The curry powder calls for turmeric, coriander seeds, cumin, allspice, ginger, yellow mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, black pepper, a whole clove, nutmeg, and scotch bonnet or cayenne pepper.
Nagi from RecipeTinEats, who posts a modified version of Immas recipe, writes that Caribbean food is a fusion of many different cuisines, including African, American Indian, European, Indian, Arabic and Chinese. This particular dish is rooted in Trinidad but originated in South Asia.
Viranjini Munasinghe explains in an interview with Asia Society that after enslaved people of African descent were emancipated in the British Caribbean in 1838, Indians suffering under British rule came to Trinidad, which was also under British rule, to work as indentured laborers in sugar plantations. The two major ethnic groups in Trinidad are Afro-Trinidadians and Indo-Trinidadians.
Vegan Soup And Stew Recipes
Few meals are more comforting than a warm bowl of steaming stew filled with vegetables, hearty legumes, and fragrant spices. This makes stews and soups an ideal vegan meal idea! With some lentils, chickpeas, and beans, you can turn your average vegetable stew into a knockout filling one-pot meal! Here are some of my favorite vegan stew recipes:
Ratatouille is a classic vegetable stew with tomatoes, eggplant, summer squash, bell peppers, onions, and garlic. It tastes even better the next day, so make it ahead for amazing flavor. It also freezes really well, so you can make a big batch and freeze some for later.
Greek-Style Black-Eyed Peas Recipe
Hands-down the BEST black-eyed peas recipe with loads of veggies and bold Greek flavors. Canned black-eyed peas save you time and hassle in this easy vegan recipe. Serve it with your favorite crusty bread, or over orzo or a bed of rice.
This nutritious mushroom barley soup skips the beef in favor of a vegan meal with body, texture, and depth of flavor. This is another soup recipe that freezes well, so once it has cooled completely, transfer it to freezer-safe containers .
Melt-in-your mouth sweet potatoes, tender carrots, tomatoes, and wilted baby spinach. It gets a little Eastern Mediterranean flair with a few warm spices like cumin and turmeric. The best way to serve this hearty vegan stew is over quick-cooked couscous or with a piece of crusty whole wheat bread.
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Dirt Candys Carrot Buns
Vegetarian chef Amanda Cohen uses fresh carrot juice to replace water in her dough, giving the Cantonese-style steamed buns their vibrant color and sweet taste. Filled with garlic and ginger-seasoned barbecued carrots, these bite-sized, plump morsels are dipped in a carrot-and-hoisin reduction and paired with a crispy white carrot, cucumber, ginger, and sesame salad.
How To Make Your Own Flexible Recipe List
Although this list was designed for the vegetarian/meat eater conundrum, a lot of these recipes will work for other dietary restrictions as well, especially recipes in the bowl meal category, since each serving is built to order. To make a list of flexible recipes for your dietary needs, first find recipes that satisfy the most restrictive dietary style, then list what you can add to the finished product to satisfy the less restrictive diets. For instance, list dairy-free recipes, then possible additions, like topping with cheese or sour cream, stirring cream or yogurt into a sauce, etc.
Taking a few minutes to research and make your list ahead of time will save you a lot of agony later. For reference, we have categories for dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, and soy-free recipes on Budget Bytes.
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