Quick dinners.
Sweet potato curry
This the easiest and most stereotypicaly vegan meal out there. It is so quick and has so few ingredients you really can’t go wrong. All you need to do is chop an onion and sweet potato into chunks and cook in a pan with medium curry powder until it starts to be soft. Add a tin of tomatoes and of coconut milk (I like the taste of reduced fat better) and let it reduce down. Then I like to add spinach and peas for texture. You could add other spices and other veggies if you want but there’s really no need to!
Campfire casserole
This is one of the best meals to make for a busy day…I put it in the slow cooker the night before and cook it throughout the day so its ready to eat at tea time. For approx 4 people you will need to defrost 8 vegan sausages, and chop into big chunks. Add to chopped onions, button mushrooms, a can of chopped tomatoes, 2 cans of baked beans in tomato sauce. Then add in some nooch, cajun and paprika for flavour. Cook throughout the day on a low heat and add some porridge oats a few minutes before serving if there is too much liquid. If you don’t have a slow cooker you coudl still make this pretty quickly in a pan.
Falafel & spicy grains
You could either use shop bought falafel or pre-make homemade falafels following the recipe on my blog here. You can buy spicy grains in packets from the supermarket and just pop it in the microwave, or you could cook some lentils/quinoa and add cajun/paprika. Pair with lettuce, cucumber, avo and vegan mayo.
Speedy stir-fry
You can really use any veggies you want to in a stir fry but my favourite combination is chopped broccoli, bean sprouts, baby corn and lettuce. I then make sauce with sesame oil, soy sauce, chili oil and sweet chili sauce (but you could get a pre made one). Then I mix in cooked udon noodles (but any egg free noodles are great). This also works really well with chunks of tofu and spring rolls. Probably takes about 15-20 mins.
Tuna jacket potato
This ‘tuna mayonnaise’ is made with Good Catch Tuna style flakes (can be found in Tesco) and vegan mayo and sweetcorn. With a crispy jacket, salad and Lidl’s vegan Italian style cheese, this makes the perfect quick tea!
Fishless finger salad
My favourite fishless fingers are frozen Quorn ones but there are several brands to choose from. Just pop them under the grill for a few minutes until crispy. Chop up and serve with mixed grains, hummus, lettuce, cucumber and sweet chili sauce! Barely even takes ten minutes!
Roasted tomato & feta tagliatelle
All of my pasta recipes are pretty quick and can be found here…. for this simply chop your cherry tomatoes in half and put them in a roasting tray with vegan feta (my favourite is Lidl’s) and chili flakes. Cook for 20 mins and then simply add your cooked pasta to the dish, mix and serve. You could add extras like garlic, herbs and onions but even without it is a fab dish!
Quiona & roasted vegetables
Anything with roasted vegetables is a yes from me. All you need to do is chop up the veggies you want (here is broccoli, courgette, peppers, carrots and cherry tomatoes) and pop them on a tray with a little oil and spices like paprika and cumin, and roast for about 20 mins. Cook some quinoa and serve with pine nuts/cashews.
Vegan 'egg' scramble
Tofu scramble is my favouriteeeee, but there are egg substitutes, you could look into if you want an alternative. My tofu scramble recipe is adapted from one I found on Instagram. Cook some onions in a pan until soft. Then add crumbled up tofu and let it brown. Then in a jug you need to make a mixture of plant milk, flour, turmeric, and eggy salt (Kala Namak) and add this to the crumbled tofu. I can’t recommend this enough as a breakfast, lunch or tea tbh!
Vegetable couscous
This is a perfect lunch to make in bulk so you can take portions throughout the week. Chop up the veg you wat to use… I like peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, baby corn and green beans but anything goes. Pop these in a pan with a splash of water and stir until soft. Add about 150ml of water to …g of dried couscous and cover until soft. Just mix in your veg and add your toppings (Squeaky Bean pieces and vegan mayo work well) ahd heat in the microwave for one minute whenever you’re ready to eat.
Ploughmans style picky tea
I love this tea on a summery day & is a great way to use up some snacky bits! I always like to have it with some fresh/crusty bread (just check the packet before you buy). With the bread there is lettuce, cucumber, hummus, vegan feta and ham, some seeded flatbread, grapes and spicy nuts….but use whatever you’ve got!
Veg packed curry
This is the classic “i have too much veg to use up in not enough time” type of curry!! You can use any vegetables – just chop them all up and put it all in the pan, and add garam masala, cumin, chilli powder and curry powder. Then add coconut milk and tomatoes.
Spicy coconut & tomato pasta
Easily a ten minute recipe! All you need is a can of coconut milk, some garlic and chilli powder/paprika, some mushrooms and tomato passata. cook your pasta in one pan, and in another add the chopped garlic & chilli flakes to some oil. Then add the coconut milk, the tomato passata and the chopped mushrooms. If the sauce needs thickening just add some cornflour mixed with some plant milk.
Red pesto butter beans & quinoa
Another super quick recipe – just takes as long as it takes to cook the quinoa. While the quinoa is cooking (about 10 mins), chop some broc and put this in the steamer in the microwave, and then add some drained butter beans to a pan with red pesto and cook that through until they’re hot. The rest of the meal can be made up with whatever you’ve got in the fridge, I used spinach, cucumber and some vegan coleslaw!
Peas on Toast
honestly, don’t knock this until you try it! All you need to do is cook some peas so they still have a little bite to them, add then to a jug with lemon juice, a little garlic if you like, and chilli flakes, and blend them up with a food processer for a couple of seconds so there are some whole and some a bit mushy! I normally use sourdough toast but any bread will work!
Pasta, cheese & beans
This really is the simplest vegan meal and takes less than 10 mins to make! All you have to do is boil some pasta and once its cooked stir in some cooked baked beans in tomato sauce and some vegan feta chunks until melted and creamy!
