You don\u2019t need to be a vegan\u2014or even a vegetarian\u2014to appreciate a vegan<\/a> dinner. While I personally eat anything and everything, some of the Food52 recipes I make most often fall into this category. Creamy pastas! Hearty stews! Overachieving salads! Yes, please. Below are 44 of my favorite dinner recipes on our site that just so happen to be vegan. Add these to your menu plan for Veganuary<\/a> if you celebrate\u2014or just because.<\/p>\n Whatever vegetables are halfway to mush in your crisper drawer would love to hop into this gingery noodle salad. Don\u2019t hesitate to swap out the whole-wheat angel hair for your favorite twirly shape, like ramen or flat rice noodles.<\/p>\n Crispy mushrooms, tender butternut squash, and snappy broccoli team up in the coconut milk\u2013based curry. Highly recommend with a cold beer.<\/p>\n The secret to these chubby noodles? A cumin-spiced, chile-laced peanut chutney.<\/p>\n Cauliflower works a double shift here\u2014both as a creamy sauce and savory nuggets. This is my perfect idea of a cozy winter night.<\/p>\n This mac and cheese has no shortage of tricks up its sleeves. Soaked cashews, cannellini beans, ground turmeric, white miso, and nutritional yeast, all add up to an utterly cheddar-y flavor.<\/p>\n A new way to bolognese: Ground meat, make way for nubby lentils and savory mushrooms. When stewed with red wine, tomato paste, chile flakes, and herbs, this sauce has all the cozy, hearty vibes of the original.<\/p>\n No cheese? Who knew? Fatty nuts (walnuts are my favorite) and a few spoonfuls of magical nutritional yeast make this vegan pesto a favorite for pasta nights and roasted vegetable sandwiches.<\/p>\n As its name suggests, vodka sauce is tomato sauce plus vodka and cream\u2014cashew cream, that is.<\/p>\n A rice pilaf worthy of the main event. Chickpeas ensure it\u2019s plenty filling, while cashews add crunch-crunch<\/em> and sour cherries, a wink of sweetness.<\/p>\n Inspired by the meals she ate at her grandmother\u2019s home in southern India, Chitra Agrawal\u2019s dal is creamy from coconut, with a subtle sticky tanginess from tamarind.<\/p>\n Tempeh dresses up as sausage and we can\u2019t tell what\u2019s what anymore. The trick to the creamy polenta is stirring in a splash of non-dairy milk, like soy, almond, or even oat.<\/p>\n Freezing, then thawing, the tofu gives it a chewy texture, a perfect sub for scrambled eggs in fried rice.<\/p>\n Hoppin\u2019 John often hinges on some sort of pork, be it bacon, fatback, or a ham hock. The trick here is to…leave it out. Yes, it\u2019s that simple. And yes, it\u2019s just as great.<\/p>\n While Italian meatballs are mostly ground meat and bread crumbs, this vegan recipe has neither. Instead: lentils, tofu, and quinoa\u2014with fennel seeds and garlic for A+ flavor.<\/p>\n This miso dressing, with rice vinegar and lime juice, knows how to make any roasted vegetable feel special. Heck, it makes me feel special, too.<\/p>\n Ranch dressing was dreamed up with buttermilk in mind. This vegan version has another idea: creamy-dreamy cashews. A squeeze of lemon adds just the right twang.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t skimp on the black pepper here. It gives the salad its Caesar-y vibes, even without the usual suspects, like anchovies, egg yolks, and cheese.<\/p>\n Herbed cashew cheese, you never let us down! If you\u2019re smart, you\u2019ll double the quantity and save the extra for some cheesy toast tomorrow.<\/p>\n Many veggie burgers are bean-based, but not this one: Here, russet potatoes turn into a hearty patty with a fluffy texture.<\/p>\n This bacon-esque tempeh is a sandwich\u2019s best friend. In this recipe, it teams up with hummus. But we can\u2019t wait to try a BLT look-a-like with juicy tomatoes, lettuce, and vegan mayo.<\/p>\n A longtime community favorite: \u201cVery good!!!\u201d says Susan. \u201cI’ve made these a few times and every time, they’re a hit,\u201d says Sylvia.<\/p>\n These grainy patties are chock-full of chickpeas (you can use canned to speed things up), pumpkin seeds, Dijon, and dill.<\/p>\n If you want to really show off, make a batch of cashew queso<\/a> to serve alongside these big boys for dunking.<\/p>\n Looks meaty, tastes meaty…is actually lentils and walnuts. If hard shells aren\u2019t your thing, swap in warm corn or flour tortillas.<\/p>\n The secret to a full-flavored vegan stock? Not tahini, non-dairy milk, or other creamy things\u2014but coconut water.<\/p>\n Potatoes add lots of lush thickness to this vegan cream of broccoli soup. If you\u2019re in a hurry, you can drop the smoky roasted chickpeas and crumble some seedy crackers on top instead.<\/p>\n A happy, hearty curry, here to cheer up chilly winter days. Make sure you get unsweetened coconut milk, preferably full-fat for the best flavor.<\/p>\n Thanks to wild rice, this chunky-brothy soup is a meal in itself. Extra-creamy cashew milk or oat milk would make nice substitutes if you aren\u2019t feeling coconut\u2019s fruitiness.<\/p>\n I would eat this tofu paneer every week (every day?!) if I could. It\u2019s cheesy thanks to nutritional yeast with a funky-tanginess from lemon juice.<\/p>\n This stew is ripe for riffing. Instead of creamy peanut butter, try cashew butter, almond butter, or tahini.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a trick to keep in your pocket: The next time you\u2019re making a soup with stock and beans, blend the two in a blender to thicken the rest of the broth.<\/p>\n It took me a minute to come around to seitan\u2014but now that I\u2019ve seen the light, it\u2019s always in my fridge. This recipe shows you how to spice up a plain variety, inspired by chorizo.<\/p>\n Tofu for people who think tofu is too soft. These hunks are coated in almond meal, which crisps into an extra-crusty crust.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re new to tempeh (welcome!), try pairing it with a big-personality sauce like BBQ, which underscores its inherently meaty personality.<\/p>\n I would very much like to pile these on a thick slice of toast.<\/p>\n Instead of soybeans, this Burmese style of tofu starts with chickpeas\u2014chickpea flour, to be exact. Which means if you keep that in the pantry, you can have this whenever you want.<\/p>\n \u201cThe best meal we’ve had all week,\u201d says community member Grahampositive. Can\u2019t ask for more than that! (And don’t let the name trip you up, this is vegan, too.)<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a clever way to change the texture of tempeh entirely: grate it, like cheese, then put this toward chunky chilis.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Baked potatoes can be dinner, too. These are stuffed with greens and plopped on top of a cashew-creamy chive pesto.<\/p>\n Tough meat braises, like brisket and pork shoulder, take hours. But tender vegetable ones, like eggplant and mushrooms, come together like that<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not really sure what prompted me to put the flavors of kung pao chicken and potatoes together,\u201d writes Pat Tanumihardja<\/a>. \u201cBut I\u2019m glad I did!\u201d Me too.<\/p>\n An all-in-one dish to roll out for company\u2014or just when you\u2019re feeling like treating yourself. Which I hope is often!<\/p>\n A few plan-ahead tips: You can par-cook the zucchini, cook the freekeh, and assemble the stuffing a few days in advance.<\/p>\n Just like spaghetti and pork ragu, but it\u2019s squash and beans! Throw in a bottle of red and some olive-oily garlic bread and you\u2019ve got a date night to sweep me off my feet.<\/p>\n 1. Gingery Noodle Salad<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n2. Simple Weeknight Vegetarian Curry Noodles<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n3. Indian Peanutty Noodles<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n4. Cauliflower Alfredo Bake<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n5. My Favorite Vegan Mac & Cheese<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n6. Lentil Bolognese With Cashew Parmesan<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n7. Simple Vegan Pesto<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n8. Penne Vodka<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n9. Rice Pilaf With Chickpeas & Cashews<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n10. Coconut Dal With Turmeric Rice<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n11. Creamy Polenta With Tempeh Sausage & Tomatoes<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n12. Tofu Scramble Fried Rice<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n13. Vegan Hoppin\u2019 John<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n14. Lentil Meatballs With Indian Fenugreek Sauce<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n15. Spicy Miso Eggplant Broccoli Salad<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n16. Buffalo Chickpea Salad With Vegan Ranch<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n17. Traditional Vegan Caesar Salad<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n18. French Lentil & Arugula Salad With Herbed Cashew Cheese<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n19. Indian-Spiced Vegan Potato Burger<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n20. Smoky Tempeh & Hummus Sandwiches<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n21. Black Bean & Corn Burgers<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n22. Zucchini-Quinoa Burgers<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n23. Fully Loaded Vegan Burritos<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n24. Lentil-Walnut Tacos With Cabbage-Lime Slaw<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n25. One-Pot Coconut Water ABC Soup<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n26. Cheesy Cream of Broccoli With Smoky Roasted Chickpeas<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n27. Yellow Curry With Root Vegetables, Cashews & Basil<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n28. Vegan Cream of Mushroom & Wild Rice Soup<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n29. Vegan Palak Paneer<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n30. Yam & Peanut Stew With Kale<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n31. White Bean Soup With Garlic & Parsley<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n32. Chorizo-Style Seitan Tacos<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n33. Baked Almond-Crusted Tofu Triangles<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n34. Tempeh Kebabs With Homemade BBQ Sauce<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n35. Tofu Breakfast Scramble<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n36. Burmese Tofu (aka Chickpea Flour Tofu)<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n37. Vegetarian Mapo Tofu<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n38. Tempeh Chili<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n
39. Twice-Baked Potatoes With Creamy Chive Pesto<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n40. Coconut Milk\u2013Braised Eggplant With Shiitakes & Scallions<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n41. Kung Pao Potatoes<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n42. Baked Sweet Potatoes With Spiced Lentil Salad & Lemon-Tahini Dressing<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n43. Stuffed Zucchini With Freekeh Pilaf & Currants<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n44. Spaghetti Squash & White Bean Ragout<\/a>
\n<\/h3>\n
\nThis article was updated in January 2024.<\/em>
\n<\/center><\/p>\nMore from Food52<\/h4>\n
\n
\n<\/center>\n <\/div>\n