These delicious Meatless Monday recipes make plant-based eating exciting and satisfying! From hearty burgers to creative bowls, these vegetarian and vegan meals please eaters of all kinds.
A few years ago, Alex and I committed to one meatless dinner per week: partly for health, partly to help our grocery bills. That meatless meal ended up being one of the most delicious in our week, so we started adding other days of the week too!
Fast forward to today, and I’m a cookbook author who specializes in vegetarian and vegan recipes! Naturally, I love the Meatless Monday movement to eat meatless meals one day per week. Whether you’re eating this way one day or every day, here are all my top Meatless Monday ideas to make plant based eating satisfying and delicious!
What is Meatless Monday?
Meatless Monday is a global movement with the message: one day a week, cut the meat. It was launched in 2003 as a non-profit initiative of The Monday Campaigns, working with the Center for a Livable Future (CLF) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
The goal is to reduce meat consumption by 15% for our personal health and the health of the planet. Today, Meatless Monday is embraced in over 40 countries and in over 20 languages!
35 Meatless Monday Recipes
Falafel Bowl
This falafel bowl makes a satisfying meal, full of bright Mediterranean flavors! Featuring homemade baked falafel and crunchy veggies, it’s a delicious healthy lunch or dinner idea.
Eggplant Parmesan
This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe (aka eggplant parmigiana) is classic Italian comfort food at its finest, with crispy eggplant rounds, savory marinara, and gooey cheese. I've tested this recipe over and over to make it easier than most homemade versions, and it’s a total crowd pleaser!
Veggie Fajitas
Spice up your dinners with these flavorful fajita veggies! This easy recipe combines colorful bell peppers, onions, and a spice blend for serving with the protein of your choice or as fun side dish.
Easy Chickpea Curry
This chickpea curry is the ultimate healthy and easy meatless weeknight dinner! It’s done in 20 minutes, totally plant based, and full of flavor.
Lentil Sloppy Joes
These vegan lentil sloppy joes are deliciously filling plant-based dinner made with lentils, tomatoes, and seasonings! The tangy flavor makes them a crowd-pleaser, and they’re a huge hit at my house. Serve on a bun with pickles for the true sloppy joe experience.
Cauliflower Tacos with Yum Yum Sauce
These cauliflower tacos with breaded cauliflower, refried beans, and creamy Yum Yum sauce are all about one thing: big flavor! It's one of my fan favorite meatless recipes.
Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas
These sweet potato black bean enchiladas are delicious, crowd pleasing and one of our fan favorite best vegetarian dinner recipes! They feature tomatillo salsa verde that makes them “green” enchiladas, and they’re filled with sweet potato, black beans, and Colby Jack cheese.
Sweet Potato Lentil Soup
This sweet potato lentil soup is cozy and creamy: a delicious mix of aromatic vegetables with a hint of savory spices. It’s a healthy meatless soup that’s also budget friendly: great as a dinner idea with crusty bread or a simple make ahead lunch.
Homemade Margherita Pizza
What’s more classic than a margherita pizza in your Meatless Monday recipes? This homemade margherita pizza recipe features a time saving no-cook sauce. Although this pizza uses few ingredients, it packs in big flavor.
Falafel Burger
This insanely tasty falafel burger is easy and bursting with Mediterranean flavor! Smother in sauce for an epic vegetarian or vegan dinner.
Cauliflower Stir Fry
This easy cauliflower stir fry is a healthy and easy meatless dinner idea! It’s full of nutrients and covered in a punchy sauce.
Veggie Nuggets
These veggie nuggets are so delicious and made with a simple combination of vegetables, oats, and flavorful spices. Everyone loves them (both kids and adults!), and they’re vegan and easily gluten-free. Dip into a fun sauce and enjoy as a meal or snack!
Best Vegetarian Chili
This vegetarian chili recipe is a family favorite everyone loves! It has the best flavor and is so easy to whip up.
Breaded Tofu Sandwich
This incredible vegan sandwich stars crispy breaded tofu, tangy Russian dressing, and crunchy pickles that create a flavor explosion everyone will love.
Mexican Pizza
Can’t decide between Italian and Mexican food? Have we got the perfect Meatless Monday recipe for you! This delicious Mexican pizza recipe features creamy refried beans, spicy jalapeño, and sweet corn. Make the dough in advance or use storebought dough for weeknight ease.
Vegan Poke Bowl
Poke is a Hawaiian specialty, typically made with ahi tuna. But here's a meatless version of this popular healthy bowl meal: vegan poke bowls!
Calzones
This simple calzone recipe features a homemade pizza dough and a spinach, mushroom, and two-cheese filling. Make the dough in advance or use storebought pizza dough to make this easier for a weeknight in your Meatless Monday recipes repertoire!
Best-Ever Eggplant Meatballs
This eggplant meatballs recipe is absolutely delicious! Made with garlic and Parmesan, the meatballs have a surprisingly juicy texture. Serve with pasta and marinara for a satisfying dinner!
Classic Bean Soup
This classic bean soup recipe tastes irresistibly satisfying! It’s quick and easy, made in just over 30 minutes with canned beans.
Tofu Bowl
This tofu bowl with rice stars crispy tofu, fresh veggies, spicy mayo and crunchy bits of fried onion! A deliciously healthy vegan dinner to fill your day with plant-based goodness.
Pasta Pomodoro
This pasta pomodoro recipe makes dinnertime magic with simple ingredients! Pair the Italian sauce with spaghetti for a tasty meal.
Quick Coconut Lentil Curry
This coconut lentil curry has it all: it’s a fast and easy dinner idea that’s healthy and full of flavor. Perfect for weeknights and your arsenal of Meatless Monday recipes.
Pasta alla Norma
Pasta alla Norma is a signature Italian dish of pasta and eggplant! A tangy red sauce and salty cheese complete this Sicilian masterpiece.
Chickpea Soup with Rice
This chickpea soup recipe with rice and lemon is bright and restorative! Cozy up to a bowl of this satisfyingly healthy, easy soup.
Breaded Tofu
This breaded tofu is a game-changer for fast and easy weeknight meals! It comes out crispy on the outside and seasoned on the inside, and it comes together in a flash. This one is a huge hit in my house as a vegan dinner, or as a plant based protein to top salads and bowl meals.
Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
This sun dried tomato pasta is creamy, cozy, and a crowd-pleasing dinner idea! This recipe is simple to make with maximum wow-factor.
Easy Quesadilla
This quesadilla recipe comes out crispy on the outside with perfectly melty cheese! Here are 3 few tricks for a next-level quesadilla, and loads of variations.
Chickpea Couscous Bowls with Tahini Sauce
These chickpea couscous bowls are a super quick dinner recipe: in just 25 minutes you have a fresh, vegan Mediterranean bowl covered in tangy tahini sauce.
Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Stuffed sweet potatoes make the best easy meatless dinner idea! Bake them until tender, then stuff with fillings for a delicious main dish meal.
Italian Soup with Vegetables & Gnocchi
This vegetarian and vegan Italian vegetable gnocchi soup is bursting with flavor and can be made in around 30 minutes, making it an easy weeknight meal. If you eat dairy, top with Parmesan shavings as a garnish.
Tofu Broccoli Stir Fry
This tofu broccoli stir fry comes to the dinnertime rescue! Broccoli florets and tofu cubes are tossed in a tangy, savory sauce for a vegetarian and vegan dinner everyone will love. Even better, it’s ready in just 30 minutes.
Vegan Crab Cakes
These crispy, crave-worthy vegan crab cakes are truly amazing! These patties will wow eaters of any diet. Serve them up with vegan tartar sauce as a fun plant-based dinner or appetizer!
Moroccan Chickpea Stew
This Moroccan stew is cozy, healthy and full of flavor. It's spiced with cumin, coriander and cinnamon, and the chickpeas are simmered with tomatoes and chickpeas. Sere with a side of quinoa or couscous.
Broccoli Mac and Cheese
This broccoli mac and cheese irresistibly creamy and the best way to make this classic! Mix in your side dish in for an easy one-pot dinner.
Tips for Making Meatless Monday Work
Start with familiar flavors. I didn’t jump straight into ambitious vegan recipes. I started with easy quesadillas filled with beans instead of chicken, and vegetarian fajitas loaded with peppers, onions, and pinto beans. Once those felt natural, I branched out.
Stock your pantry strategically. I always keep canned chickpeas, lentils, and black beans on hand. With those basics, I can usually throw together everything from chickpea curry to lentil sloppy joes without a grocery trip.
Load up on seasoning. Vegetables need more love than meat does. Combining spices like garlic powder, smoked paprika, and cumin, and a finishing hit of lemon makes vegetables taste extremely delicious.
More Meatless Recipes to Try
Outside of these Meatless Monday recipes, here are a few more collections of meatless meals:
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