31 Easy Vegan Dinner Recipes (Ready in 30 Minutes or Less!)

Here’s a month’s worth of quick, easy vegan dinner recipes — ready to be served in 30 minutes or sometimes a bit less! You’ll find pasta and noodles, bountiful bowls, grain and bean classics, tofu and seitan dishes, big sandwiches, tortilla specialties.

Whether you want a quick dinner for weeknights or casual weekend fare, you’ll find lots of ideas and inspiration here. Within each of these recipes, you’ll find simple ways to complete the meal. Let’s dive right in …

Pasta and noodle dishes

Spicy Peanut Noodles with Zucchini & Tomatoes: Here’s a super easy and tasty take on spicy peanut noodles. Use bottled peanut satay sauce or make your own. Though it’s a perfect summer dish, you can enjoy it year round.

Stir-Fried Noodles with Tofu & Green Veggies: Stir-fried soba noodles with tofu, broccoli, green peas, mushrooms, and snow peas make a quick, light dinner. Super-easy and tasty, all you need to complete this meal is a platter of raw veggies. For a fun addition, serve vegetable spring rolls from your supermarket or natural foods store freezer.

Teriyaki Asian Noodles with Tofu & Stir-Fried Vegetables: Teriyaki Asian noodles with tofu and stir-fried vegetables tastes just as great as what you might get for take-out. Maybe better! Use your favorite type of noodle — soba, udon, etc., or regular spaghetti or linguini.

Vegan “Beefy” Pasta Skillet: One of those carb-laden classic recipes that’s so comforting, this vegan beefy pasta skillet is part cheeseburger macaroni, kind of hamburger helper-ish, and all plant-based. 

Pasta with Leafy Greens Pesto: Pesto using spinach, arugula, and/or watercress is a lighter, greener sauce for easy pasta dishes like this one; it’s also good on warm potatoes, potato salads, grain pilafs, and more.

 

Vegan Pasta “Tuna” Salad: Made with baked tofu or plant-based tuna a nostalgic classic is brought into the 21st century. Now, even more veggies have been added to this family favorite.

BOWLS

Vegan Korean Beef-Less Rice Bowl: Korean Beef Bowl is an easy weeknight meal, embellished with kimchi and crisp vegetables. The recipe links to homemade crumbles, but to save time, you can use a packaged plant-based ground product.

Nori Rice Bowls with Tofu, Cucumber, & Avocado: Simple nori rice bowls are subtly infused with the tasty sea vegetable. Embellished with crispy tofu, cucumber, and avocado, it’s like veggie sushi deconstructed.

Spring Grain Bowls with Edamame, Bok Choy, and Oranges: These bountiful spring grain bowls serve up a variety of fresh flavors and textures. You’ll love the burst of sweetness provided by juicy orange sections. Bok choy, edamame, scallions, and bell pepper need minimal cooking to retain their textures and colors.

Quick Asian Noodle Bowls with Colorful Vegetables: Here’s an easy delivery system for an array of colorful veggies. This might just become your go-to recipe when you crave a warming Asian-style dish in minutes. Make sure that the vegetables are barely cooked, so they retain their flavor, color, and crunch.

Red Lentil Dal & Rice Bowls: Red lentil dal and rice bowls are a lovely way to feature this tasty legume that cooks up quickly. A cross between a stew and a hot dip made of well-cooked legumes, dal is often served with fresh Indian flatbreads like chapatis, but it’s also a fantastic centerpiece for rice bowls like this one.

Grain and Bean Dishes

Black Beans with Sofrito: A classic Latin American dish, this makes a quick and satisfying weeknight dinner. Sofrito is basically a sauté of the key ingredients of onions, garlic, bell peppers, and sometimes tomatoes, in olive oil. 

Indian-Spiced Cauliflower & Chickpea Stew: A delectable Indian-spiced stew gives you the curry flavors you crave at a fraction of the cost of take-out. Using a readymade Indian simmer sauce and frozen cauliflower, this weeknight main dish will be on the table in 30 minutes.

Quick & Colorful Vegan Quinoa Paella: Paella is a Spanish pilaf traditionally made with white rice and seafood. We’ll do away with the seafood here, of course, and since we’re dispensing with tradition, let’s do away with rice as well.

Jamaican-Inspired Rice & Red Beans: This is a shortcut and slightly Americanized version of the national dish, simply called “rice and peas” in the island nation. Coconut milk gives it a wonderful flavor and aroma.

Spanish Rice & Beans with Pimiento Olives: This is one of those dishes that’s open to interpretation and doesn’t strictly belong to any tradition. This vegan version is a great choice when you want something easy and hearty.

Tofu, Seitan, & Other Plant-Based Proteins

Southwestern Tofu Scramble (Migas): Southwestern tofu scramble is a vegan interpretation of migas, a dish developed for using up corn tortillas that have lost their freshness. Brimming with lively southwestern flavors, in the original recipe, tortilla pieces are scrambled with eggs; this version replaces eggs with tofu.

Peanut Satay Golden Tofu Triangles: This simple preparation of golden tofu triangles, inspired by a Thai appetizer, gets its luscious flavor from peanut sauce — homemade or bottled. This preparation just might inspire fussy eaters to give tofu a chance!

Tofu & Bok Choy Stir-Fry: This quick tofu and bok choy stir-fry uses two of my favorite shortcuts — a richly-flavored teriyaki marinade and squeeze-bottle ginger. 

Easy Tofu Teriyaki: This recipe is all about the sauce, which absorbs into the tofu to make it remarkably flavorful. This makes 2 to 3 servings, so if you’re feeding more or have true tofu fans at the table, you may want to double this recipe. Serve with store-bought sushi for a fun meal!

Super-Easy Broccoli & Seitan Stir-Fry: Here’s a simple broccoli and seitan stir fry that highlights the unique flavor and texture of this plant-based high-protein food.  You can think of this as a vegan “beef” and broccoli, or just enjoy it on its own merits.

Vegan Orange “Chicken” & Broccoli: This recipe transforms a Chinese restaurant favorite into a plant-based treat. This quick and colorful dish gets its subtle fruity flavor from a splash of fresh orange juice and preserves — orange or apricot.

Vegan Pepper Steak: Here’s a plant-powered rendition of a Chinese restaurant favorite. This version is just as hearty as the real thing, made with seitan or any of the varieties of steak-style plant protein options to accompany the plethora of peppers.

Tortilla specialties

Sizzling Tofu or Tempeh Fajitas: Talk about easy vegan dinner recipes —these easy and delicious sizzling tofu or tempeh fajitas are a great way to ease into participating in Meatless Mondays — and beyond!

Spicy Vegan Tofu Rancheros: Spicy vegan tofu rancheros is a well-seasoned egg-free version of the Southwestern classic, huevos rancheros. It’s an easy dinner dish — perfect for brunch, too — served with slices of avocado and/or orange.

Easy Coleslaw & Plant Protein Soft Tacos: It’s easy to make your own tasty plant protein tacos using any of the “beefy” vegan crumbles available these days. Or, you can make your own — all the options are here.

Easy Black Bean Tostadas: The nice thing about serving tostadas is that everyone can construct their own at the table, making it easy on the cook. These easy tostadas make a quick weeknight meal for the family or fun fare to serve to company.

Big sandwiches

BBQ-Flavored Lentil Sloppy Joes: As satisfying as any kind of burger meal, these vegan barbecue-flavored lentil sloppy joes are ready fast if the lentils are cooked ahead of time.

Portobello & Seiten Vegan Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches: Hearty vegan Philly cheesesteak — the classic sandwich — made with portobello mushrooms, seitan, and vegan cheese, definitely rivals the original recipe.

Pulled Mushroom BBQ Sandwiches: Dianne Wenz’s pulled mushroom sandwiches smothered in a savory barbecue sauce will win over the most ardent mushroom skeptics. Serve with one of the two simple bean salads recommended for a great meal.

BBQ-Flavored Chickpea Pita Sandwiches: Veggies and your favorite barbecue sauce synergize in a hearty chickpea pita sandwich with great flavor and texture. You can also take these same ingredients and transform them into a wrap.