Colorful and tasty, the vegetable-rich vegan stir-fry recipes presented here can serve as easy weeknight meals or festive weekend fare. If rice, noodles, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and plant proteins like tofu, seitan, etc., are staples in your pantry and refrigerator, just add fresh vegetables to make great Asian-inspired meals.
Stir-fries are just about the easiest ways to use up vegetables lingering in your crisper, or that you’ve just brought home from the grocery store or farm market. The savory sauces and seasonings you choose to flavor them might even tempt the most vegetable-shy.
So heat up your stir-fry pan or wok, and let’s get started on these irresistible vegan stir-fry recipes! (all this being said, if you like to be spontaneous, here’s how to make an easy vegetable stir-fry without a recipe.)
Tofu, tempeh, & seitan stir-fries
Stir-Fried Sweet and Sour Vegetables with Seitan, Tempeh, or Tofu: This luscious preparation has several steps, but is made easily and at a leisurely pace. Best of all, it results in a delicious, filling meal.
Sweet-and-Sour Stir-Fried Vegetables and Tofu: The synergy between colorful vegetables, sweet pineapple, and tofu is delightful. Extra-firm tofu is a go-to choice, though the plant protein can be varied each time you make this recipe.
Spicy Eggplant and Tofu in Garlic Sauce is a tasty variation on a well-loved dish in western Chinese restaurants. This interpretation doesn’t aim to be authentic so much as easy and flavorful.
Tofu and Bok Choy Stir-Fry: This quick stir-fry uses two of my favorite shortcuts — a richly-flavored teriyaki marinade and squeeze-bottle ginger. You’ll find teriyaki marinade in the Asian foods section of most any supermarket or natural foods store.
Easy Orange Tofu and Broccoli Stir-Fry: Here’s an easy and delectable stir-fry with two orange flavors — fresh juice and preserves (or marmalade). Making good use of baked tofu, which doesn’t need to be drained or pressed, it’s a meal you can make in a flash on a weekday or savor on a weekend.
Simple Stir-Fried Tofu with Sweet and Savory Flavors: With the synergy of gently sweet and salty flavors, tofu becomes a tasty treat once it turns crisp and golden. When you want a basic tofu dish to boost the protein content of a meal, this might just become your go-to recipe.
Spicy Tempeh and Green Bean Stir-Fry: An easy, spicy tempeh stir-fry contributed by Dianne Wenz proves that these ingredients were meant for each other. Amp up or tone down the spice to suit your taste in this no-fuss vegan main dish.
Buddha’s Delight: Featuring seitan, vegetables, baby corn, and mushrooms, this Buddha’s Delight recipe replicates a Chinese restaurant menu favorite. It’s an easy and delicious vegan dish to copycat at home!
Super-Easy Broccoli and Seitan Stir-Fry: Here’s a simple seitan stir-fry that highlights the unique flavor and texture of this high-protein food. You can think of this as a vegan “beef” and broccoli, or just enjoy it on its own merits.
Noodle & Rice stir-fries
Vegetable Chow Mein: If you’re a fan of stir-fried noodle dishes, this one will be right up your alley. Easy and adaptable, you can make it a little different each time, according to what vegetables are in your fridge (or even your freezer).
Noodles with Fresh Shiitake Mushrooms, Napa Cabbage & Tofu: Here’s a delicious shiitake mushroom pasta recipe with an Asian spin. Embellished with napa cabbage, bell pepper, and scallions, it’s a quick noodle dish flavored with ginger, readymade teriyaki sauce, and an optional blast of Chinese black bean sauce.
Spicy Asian Noodle Stir-Fry with Plant-Based Ground & Cabbage: A classic spicy Asian noodle stir-fry recipe goes vegan with beefy plant-based ground that you spice up. Or, you can go straight to a prepared, spicy plant-based chorizo. Mingled with cabbage and plenty of garlic and scallion, it’s an easy, luscious dish for noodle fans.
Stir-Fried Soba Noodles with Corn and Cabbage: This tasty Asian-inspired dish of stir-fried soba noodles, featuring plenty of cabbage and corn teams especially well with tofu dishes. It’s a noodle dish that’s super quick and easy to prepare and can be on the table in about twenty minutes.
Easy Teriyaki Noodles with Tofu and Broccoli is an stir-fry recipe that’s simple enough to make for a weeknight meal.
Stir-Fried Soba Noodles with Tofu and Vegetables: Featuring broccoli, green peas, mushrooms, and snow peas, this noodle dish makes a quick, light dinner. Super-easy and tasty, all you need to complete this meal is a platter of raw veggies.
Teriyaki Asian Noodles with Tofu and Stir-Fried Vegetables: This vegetable and noodle stir-fry 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.
Green Goodness Vegetable Lo Mein: It’s so easy to make vegetable lo mein, a Chinese restaurant favorite, and this homemade version is bursting with flavorful green vegetables.
Stir-Fried Pineapple Coconut Rice: Pineapple adds a refreshing note to to a hearty, vegetable-filled rice dish, making an everyday meal seem like a special occasion.
Teriyaki Fried Rice and Tofu: This simple rice stir-fry is a sturdy, everyday kind of weekday dinner main dish. Embellished with bell peppers and peanuts, it just might become a mainstay in your repertoire. Having the rice cooked ahead of time makes this a breeze.
“Meaty” vegan stir-fries
Vegan Mongolian Beef: Here’s an easy recipe replicate at home using plant-based beef-style protein or seitan. It’s a kinder, gentler way to enjoy an Asian-style dish. Though not traditional to the dish, this version adds asparagus and bell pepper, though you can use whatever veggies you have on hand.
Vegan Pepper Steak: A plant-powered rendition of a Chinese restaurant favorite, pepper steak is an easy stir-fry to make at home, and a treat to eat. 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.
Vegan Orange “Chicken” and Broccoli: Plant-based “chicken” transforms a Chinese restaurant favorite into a vegan treat. This quick and colorful dinner recipe gets its subtle fruity flavor from a splash of fresh orange juice and preserves — orange or apricot.
Vegan Pad See Ew with Plant-Based Protein: If you’ve ever ordered pad see ew at a Thai eatery, you know that it always comes with a choice of “meat,” so in the case of this vegan version, that can be a variety of plant-based proteins. This is a favorite of mine among many vegan stir-fry recipes!
Vegetable-centered stir-fries
Stir-Fried Sesame Green Beans: Made in-season, stir-fried sesame green beans is a delectable side dish. The window for good, fresh green beans happens in midsummer, so take advantage! Though green beans are generally available year-round, they’re best in season.
Asian-style garlicky and spicy eggplant stir-fry: This one is inspired by a favorite Chinese restaurant dish, at least, the kind that’s on North American menus. Sometimes called eggplant in garlic sauce, it’s so easy to re-create at home.
Korean-Inspired Spicy Eggplant: An easy Asian-style spicy eggplant dish, this uses prepared Korean BBQ sauce or Bulgogi sauce for major flavor impact. This easy and luscious eggplant recipe is an amalgam of inspiration from two Korean classics, gaji bokkeum and gochujang eggplant.
Spicy Stir-Fried Eggplant and Peppers: This recipe is inspired by the spicy and garlicky stir-fried eggplant dish you may have enjoyed at Chinese eateries. It’s so easy to make at home!
Orange-Flavored Stir-Fried Broccoli and Baby Corn: The secret to this incredibly easy and addictively tasty stir-fried broccoli recipe is the addition of orange preserves. It adds a subtle citrus note that makes this side dish irresistible. Use all-fruit (no-sugar) preserves or marmalade.
Stir-Fried Chard with Napa Cabbage: This dish of stir-fried chard combined with napa cabbage is downright addictive, served on its own or over hot cooked rice or noodles. Napa cabbage is a superb companion to dark leafy greens, adding a lighter texture and flavor as well as visual interest.
Ginger & Garlic Stir-Fried Bok Choy: Flavored with ginger and garlic, stir-fried bok choy is quick to prepare and can be served on its own or over rice, quinoa, or noodles.
Braised Bok Choy with Shiitake Mushrooms: Though this is really a braise rather than a stir-fry, it is made in a stir-fry pan, and I didn’t have the heart to leave out this delicious, simple dish. Even with the prep, it takes just minutes to make. It’s good on its own or over rice.
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