Browse recipes

Firm tofu pressed and torn (never cut) into craggy nuggets, dipped in mustardy plant milk and coated in seasoned panko. Fry them or bake them; either way they're built for dipping.

A cheap, batch-friendly workhorse: mixed peppers cooked down until silky with sweet onions and tomato, then folded through chickpeas and finished with red wine vinegar and parsley.

Smoky roasted sweet potato, spiced black beans, and enough lime to wake it all up. The roasting tray does most of the work.

A crunchy swap for chips: chickpeas dried hard, roasted until deep golden, then tossed hot with smoked paprika, cumin and garlic powder. Protein and fiber for very few calories.

The Punjabi chickpea curry that earns its place in every weeknight rotation: deeply spiced, made almost entirely from the store cupboard, and better on day two.

The Sunday-night clear-out-the-fridge dinner, done properly: cold rice, a screaming-hot pan, and tofu crisped until golden. Ready before the takeaway would even arrive.

A one-pot Louisiana classic, plant-based. The "holy trinity" of onion, celery and green pepper softened in oil, then rice toasted with Cajun seasoning and smoked paprika and simmered with tomatoes, kidney beans and stock until every grain is tender. Optional vegan sausage pushes the protein higher.

The weekend indulgence: seitan (or mushrooms) seared with soy sauce and vegan Worcestershire, piled into hoagie rolls with charred peppers and onions, then flooded with a blender cashew cheese sauce.

Herby, crisp-edged falafel baked instead of fried, piled into a bowl with salad and a swoosh of tahini. All the flavor, none of the pan of hot oil.

Chickpea flour whisked into a spiced onion base until it becomes a thick, smoky, deeply savory stew. One of the fastest genuinely great things you can cook from a cupboard.

Smoky, garlicky and thick enough to stand a spoon in. Cheap store-cupboard beans turned into something that tastes like it simmered all day.

Red lentils collapsing into coconut milk with Caribbean curry powder, thyme and sweet potato. Ready in half an hour and thick enough to eat with a fork.

Firm green lentils dressed while warm in a sharp Dijon vinaigrette, with plenty of shallot, herbs and walnuts. Good hot, better after an hour, excellent from the fridge.

Soft yellow lentils finished with a tadka: whole spices bloomed in hot oil and poured over at the last second, so it hits the surface and sizzles.

A smoky red pepper and tomato sauce, simmered down until it is thick enough to hold a hollow, with seasoned crumbled tofu nestled into the wells where the eggs would go.

A warm rice bowl with each vegetable seasoned separately, crisp pan-fried tofu, and a sweet-sharp gochujang sauce stirred through at the table. The point is the contrast: you mix it all together yourself.

A composed salad of blanched vegetables, potato, fried tofu and tempeh under a thick, sweet-savory peanut sauce. Substantial enough to be dinner.

A smooth, golden lentil soup finished with paprika butter and a hard squeeze of lemon. Cheap, fast, and one of the most comforting bowls there is.

Marinated tempeh grilled until the edges blacken, served with a thick peanut sauce for dipping. Nutty, smoky and very high in protein.

A cold-noodle bowl built for lunch: crisp lemongrass tofu, rice noodles, herbs and a sharp lime dressing. Assembles from the fridge in minutes once the tofu is done.

A fiercely savory red stew built on well-fermented kimchi, tofu and gochujang. Sour, spicy and bubbling. The older your kimchi, the better this gets.

Green curry paste fried in thick coconut cream until it splits and turns fragrant, then loosened into a fresh, hot, herby curry with eggplant, beans and tofu.

Cornstarch-dusted tofu fried until the edges shatter, then tumbled in a glossy teriyaki glaze that thickens around it in seconds. Steamed broccoli and rice make it dinner.

A silky, deep green spinach curry with cubes of golden pan-fried tofu folded through it. All the comfort of palak paneer with none of the dairy.

The North Indian kidney bean curry that's built for batch cooking: onions taken deep golden, tomatoes cooked until the oil separates, and a few beans mashed against the pan for a thick, creamy gravy without a drop of cream.

Rice noodles tossed in a sweet-sour-salty tamarind sauce with crisp tofu, beansprouts and a heap of crushed peanuts. Everything happens in about four minutes, so get organized first.

Curry powder bloomed in oil until it perfumes the whole kitchen, then chickpeas and potato simmered in coconut until soft and golden. Warming, cheap and quietly fiery.