Feeling hungry? If you’re in the mood for an oh-so-satisfying meal, but don’t want to fork out for it, we have the answer. Whipping up vegetarian dishes could save you a load of money. Let’s take a look at some of the tastiest meals you could make for dinner tonight.
- Cheap and Easy Bean Chilli
- Mozzarella and Tomato Omelette
- Veggie Fajitas
- Spiced Chickpea Pita
- Tofu Scramble
- 5-Minute Dahl
- Italian Tomato Bruschetta
1. Cheap and Easy Bean Chilli
Craving some delicious Tex-Mex? You don’t have to splash the cash at a fancy restaurant to get the taste that you love. Making a bean chilli at home could not be easier. To get started, you simply need to choose your beans. Kidney beans and pinto beans are a must but butter beans also work surprisingly well and soak up a ton of flavour. Delicious.
The recipe here from Brand New Vegan is super simple to follow. The cheap vegetarian dish includes onions, peppers, garlic, tinned tomatoes, veggie broth, chilli powder, refried beans, and jalapeños. Of course, you can be a little experimental and use whatever you have in the kitchen. So long as you have the basics down, feel free to add any extra veggies you please, such as carrots, leaks, and more. Serve with bread!
2. Mozzarella and Tomato Omelette
When you’ve got a hankering for pricey pizza, but can’t afford a delivery, why not make this instead? Whipping up a mozzarella and tomato omelette will help you satisfy your craving while keeping your bank balance in check. The ingredients for this dish are simple: mozzarella, basil leaves, some cherry tomatoes, eggs, seasoning, and butter.
Needless to say, if you don’t happen to have a basil plant in your kitchen, you can use dried basil for this one. All you have to do is whisk the eggs and melt the butter in the pan. Next, you add the tomatoes and mozzarella balls and start cooking. When they are part-cooked, you add the egg mixture and then finish with the basil leaves.
3. Veggie Fajitas
Looking for a quick weeknight meal? For this recipe, you will need some colourful bell peppers, a red onion, mushrooms, garlic, and some tortillas. That makes the basic recipe. However, if you want to spice things up (and you do!), you will also need some tasty toppings. You’re free to choose whatever you want. You might want to top this dish with a spicy sauce, some fresh chillies or even some lime juice.
The good news is that you don’t have to be a pro chef to make this cheap veggie meal. It’s not that difficult at all. To get started, you simply need to heat up your tortillas in the oven. Next, you slice and cook the vegetables in a pan. You can put all of the fillings into the same pan, which makes things super easy. Finally, make your fajitas and enjoy!
4. Spiced Chickpea Pita
Before you get started, you will need some tinned chickpeas, a few whole grain pitas and a dash of olive oil. When it comes to spices, you can choose whatever you like. For this recipe, you’ve got paprika, cumin, and cayenne pepper. However, if you fancy getting some chilli powder involved here, feel free to make your meal extra tasty.
It doesn’t end there. You will also need half a red onion, some parsley, garlic, chilli and a lemon too. Slice all of your veggies to get started and then cook them in a pan. Add the chickpeas and stir well. Next up, you need to sprinkle on the spices and make sure that the contents of the pan is completely covered. When you’ve done all of the above, it’s simply a case of heating up the pita bread and assembling your wraps. Yummy!
5. Tofu Scramble
Whether you’re vegan or simply want to try something new, a tofu scramble is a cheap and easy meal. For this dish, you will need firm tofu, nutritional yeast (optional), salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, dried chives, mixed Italian herbs, salt reduced tamari and chilli flakes (optional). Making the recipe is simply a case of breaking up the tofu in a preheated pan to give it the ‘scrambled’ effect that you would get with eggs.
Once you’ve done that, you can start adding the extra ingredients that will give your meal some real flavour. While there are many different herbs and spices here, you can choose whatever you please. You might want to add some turmeric to give the dish a rich colour or add some extra chilli into the mix. Serve the dish with some tasty fresh tomatoes.
6. 5-Minute Dahl
If you love curry, you’re going to enjoy this next one! Believe it or not, you can make a dahl in just five minutes. The recipe from The Happy Pear is super simple and you don’t need any expert curry-making skills to get it right. For this one, they use tinned chickpeas and lentils. Of course, you can use dried ones if you want but getting the tins is faster.
The easy-to-master recipe combines ginger, garlic, spring onions, chickpeas, lentils, spinach, coconut milk, lime juice, curry powder, turmeric, cherry tomatoes, cumin, salt and pepper. You can choose to serve this dish with some fresh bread, pitas, or naans.
7. Italian Tomato Bruschetta
Here’s a dish that looks super fancy on the surface…. But is actually just fresh tomatoes on toast. Bruschetta is ideal if you’re in the market for a quick and cheap vegetarian meal. You will need some fresh tomatoes, basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, dried oregano, salt, and some balsamic vinegar. Simply mix that together and prep your bread.
You can use a baguette or any other crusty bread. You will also need some garlic, which you can peel and then rub on the bread to give it a strong taste. Then, you add some more olive oil to the bread and toast it (under the grill is best!). Finally, you should add your tomato mixture to the top of the bread and serve. You won’t regret this one!
Conclusion
Dinner is sorted! Now that you’ve got these amazing veggie recipes, it’s time to get started. Why not hit the kitchen and start preparing your meals? These dishes are so tasty that we’re sure you won’t miss the meat. Grab your chef’s hat and get started now.
