18 Easy Vegetarian Dinners to Make Forever

Estimated read time 6 min read



These easy vegetarian meals make dinner a breeze even on the longest of days. From cheesy pasta to hearty soup and lots of options in between, these meals require just 20 minutes of active time or less. Recipes like our Vegan Coconut Chickpea Curry and Roasted Vegetable & Black Bean Tacos are delicious, filling meals you’ll want to return to again and again.

Some vegetarian recipes contain cheese. If you avoid cheese made with rennet, like Parmesan, burrata and some goat cheeses, it’s a good idea to check product labels. You should easily find plenty of excellent vegetarian substitutes in the dairy case in most supermarkets.

Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pasta

If you’ve ever wanted to make a meal out of warm spinach and artichoke dip, this creamy pasta is for you. And here’s what’s almost as good as the flavor of this comforting dish: the fact that this healthy dinner takes just 20 minutes to prepare.

Butternut Squash & Cauliflower Soup with Chickpea Croutons

Bulk up boxed butternut squash soup with frozen cauliflower florets, then top off your bowl with crispy chickpea snacks for a major crunch (look for them near the dried fruit and nuts at your grocery store). This impressively easy dinner comes together with just those three ingredients, not including salt, pepper and oil. Because prepared soups are typically higher in sodium, look for light or reduced-sodium versions of your favorites.

Roasted Vegetable & Black Bean Tacos

These hearty vegan tacos are quick and easy to make, perfect for busy weeknights. They are so tasty that no one will miss the meat or dairy.

Chickpea & Quinoa Bowl with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Quinoa and chickpeas pack this vegetarian grain bowl with plenty of plant-based protein. Whip up a batch of these Mediterranean meals and pack them in containers with lids to stash in the fridge for easy, healthy grab-and-go lunches all week long.

Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Chickpeas & Spinach

Simmer eggs in a rich tomatoey cream sauce studded with chickpeas and silky spinach for a super-fast vegetarian dinner. Serve with a piece of crusty bread to soak up the sauce. Be sure to use heavy cream; a lower-fat option might curdle when mixed with acidic tomatoes.

Chhole (Chickpea Curry)

This healthy Indian recipe is a flavorful chickpea curry that you can make in just 20 minutes. Also called chana masala, this dish is a comforting and delicious dinner.

Creamy Broccoli Pasta

Brie Passano

If you’re looking for a simple weeknight pasta dish, look no further. This vegetarian dinner is done in only 20 minutes and packs plenty of broccoli along with creamy goodness thanks to mascarpone cheese and low-fat Greek yogurt.

Vegan Coconut Chickpea Curry

To make this 20-minute vegan curry even faster, buy precut veggies from the salad bar at the grocery store. To make it a full, satisfying dinner, serve over cooked brown rice. When shopping for simmer sauce, look for one with 400 milligrams of sodium or less and check the ingredient list for cream or fish sauce if you want to keep this vegan. If you like a spicy kick, add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce at the end.

Spinach Ravioli with Artichokes & Olives

Store-bought spinach ravioli and a handful of basic pantry items are all you need to get a healthy dinner on the table in 15 minutes. Ingredients like oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, briny Kalamata olives and toasty pine nuts help to build big flavor fast. If you can’t find frozen artichokes, swap in a 15-ounce can (just be sure to drain and rinse them well).

Black Bean-Quinoa Bowl

Photography: Carson Downing, Food Stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop Stylist: Gabe Greco


This black bean and quinoa bowl has many of the usual hallmarks of a taco salad, minus the fried bowl. We’ve loaded it up with pico de gallo, fresh cilantro and avocado plus an easy hummus dressing to drizzle on top.

Easy Pea & Spinach Carbonara

Fresh pasta cooks up faster than dried, making it a must-have for fast weeknight dinners like this luscious yet healthy meal. Eggs are the base of the creamy sauce. They don’t get fully cooked, so use pasteurized-in-the-shell eggs if you prefer.

Cauliflower Tikka Masala with Chickpeas

In this vegetarian riff on a popular Indian dish, we swap in cauliflower and chickpeas for the chicken in tikka masala. The cauliflower’s nooks and crannies are particularly good at soaking up all the intense flavors of the sauce. Serve over rice for an easy healthy dinner that’s ready in just 20 minutes.

Beefless Vegan Tacos

Take taco night in a new direction with these healthy vegan tacos. We’ve swapped crumbled tofu for the ground beef, without sacrificing any of the savory seasonings you expect in a taco. You can also use the filling in burritos, bowls, taco salads and to top nachos.

Pea Pesto Gnocchi with Burrata

Jacob Fox

Here we pan-fry gnocchi to get them crispy, then coat them with a pesto-like sauce made with sweet peas, spinach, basil and cashews.

Spaghetti & Spinach with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

Photography / Kelsey Hansen, Styling / Greg Luna

To achieve flavor quickly in this sun-dried tomato pasta recipe, we use the oil from sun-dried tomatoes to create the base of the cream sauce. Meanwhile, the residual heat of the pasta wilts the spinach in record time for a fast weeknight dinner.

Easy Eggplant Stir-Fry

Alexandra Shytsman


This eggplant stir-fry is easy to make. We call for long and tender Japanese eggplant, but regular eggplant will work well too, cut into 1-inch pieces. Jalapeño peppers can vary from mild to very spicy. If you need to cut the heat, opt for small sweet peppers in their place.

Hearty Tomato Soup with Beans & Greens

Garlicky kale and creamy white beans elevate simple canned tomato soup into a 10-minute lunch or dinner that really satisfies. Use a soup with tomato pieces for a heartier texture. Look for a brand that’s low- or reduced-sodium, with no more than 450 mg sodium per serving.

Pesto Ravioli with Spinach & Tomatoes

This easy ravioli recipe calls for just five ingredients but is loaded with fresh flavors. By using grape tomatoes, prewashed spinach and prepared pesto, we eliminate all prep work, making this 15-minute caprese-inspired ravioli the ideal weeknight meal.



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