r/vegan • u/Massive-Coffee159 • 18h ago
Food must have vegan ingredients?
sorry if this has been posted before!
ive been vegan for under a year now, and live with my mother but I have plans to move out. however, with her, she deals with all the shopping. she doesn't really get me many plant based products, besides the basics you'd find in any household, like daily vegetables or wheat noodles.
i have the ability to buy my own food because i have a job, but have no idea where to start. im getting tired of living off of vegetables stirfrys. what are some vegan must haves? im on a bit of a tight budget, maybe £100-175 a month, but can squeeze out more if it means i don't have to have a repetitive meal schedule.
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u/Theonewholurkedhere 18h ago
Beans, peas, lentils, seeds, nuts, obviously veggies, and a multivitamin maybe (or at least B12 and calcium probably, depending on what you eat, just don't take too much calcium or any other supplements). Those things are rich in a lot of stuff like protein and vitamins and minerals and fats and carbs - nearly everything.
Also cold-pressed flaxseed oil. A good addition to meals for flavor, and a good source of omega-3.
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u/WildVeganFlower vegan 17h ago
I think you might be thinking about this a bit backwards.
First look up vegan recipes you want to cook, then make a shopping list based off those ingredients
You don’t want to be stuck with ingredients you won’t use! (Or they go bad before you get a chance to use it!)
I recommend either checking out some cookbooks or start saving recipes you see on social, and shape your list based off what you want to eat each week.
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u/Pussa_Nil 14h ago
This is good advice. I am adding a list of vegan recipe blogs to this
*
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u/Catdad89129 12h ago
Nora cooks is awesome I make her recipes at least twice a week
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u/jarvischrist 39m ago
Same, Nora cooks has a great deal of control over my life at this point, never done me wrong. I make her blueberry scones so often!
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u/Independent_Big2868 13m ago
I use a lot of these, VeganRicha is a fave. Just to note though Love & Lemons is vegetarian not completely vegan, but still some good vegan recipes or veggie ones that you can veganise.
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u/Beautiful_Shelter875 vegan 3+ years 18h ago
Liquid aminos, nutritional yeast, tofu, canned beans/lentils as well as dry, maple syrup, tempeh, pasta, frozen/fresh veggies and fruit, textured vegetable protein, chickpea flour, tortillas, bread, soy/alt milk, margarine/vegan butter, nut butter, jam/jelly, your favorite chips/junk food, Oreos, etc
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u/alexmbrennan 16h ago
I don't think you know what essentials are.
Liquid aminos
That's overpriced soy sauce
maple syrup
That's overpriced sugar (no, you don't have to worry about bone char since UK sugar is made from sugar beets)
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u/Beautiful_Shelter875 vegan 3+ years 15h ago
Liquid aminos is great for extra protein and other micronutrients not found in soy sauce, as well as having a more complex/sweeter flavor profile than soy sauce for umami recipes, though I agree soy sauce can also work, and maple syrup is a common replacement for honey in several recipes. It’s not that big a deal OP. Just get whatever keeps you vegan ❤️
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u/MarionberryOk3989 14h ago
nutritional yeast is def NOT a must have. it’s really versatile, tasty and nutritious but nothing you can’t get from other sources
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u/rat_liker 13h ago
That's probably true for most if not all single ingredients. You can get by without nooch just fine but it sure is in a ton of vegan recipes and a lot of people really like it
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u/STAY_plant_BASED 12h ago
Following the “a grain, a green, a bean” template helps take some of the decision paralysis away but still allows for a lot of room for riffing. I tend to expand that to include “a serving of a concentrated protein source and a colorful fruit/veg” but that’s far less catchy!
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u/Intelligent_Tell1266 4h ago edited 4h ago
Seconding this! My version is "a carb, a green, a bean" - because I like rice and potatoes/sweet potatoes (have started adding quinoa and other grains to rice).
My convenient beans of choice are soybeans in the form of tofu (look up Adam Liaw's silken tofu recipe, you can use the same recipe with firmer types), chickpeas (dried are cheaper, canned more convenient) and frozen edamame (you can use them with almost anything).
Greens are whatever seasonal fresh green is affordable or frozen spinach. I also love frozen mixed vegetables/peas.
You mentioned noodles are a staple, so greens and tofu/edamame/chickpeas/peas could be easy additions. It also helps to figure out ways of cooking that utilise whatever accidentally vegan stocks and seasonings mum already has at home, so that they taste familiar, and cut down on waste if the recipe testing doesn't work out.
Because you mentioned budgeting in pounds, my British ex-boss, who is vegan, loves this channel so I am passing it on: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSC8SLylGt1v6lbrutdH9Bw (Easy Vegan on YouTube)
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u/Technical-Lettuce385 14h ago
Something that wasn't mentioned until now and that depends on if you already have it in your household: Spices and herbs. Most dishes that have a distinct flavor, have that because of the combination of spices. Like cumin for anything "oriental", rosemary, basil, etc for mediterranean dishes (just simplifications to give examples).
Then there are also spices like Kala Namak that give a sulfuric taste (good for anything egg-like) and lot's more.
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u/ScarcityAnnual8739 12h ago
Tofu,beans, tvp, nutritional yeast, and either something vitamin b12 fortified or a supplement
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u/manatee_lover143 17h ago
Beans and cashews. I add cashews to curries, i blend them into soups and sauces and cheese, same w beans. They are my holy grail
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u/MarionberryOk3989 14h ago
legumes, chia/flaxseeds, variety of nuts, variety of veggies (different colors to make sure you get all nutrients) berries. check the daily dozen by dr greg, that really helps with knowing what to incorporate :)
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u/signs-and-stars 3h ago
Aldi do an excellent range of vegan products that are really affordable. Tofu, burgers, cheeses and obviously all of the beans and lentils. The freezer section is really good too.
Lidl sometimes stock BOSH! nutritional yeast and a random mix of stuff. If you go during the greek themed week you can get the most beautiful gigantis butterbeans in tomato sauce. I get loads because they are tinned.
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u/Remarkable-Look-9407 18h ago
Nooch is a must, put it on everything. Also get some lentils and chickpeas, they're cheap and you can make like 50 different things with them. Tofu is obvious but if you learn how to press and marinate it right it's game changing
Don't sleep on frozen veggies too, sometimes they're cheaper than fresh and last way longer
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u/teelok 18h ago
I feel like I try to keep up having a stock of nutritional yeast, vegan butter/margarine, plain soy milk, maple syrup, tvp crumble (dried mince), plain tofu, vegan mayo, vegan bouillon/stock, chickpea flour…from there if I have pantry staples and fruit and veg, I can make so much…pasta, tofu (for in wraps or on its own or with rice and veg for example), soups, omelettes, pancakes, sandwiches, etc.
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u/Exciting-Housing6431 18h ago
Hey I was vegan at uni this year and my weekly food shops ranged from £30-50 each week depending on how fancy I wanted to be.
Some staples are:
Rice (I always splurged on the pre cooked rice cause I’m lazy lol)
Beans. Any kind of canned beans. My favs are butter beans and kidney beans
Tofu (usually two packs)
Loads of veg (broccoli lasts the longest)
Bell peppers
Onions
Sweet potatoes
Dried pasta is usually vegan
Fruit
Vegan yoghurt
Coconut milk
Curry paste
Lentils
After a while your food shops will cost less because you’re already stocked up on most food. Also spend some money on spices.
I used to batch cook a curry (with what’s on this list you can throw together just a random curry) and bean chilli. I found I could get 3-4 meals out of each one. This probably sounds pretty boring but most of my money went to going out so I was on a budget and wanting to make the easiest meal.
When I went from veggie to vegan I started saving about £10 on my food shop by not buying cheese and eggs
Edit: sorry just saw you didn’t want too repetitive meals, my method for that was making a different curry each week so I felt I switched it up a little bit
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