It’s a common misconception that being vegan is a time consuming hassle, so we are going to prove to you just how quick and easy making a vegan meal can be. It’s not just going to be a list of salads either and we won’t fob you off with an elaborate recipe for beans on toast – although beans on toast is yummy as well as healthy (especially mixed beans on toast). Here are some very recognisable dishes that will get your mouth watering and get you thinking how convenient being vegan actually is. Check out our 5 Top Five-Minute Vegan Meals!
1. Pizza
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 8-10 minutes
Ingredients/method: Grab a readymade pizza base, a tube or jar of tomato puree, your favourite vegan cheese and any toppings you fancy. I like the Biona Organic Wheat Pizza Base, Tesco`s Tomato Puree, and Vio Life for Pizza Dairy Free cheese. All you have to do is mix one tablespoon of water to every two tablespoons of tomato puree, sprinkle in some herbs of your choice, spread it over the base, grate the cheese, chuck it on and pop it in the oven. Why not share the pizza between a few friends and accompany it with a fresh leafy salad. Vegans can still eat pizza and they can often get very creative about it for you too!
2. BLT
Prep: Less than 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Ingredients/method: Okay so it’s not quite a BLT but more an FLT – Facon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwich but it’s just as wonderful and heaps healthier! Choose your favourite bread and spread a generous amount of your most loved dairy free butter on whilst your Vegan Bacon is cooking away. I personally enjoy the V Bites meat–free streaky rashers. Chop some tomatoes, dice a desired amount of fresh iceberg lettuce and even add a squirt of Free- From mayo on if you crave it. It may be Facon but there is nothing fake about just how delicious this sandwich tastes!
3. Cream Of Tomato Soup
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Ingredients/method: 375g Roma tomatoes, 85g sun dried tomatoes, 20g fresh basil, 60g raw macadamia nuts, 1 teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon white pepper, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1 clove of garlic, 235ml of boiled water. This one is more about getting all the ingredients together because once you have done that, you literally throw it all into a high powered blender and blend for five minutes then you’re done! The cream-less cream of tomato soup is perfect for a cosy night in this winter!
4. Sweet Jacket Potato Beans and Cheese
Prep: Less than 5 minutes
Cooking time: Microwave and oven – 10 minutes (or oven – 50 minutes)
Ingredients/method: I adore a sweet potato instead of the usual jacket potatoes sometimes and of course beans and cheese is a classic topping. I like to swap the traditional baked beans for Heinz Five Beans that include Red Kidney, Haricot, Pinto, Borlotti and Cannellini beans, making this a low fat, high power protein meal! It’s a very back to basics meal to prepare, either bake your potato in the oven for approximately 50 minutes or microwave for around 8 minutes (turning once). A great tip is to bake for a few minutes after in a preheated oven, if you have gone for the quick microwaving option. Grate the dairy free cheese and heat the beans in a pan. An energy-packed filling and homely meal made in just minutes!
5. Creamy Avocado Pasta
Prep: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 8 minutes
Ingredients/method: Another surprisingly creamy vegan dish for you here. Again this is all about putting together the ingredients and giving it a whizz in a food processor. Two ripe avocados, a handful of fresh basil leaves, two cloves of garlic, lemon juice (squeeze half a lemon), and half a tablespoon of olive oil. Cook some pasta or noodles of your choice and chop some baby tomatoes to scatter on top when the pasta and sauce is mixed together. Bon appetite!
Creating relishing, mouthwatering yet very quick vegan meals is easy. I think the reason they may be misconceived as complicated is because the ingredients don’t often come with cooking guidance and instructions -but that’s because everything is so fresh and can be cooked in so many different ways! No freezer packaging here, no rules, just an infinitely abundant variety of options, a ton of different taste sensations and bags of time to spare after dinner is done! Make sure you send us any 5 minute prep meals you’ve rustled up in the kitchen @keepfitkingdom!
