7 Practical Vegan Cooking Tips for Nutrition Month and Beyond!

In my sphere (Dietetics) March happens to be National Nutrition Month!

So I thought it was a better time than ever to give ya practical vegan cooking tips (both for in the kitchen and for mindset!) – whether you’ve been plant based for a meal or for years!

This article is based on a podcast interview I did with dietitian Edie Shaw-Ewald (@veganforlifedietitian on Instagram)!

She is an ethical vegan who loves cooking, and created the ‘Once a Week Vegan Cooking Club,’ and ‘The Vegan for Life Method’ program. She also has a thriving Facebook community called: The Vegan Curious Community.

Listen to the full episode, or read the main tips below. Let’s dig in!

Disclaimer: This article is just providing information and education. It is not personalized medical or dietary advice. Talk to your doctor about your health or diet questions. See our Disclaimers for more details.

7 Practical Vegan Cooking Tips

Before we dive into the tips – of course it goes without saying (hopefully) that you really should take the time to learn about vegan nutrition.

Check out my Vegan for Beginners Guide for nutrition considerations vegans should know.

For nutrition month and beyond, I’d highly suggest making education about nutrition a priority!

Here’s a quick summary of the ‘7 Vegan Cooking Tips’ (including considerations for mindset) discussed in the podcast episode – but keep reading for a bit more insight into each one!

• Make a Meal Plan
• Utilize an Electric Pressure Cooker
• Consider Canned Beans to Save Time
• Take Advantage of Nutritious Frozen Options
• Manage Your Expectations About Going Vegan (it’s not a health panacea)
• Come Back to Your ‘Why’
• Let Go of Perfectionism

Make a Meal Plan

Edie suggests taking about half an hour each week to to write down a few meals on a note pad or calendar!

‘Theme meals’ can be helpful. For example, you could plan ‘Stew Monday,’ ‘taco Tuesday,’ and ‘Leftover Wednesday.’

P.S. do not forget those leftovers! It’s likely you’ll have some food leftover from previous meals – so put them on your meal plan before they go bad.

Edie adds to be mindful of the time you have to cook, as well as what’s already existing in your fridge and pantry.

Utilize a Electric Pressure Cooker

An electric pressure cooker (Instant Pot as an example) can help you save time on moist cooking methods, like soups, stews, and curries.

It can even save you time on a vegan staple that often requires alot of time to cook: beans!

But there’s another ‘hack’ you can use, especially if you are new to cooking, or need that extra convivence…

Consider Canned Beans to Save Time

Pre-cooked beans from a can are convenient and great to use when you’re short on time.

Simply open the can, pour out the beans, and cook them into the vegan recipe you are attempting!

Here’s some of the many ways I love to use beans, which are important sources of lysine – an amino acid vegans may fall short on if they don’t include legumes:

• Make a chickpea salad sandwich
• Use beans in a grain, veggie, and bean ‘buddha bowl’
• Throw beans on salad
• Use your favorite bean in curries
• Slide beans into soups
• Mash them with avocado for avocado toast

Using canned beans as a short cut makes vegan cooking more approachable.

Try to look for no or reduced sodium canned beans when possible.

Take Advantage of Nutritious Frozen Options

Fruits and veggies don’t have to be fresh all the time!

In fact, frozen varieties have a similar nutrition profile, and are less likely to get wasted because of their longer shelf life.

So don’t shy away from the frozen aisle!

Manage Your Expectations About Going Vegan (it’s not a health panacea)

If you are going into veganism thinking you’ll automatically get healthier, I’ve got news for ya!

Health encompasses many different factors, including mental and physical aspects! Not just what we consume.

So no, vegan does not necessarily equal ‘healthy.’

When it comes to cooking – there are several ways to learn how to cook healthy vegan meals, but on the other hand, less healthy preparation methods may be used by some as well.

Interestingly, those who are more likely to stick with a vegan lifestyle and philosophy in the long run, are often motivated by ethics above potential health benefits.

Which is a nice segway to the next point:

Come Back to Your ‘Why’

It’s what’s going to help you when your family teases you about ‘only eating plants.’

I know it’s tough! Most of the world does not understand veganism as of yet.

So plaster your why on a place you’ll see it the most (maybe that’s your fridge since we are talking about cooking tips) so you’ll be reminded.

Let Go of Perfectionism

Finally, there are no perfect vegans.

In fact, no one is perfect – no matter what subject we are talking about.

The ‘non existent vegan police’ does not help anyone. It further hinders new vegans who are still trying to learn about the various ways in which animal bodies are exploited.

No matter where you are on your vegan journey, I hope you learn to give your journey peace and care.

If you find yourself going back to using animals in your cooking, don’t get hung up on it! Don’t let one meal ruin your journey.

Did you find this helpful? What cooking tips do you have? I’d love to hear about them below!
If you loved this article and podcast episode, you should check out these:
–How to Transition to Veganism
–The Types of Vegans (why there are only 3)
–Vegan Quotes
–Veganuary Recipe Hacks
–5 Reasons to see a Vegan Dietitian
And if you decided to make the switch, you should definitely check out the replay of my talk: 3 Common Mistakes New Vegans Make!’