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Last updated on January 9th, 2023 at 12:06 am
What Should Be on a Vegan Food List For Beginners?
The perfect vegan food list for beginners includes:
- Protein
- Grains
- Fruits
- Nuts
- Veggies
- Vegan dairy products (if desired)
- Vegan sweet treats
Building a stellar vegan food list for the grocery store is not hard. But it can seem a little unfamiliar if you’re just getting started with a vegan diet.
We’re here to dig into all of the creative food choices you can pile onto your shopping list.
Let’s get started!
Vegan Shopping Schedule
Typically vegans need to shop 1-2 times per week.
Veggies and fruit go bad fast. It takes a little practice in our routine to get used to this. A trip to the grocery usually occurs a bit more frequently for vegans (about 2x a week).
- Shop often
- Choose mindfully
- Have a plan for how you’re going to use foods that are new to you (such as a recipe planned out)
- Divest from your standard shopping trail
Grab your veggies and fruit first. These will be staples for flavor, go-to snacks, and to bulk up any meal. Start with what you like and explore one new option to get creative with a week.
Vegan Grocery List PDF Download
Grab this free vegan shopping list and 7-day meal plan to get you started. This vegan meal plan is HAES aligned and does not contain any calorie or macronutrient information.
Beginners Guide For Going Vegan
Be gracious with yourself! If you’ve got 40 years of mainstream dietary habits tucked under your belt, it’s pretty unlikely that we’re going to unravel them all in one shining veganuary!
Nutrition experts offer this advice- “Ease into it. Set a deadline for yourself and try a new vegan recipe at least once a week to build up your repertoire until you have enough, trusted, uncomplicated go-to recipes”. Jean LaMantia, RD
- Practicing proper storage of veggies and herbs to prevent food waste.
- Prolong the shelf life and taste of fruits/veggies by storing them properly.
- Learn to grow your own! Build an herb garden in your kitchen so you’re never left lacking. And leave that damn packaged junk that always leaves you lacking where it belongs at the grocery for someone else!
- Buy one new crazy plant or products at the grocery and USE IT each week. This could be anything from cactus to amaranth. Let’s unlock the gates of your tiny food jail and learn to explore!
Vegan Protein
There are a TON of excellent easy to prepare vegan protein choices out there.
Choosing protein from plants does not need to be hard. Here are a few good vegan proteins for your grocery list:
- soybeans, soy products, or tofu
- explore amaranth, quinoa, or buckwheat
- hemp or chea seeds are a win
- beans or lentils
- faux meats (fake meats)
- include almonds or other types of nuts
It might surprise you to learn, that most Americans don’t have any problem getting protein into their diet! This includes vegetarians and vegans.
Vegans typically get their protein by combining multiple plant products into one meal (for example beans and rice). Foods that must be combined to get in all the essential amino acids needed are called complimentary proteins.
Use vegan proteins in recipes like:
Vegan Grain Choices
Here are some great vegan grains for your shopping list.
- Amaranth
- Buckwheat
- Quinoa
- Oats
- Millet
- Bread
- Rice
Many grains also contain a good amount of protein! This includes Quinoa which is actually a complete protein (meaning it contains all the essential amino acids our body needs in one spot!).
Use your favorite vegan grains to create recipes like:
Vegan Spice List
Get those spices in the pantry and learn to use them!
Try this trick: ditch those STUPID VARIETY-SHAPED pre-packed spice bottles. Matching containers can make your kitchen look great and keep spices accessible and fresh.
Bulk spices for your vegan grocery list include:
- Mustard Seed-Lends a deep earthy flavor
- Coriander- subtle sweet and sour flavor. Often found in Ethiopian or Southeast asian cuisine. Use whole seed or powder.
- Garlic Powder
- Cumin-rich and earthy. Typically used in taco seasonings and chili powders.
- Tumeric-Earthy, bitter spice. Popular in Indiana dishes such as curries and Dahl.
- Nutritional Yeast: Cheesy flavor. Great as seasoning, in soups or as a sauce.
- Rosemary-powerful sharp flavor. Used in soups, salads, casseroles.
- Sage- a powerfully flavored herb. Add to bean dishes, infuse honey with sage, or add to polenta.
- Thyme
- Oregano
Spices are important for vegan dishes like:
Egg and Dairy Alternatives For Vegans
Egg alternatives for vegans include:
- ground flaxseed
- almond, coconut milk, or soy milk.
- finely ground chia seed
- silken soy in place of eggs
- Silken soy
Egg replacement in recipes has become increasingly common with not only vegans but also for those with egg allergies.
Dairy and egg alternatives are excellent for making vegan deserts including:
Which Cooking Oils Are Vegan
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Light Olive oil
- Coconut Oil
- Peanut Oil
- Flaxseed oil
- Sesame Oil
- Walnut Oil
- Almond Oil
- Hemp seed oil
- Grapeseed Oil
- Avocado Oil
Below you will find a chart on how to use your vegan cooking oils.
Oils with the highest smoke points will withstand best under high heat. Making sure you don’t go above an oil’s intended smoke point will help keep nutrients and flavor in check.
Oils with lower smoke points are best used with cold dishes like salads.
Infused oils are also an excellent easy way to add flavor to foods!
B12 and Iron Rich Foods For Vegans
Both iron and B12 can be found with the right combination of vegan foods or supplements, but they do require a little extra attention.
B12 is important for neurological function and red blood cell formation. The best sources of B12 for vegans include
- Fortified cereals
- Fortified nutritional yeast
- Cremeni mushrooms
- Tempeh
Pack The Pantry
Some excellent pantry staples include:
- Beans-dried and canned
- Lentils
- Quinoa
- Spelt
- Millet
- Bulger
- Nutritional Yeast
- Tempeh
- Nuts (cashews, almonds, pistachio’s, walnuts)
- Seeds (pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, hemp seeds, flax seeds)
- Dried Fruits
- Tahini
- Peanut & Almond Butter
10-Minute Vegan Meals and Snacks
- Veggies & Hummus
- Mixed nuts and dried fruit
- Bean & Quinoa wrap with cashew sauce
- Rice cakes with nut butter and seeds
- Fruit smoothie
- Chips and Salsa
- Mixed greens with garbanzo beans, tahini, balsamic and oil
- Overnight oats
With regular pre-prepping, this “less work than a PB & a list can quickly expand exponentially! Lazy is the best vegan way to be.
Vegan Grocery List Quick Tips
Protein, fruits, veggies, grains, nuts, vegan dairy products, sweet treats and faux meats if desired.
Beans, Lentils, Tofu, Textured Vegetable Protein, Nuts, Seeds, Nut Butters
Flaxseed (mixed with water), Silken tofu, Firm Tofu (crumbled for scrambled eggs) or Just Egg
vegan cooking oils, nutritional yeast, canned or dried beans, spelt, quinoa, millet, bulger, dried fruit and nut butters
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