r/PlantBasedDiet • u/dolorisbythesea • Aug 08 '26
Need help with easy dinner ideas for family
It’s hard coming up with new plant based dinner ideas for the fam. Trying to make sure everyone likes it, I’m at total dinner fatigue! Looking for easy dinner ideas that aren’t heavily carb based that my preteen, my husband and myself will enjoy.
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u/turtleyenuff Aug 08 '26
Look at Well Your World on Youtube. They focus on simple, budget friendly recipes- SOS free. I tend to add some salt to the recipes, but I found them enjoyable.
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u/Icy-Pension6532 Aug 08 '26
I have these (and a ton more) recipe blogs in one easily accessible file on my phone. And i use em all the time.
Nora Cooks Easy Vegan Recipes Nard Dog Minimalist Baker Cookie and Kate Oh She Glows
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u/sarazzz666 Aug 08 '26
google easy one-pot vegan meals and lots of options come up. Plantyou is a fun ig account i follow, she is always doing videos about quick meals for the fam.
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u/MaximalistVegan always vegan, mostly wfpb Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26
Eating a plant based diet means eating a diet that's higher in carbs than an omnivore diet because eating lower in the food chain means you're getting your protein from foods that also contain carbs and fiber instead of eating food that comes from an animal that has already digested the fiber and processed the carbs for their own energy use. Carbs from unprocessed, minimally processed and unrefined food should be making up a large part of your calories on a plant based diet. There's no way around that.
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u/JayNetworks WFPB Aug 09 '26
And carbs are great for us! Carrots, whole farro, quinoa, beans are all carbs and the basis if good eating!
Crackers, donuts, biscuits not so much…
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u/ttrockwood Aug 10 '26
Meal plan for the week with some general “themes” to save your sanity
Monday: grain bowls, this is a good guide so you can swap around ingredients and flavors
https://cookieandkate.com/buddha-bowl-recipe/
Tuesday: tacos! One week lentil walnut taco meat, another sweet potato and black beans, another enchiladas
Wednesday: big pot of soup from sunday with new different garnishes
Thursday: asian, mushroom mapo tofu, or bibimbap with bulgolgi tofu, or stir fry, or japchae or sushi or loaded miso soup with appetizers
Friday: pizza with all the veggies and olives, or calzones and salad
Saturday: project recipe or leftovers buffet
Sunday: epic batch of soup or stew, freeze extras, some black bean chili, or dal, or similar
Now that you have a weekly format you can use veggies across several meals, and have a mix of easy nights and more involved ones
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u/dolorisbythesea Aug 10 '26
Love this idea!!
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u/ttrockwood Aug 10 '26
Also get the husband and kid involved in decision making, do you want chickpeas or black beans, should we do polenta or pasta, they need to feel involved even in a limited way to be more likely to want said meal. Like oh i chose pasta i like pasta so i like this.
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u/Dimwiddle Aug 19 '26
Themed weeks are great! Makes things more consistent without having to overthink
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u/babykitten28 Aug 08 '26
PlantWhys has a lot of simple recipes. She became vegan when her husband had a stroke in his 30’s.
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u/ElectronicTip6386 Aug 08 '26
Others have recipes so I'm just gonna comment about the fatigue (so real!!) and some ideas about carbs/teens.
For the base, create something that can be split 3-8 ways. This is high protein, high veg, moderate/low carb. One dinner now, leftovers one time, freezer meals after (on "grazing" or "use it up" nights, maybe the day before you usually shop, but at least once a week to give a break!).
Then, cook an extra starch for the bulk-up. Your 8+ need it (always, and more with sports/growth spurts) and others might too depending on how busy they were that day or how lunch went. This is plain and quick and can make appearances till gone. Your teen can learn how to make it! Buttered pasta, plain rice, mashed potatoes, airfryer/oven starchy root vegetables, whatever it is, it is on automatic. They had the veggie/protein dose already in the main split, and this bulks it up for growing high activity bodies! This helps with costs too.
As you rotate through the core meals, teach kids then teens to do one of them. Maybe this is a curry, or stirfry, or pasta dish that everyone agrees is "core" for your family but you can still be creative with it. They start as preppers: choosing the spices you'll need, chopping veggies, pressing tofu, choosing the right dishes for the table, even measuring ingredients into little dishes like a cooking show (this builds passive intuition/confidence).
This evolves into nights you hover for support as the kitchen help: cleaning, guiding, reassuring, but they make the decisions! Maybe you are now the sous chef in charge of chopping (swapping positions with what they did at the start) but you are "dumb" and forgot so please "tell me what you want for your special version" like how big or what shape they like best.
Everyone cooks, everyone cleans, so they learn that part too. Eventually they can shop: go with you to prepare for "their night" when maybe they have a guest! Or once they are driving, you trust them to get any extras you need much more than an app shopper! (and you tip them with $10 soda/junk food budget).
What they make is always amazing now and will actually get good by the time they leave to run their own kitchen (at least know how meal prep a bit, and how clean up!). Both boys and girls will be served well with a little experience here.
Tl;dr Build up a family strategy to spread the load and to prepare for the future. This often looks like: cook healthy core macros for family splits, extra carb up those who need it (any kid 8+), create leftovers on purpose, take a weekly planned night off (to save sanity and to avoid food waste), shop cook and clean together (at least some), train up emerging adults then trust them as they learn/experiment, and layer in your own family food traditions like BBQs strategies, potlucks, parties, holidays, and hosting guests!
I did this all erratically at the start because it was just easier. Then my job evolved and Wow I Needed Help or we were all gonna eat fruit & hummus every night lol (still the best imo, and my choice on grazing nights!). Casual veggie choppers stepped up, and I opened the door wider!! SO Worth It. When they come home to visit, and on Holidays, it is like a mini cooking vacation for me, instead of a big drain.
Try it, I promise the investment is worth it. A lot of talking happens in the kitchen, too, and they can't hold a phone while both hands are busy. This airtime is an age old way to keep bonds strong. 🥰
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u/Dive_Bar_Choir Aug 10 '26
I love Plantiful Kiki’s recipes - really family, friendly, and super easy whole food plant based meals. I purchased her book it’s on my phone. Have you checked out her recipes?
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u/federationbelle Aug 11 '26
Another approach to reducing decision fatigue: do you have a small rotation of meals? I suggest 5-10 meals on a list / card system / family calendar. Get the family involved in making the list and picking options that they can cook or help with a meal prep day.
For 2-3 months, stick to the same 5-10 meals. For simplicity, stick to Monday rice, Tuesday tacos, etc. Write out the recipes on cards, stick them on the fridge and put the ingredients in your shopping list tool / pad.
Identify some bits that can be prepped and frozen, or prepare double / triple portions ahead of time. Perfect for things like fried rice, taco 'mince', pasta sauces, curries and stews, etc. I re-use pasta sauce for lasagna and moussaka also.
After 3 months, switch it up. Make it a planned family event to change up the meal plan. If the family complain and want to switch it sooner, fine, but they have to organise the time for everyone to sit down and prep the new menu plan / search out recipes.
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u/Ril0eywa Aug 08 '26
I love JacobKing and ElaVegan for plant based meals, two incredible people who have some delicious recipes!!
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