Save money, time, animals, and, the planet with this 3-Day Cheap Vegan Meal Prep! All recipes are Belgian-inspired. Think Waffles, Vol-Au-Vent, and Mash.
Staying on a budget, while including more vegan meals into your diet, can be overwhelming especially if you are new to veganism. Being prepared, by meal prepping budget-friendly vegan meals ahead of time can help a lot! As you know, failing to prepare is preparing to fail.
In this post, I will share how you can eat vegan on a budget, what the best meal prep containers are, and how long meal prep stays fresh in the fridge.
Lastly, I will share why I chose Belgian recipes for this prep as well as the step-by-step instructions on how to prepare three breakfasts, three lunches, and three dinners which will last in the fridge for up to four days and are cheap to make.
This post is all about cheap vegan meal prep!
Cheap Vegan Meal Prep:
How To Eat Vegan On A Budget
Batch Cook
Firstly, cooking from scratch is a super effective money-saving strategy. Many vegan staples such as grains, legumes, seasonal fruits, and vegetables are some of the most budget-friendly foods out there. If you on top of that, plan your meals, and batch cook them for the week or for the freezer, you will save even more money.
Buy Seasonal Produce
Eating according to the seasons is one of the easiest ways to minimize the cost of your food. Seasonal produce tends to be less expensive than buying fruit and vegetables during their off-season. This can be explained by the concept of supply and demand. In-season produce is large in supply and thus cheaper to keep up with the demand.
Prepare Simple Meals
Simple meals that contain few ingredients will likewise help to keep your monthly grocery bill in check.
Related post: How Do Vegans Eat Healthy On A Budget? – 11 Habits To Try
What Are The Best Containers For Meal Prep?
Stainless Steel Containers
For meals that don’t need to be reheated, I highly recommend the U-Konserve – To-Go Stainless Steel Containers. These containers are lightweight, leak-resistant, and a more durable and sustainable alternative to plastic containers. I simply swear by them! For some inexplicable reason, stainless steel containers make every no reheat meal feel like a feast. U-Konserve containers are the only ones I have found that are leak-resistant, so far.
Glass Containers
For meals that need to be reheated, I swear by the LOCK & LOCK Purely Better Glass Food Storage Container with Lid. This borosilicate glass container is both microwave and oven-safe, as well as dishwasher and freezer-friendly. It doesn’t stain and has a luxurious feel to it, making it very enjoyable to eat from.
Related post: What Are The Best Meal Prep Containers?
How Long Can You Keep Meal Prep In The Fridge?
You should keep prepared meals in the fridge for no longer than four days, in my opinion! After four days, they simply lose too much of their flavor and nutritional quality. If you want to prep for more than four days ahead of time, I recommend opting for freezer meals (such as this Black Bean Chili).
Related post: How Long Does Vegan Meal Prep Last? + Meal Prep Storage Tips
A lot of meals, especially soups and stews, can easily be frozen for at least 3 months. For easy storing and thawing, freeze your meals in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. When using a freezer bag, squeeze out as much air as possible.
Why Belgian Recipes?
I grew up in Belgium, eating mostly simple traditional Belgian recipes. I associate them with being very satisfying and incredibly affordable and thus thought it was a good idea to dedicate a meal prep recipe post to them, to bring some Belgian recipes to your kitchens.
3-Day Cheap Vegan Meal Prep [Belgian Recipes Edition]
Equipment
- large mixing bowl
- waffle maker
- small saucepan
- small non-stick frying pan
- medium pan or pressure cooker
Ingredients
Easy Chickpea Flour Waffles
- 180 g (1.5 cup) chickpea flour
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 310 ml (1 and 1/3 cup) water
- 30 ml (2 tablespoons) vegetable oil I used grapeseed oil
- 10 ml (2 teaspoons) vanilla extract
- 10 ml (2 teaspoons) baking powder
Blueberry Compote
- 2 cups frozen blueberries
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Vegan Vol-Au-Vent with Rice
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter or margarine I used Flora vegan margarine
- 2 tablespoons chickpea flour
- 2 cups soy milk soy milk is the most affordable plant milk, but you can use any plant milk
- 1/4 teaspoon (or more to taste) salt
- 1/4 teaspoon (or more to taste) nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
- 1 tablespoon water (optional)
- juice of 1 lemon
- fresh parsley or thyme finely diced
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter or margarine I used Flora vegan margarine
- 225 g mushrooms sliced
- 190 g vegan chicken-style strips I used Fry's chicken-style strips
- 3 cups cooked rice I used Jasmine rice
Stoemp (Belgian Vegetable Mash) with Vegan Sausage
- 600 g potatoes peeled and chopped
- 3 tablespoons vegan butter or margarine I used Flora vegan margarine
- 1/4 of a large cabbage finely sliced
- 6 vegan sausages I used Fry's braai-style sausages
- 1/4 cup soy milk soy milk is the most affordable plant milk, but you can use any plant milk
- 1/4 teaspoon (or more to taste) nutmeg
- pepper
- salt
- fresh parsley or celery leaves
Instructions
Easy Chickpea Flour Waffles
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the chickpea flour, and salt. Add the water and oil, whisking again until smooth. Allow the batter to rest for at least 15 minutes. You could also make the batter the night before your prep and allow to rest overnight. The resting period will thicken the batter! When ready to bake, whisk in the baking powder.
- Preheat your waffle maker! Once hot, spray with cooking spray and ladle on the batter. The amount of batter will differ depending on the size of your waffle maker. My waffle maker requires 1/3 cup of batter per waffle.
- Bake until the waffles are golden brown. The cooking time will likewise depend on your waffle maker. My waffle maker took about 8 minutes per waffle.
- Allow the waffle to cool down on a cooling rack. Once cooled, divide the waffles between 3 meal prep containers and store them in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Blueberry Compote
- Add all the blueberry compote ingredients to a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Cook them for about 8 minutes until the blueberries start popping and a thicker consistency is reached.
- Add the compote to a medium container or divide between 3 small containers.
Vegan Vol-Au-Vent with Rice
- Start by making a bechamel sauce. In a small saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of vegan butter or margarine over medium heat. Once melted, whisk in the chickpea flour to create a paste.
- Whisking constantly and vigorously, cook the paste for about two minutes. This will cook out the flour taste. Reduce heat to low and slowly whisk in one cup of milk, until well combined. Add salt and nutmeg. Then, add the rest of the milk, while continuing to whisk.
- Bring to a boil and then immediately bring to a simmer, while continuing to whisk and cook the sauce for about 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened. If you want a thicker bechamel, whisk together 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl and add to the simmering bechamel, whisking constantly until thickened.
- Remove the bechamel from the heat and whisk in the lemon juice and fresh parsley or thyme.
- In a large saute pan, melt 1 tablespoon of vegan butter or margarine over medium heat and saute the sliced mushrooms until they are soft with deep brown color – 10-15 minutes.
- Fry the vegan chicken-style strips according to the package instructions in a small non-stick frying pan.
- Add the mushrooms and chicken-style strips to the bechamel sauce until combined.
- Divide the Vegan Vol-Au-Vent amongst 3 meal prep containers and serve with rice. Garnish with some fresh parsley or thyme!
- Store in the fridge for up to four days!
Stoemp (Belgian Vegetable Mash) with Vegan Sausage
- Add the potatoes to a medium pan or pressure cooker and add water until the potatoes are fully submerged. Add some salt and cook until tender when pierced with a fork. See notes.
- Add a tablespoon of the vegan butter or margarine to a saute pan and heat over medium-high heat. Once it has melted, add the cabbage. Season with pepper and salt, to taste. Fry the cabbage, stirring regularly until the cabbage has softened and slightly browned for about 10 minutes.
- Add a tablespoon of the vegan butter or margarine to a small non-stick frying pan and heat over medium-high heat. Once it has melted, fry the vegan sausages according to the package instructions.
- Once the potatoes are tender, drain the water and add them back to the pan they were cooked in. Add the milk, a tablespoon of vegan butter or margarine, nutmeg, pepper and, salt. Mash the potatoes! Add more milk, if necessary. Also, taste test and add more nutmeg, pepper, and salt if necessary.
- Stir the sauteed cabbage through the mashed potatoes until well-combined.
- Divide the stoemp amongst 3 meal prep containers. Top each with two sausages. Garnish with some fresh parsley or celery leaves!
- Store in the fridge for up to four days!
Notes
- For cooking potatoes in the pressure cooker: they will take about 5-7 minutes on high pressure until they are tender.
- For cooking potatoes on the stove: they will take about 10 minutes on high heat until they are tender.
Nutrition
This post was all about cheap vegan meal prep!