I get it. It can seem like the world revolves around meat eaters. Bacon this. Hamburger that. Gravy on everything (okay, now I’m getting hungry). Yes, we’re omnivores here at Sporked, but we taste and rank a lot of vegetarian food—and we know that vegetarians need dinner recommendations once in a while, just like meat eaters do. Maybe even more so. Feeling stuck? Bored with what you always buy at the grocery store? Tired of getting takeout from that one vegetarian spot that always screws up your order just a little bit? We have vegetarian dinner ideas for you. From a vegan pizza that’s like fast food on crust to veggie tacos with all the fixins, here’s our list of what to eat for dinner if you don’t eat meat.
- Trader Joe’s Vegetarian Meatless Cheeseburger Pizza
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As a concept, cheeseburger pizza may make the pizza purists in your life want to cry, but hear us out. Trader Joe’s Vegetarian Meatless Cheeseburger Pizza is unreal—and it was even endorsed by Sporked‘s resident fake meat freak, Jordan Myrick. It’s the Trader Joe’s crust you know and love smeared with burger sauce and scattered with cheddar cheese, “beefy” crumbles, and sweet pickle chips. Sounds nuts, tastes great. Jordan described it as “gooey, meatlessly meaty, and savory,” and, honestly, my meat-eating mouth is watering just thinking about it. The pro move is to buy a few of these and keep them in the freezer for nights you’d feel guilty eating out but don’t want to cook.
Read the full review of Trader Joes Vegetarian Meatless Cheeseburger Pizza
- Alpha Plant-Based Mexicali Burrito
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If you’re a seasoned Sporked reader who keeps a handy list of all the vegetarian dishes we find (people do that, right?), I’m sure you’re well aware of this one. Alpha Plant-Based Mexicali Burrito is so good that when we ranked frozen beef burritos, it beat out all the burritos made with actual meat. It’s filled with “meatless beef-style crumble,” dairy-free spicy cheddar cheese, and onions in taco sauce. It’s very meaty in a fake meat sort of way. Sporked managing editor Gwynedd Stuart admitted that this isn’t going to trick any meat eaters into thinking they’re eating beef, but that’s a good thing—a lot of frozen beef burritos are filled with oily, low-grade, flavorless beef. This is a perfect vegetarian dinner idea, all rolled up in a handy little package. Top it with some sour cream (or vegan sour cream if you don’t do dairy) and serve it on a bed of lettuce.
Read the full ranking of the best beef burritos
- Veggie Tacos
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Don’t skip taco Tuesday when you’re planning out your vegetarian dinner ideas. We put together a guide to all the best stuff for vegan taco night: veggie chorizo, veggie Mexican cheese shreds, vegan sour cream, and a bunch of tasty accoutrement that just happen to be vegetarian, like the best guac and salsa. If you crave crunchy tacos, skip that sad black bean taco supreme from Taco Bell and give these ingredients a shot.
Read the full breakdown of the best vegan taco ingredients
- Veggie Burgers
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Okay, if you’re vegetarian, you’re probably rolling your eyes right now. Like, really, I read a list of vegetarian dinner ideas for this dude to suggest I make veggie burgers? But before you slam your laptop shut and make another Boca burger, let me recommend veggie burgers made with a patty you may not have tried yet—a really, really good patty. TMRW The Burger bills its patties as “savory, juicy, and smoky” on the packaging, and they really all those things. These burgers are seasoned with smoked paprika, cumin seed powder, coriander powder, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder, which Gwynedd said gives them “a really elegant flavor that won’t overwhelm your taste buds.” Okay, if you’re sold, check these out and then follow our instructions for making the ultimate veggie burger.
Read the full breakdown of the best veggie burger ingredients
- Beyond Italian Style Meatballs
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Spaghetti and meatballs will always be my comfort meal when I only want to put in the bare minimum. They’re easy to cook alongside each other—just let your meatballs warm up in a bath of marinara sauce as your pasta cooks, and you’re good to go. Cooking gets even easier when you’re dishing up vegetarian dinner ideas. Real meat can be so finicky; fake meat is east. And, really, these Beyond meatballs are about as close as you can get to real meat. As Jordan put it, “These look and taste like meat. There’s a nice bouncy texture. They’re lightly seasoned and have a strong savory, meaty umami-ness.” Boil some spaghetti, heat up a pot of marinara with a few of these suckers submerged in it, and tell me this isn’t one of the best vegetarian dinner ideas.
Read the full ranking of the best veggie meatballs
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!