When you’re an adult, there are things people warn you about. You have to learn how to file taxes, you suddenly have a lot less free time, and your hangovers last 3-4 business days. But there’s one thing that’s more difficult than anything else. Something all adults have to do, that no one warns you about in advance, and leaves you scratching your head wondering how you’re supposed to do it every single evening for the rest of your life. As adults, we have to decide, every day, what we’re cooking for dinner.
This doesn’t seem like it would be difficult. But planning meals, sourcing ingredients, and finding the energy to cook day after day is a lot harder than it looks. It gets worse when you limit what you eat. So if you think it’s bad, a vegetarian on a keto diet probably isn’t having much of a good time either.
Luckily, for all you veggies out there (and anyone else up for trying new things), we’re kind of experts when it comes to diets and meal planning. So, if you want to have a weekly meal plan bursting with tasty meal ideas that also meet your keto dietary needs, then read on!
What Is The Keto Diet?
Keto, or Ketogenic, is a high-fat, low-carb diet. It works by making you get fewer calories from carbohydrates and more from fat and protein. This forces the body to break down fat for energy rather than carbs, which results in ketosis, the creation of ketones.
These ketones will be used by the body for energy, which will result in weight loss (provided that you’re in a calorie deficit).
How Is Your Food Intake Broken Down?
Typically, someone following the keto diet will have:
75% fats
20% proteins
5% carbs
per day. This can seem difficult to do, but eventually, your body will become accustomed to it.
Tasty Meal Ideas
So, now that you know what the keto diet is, here are some tasty vegetarian meal ideas following its guidelines to ensure you’re taking in what you need – and enjoying it too!
These are high-quality recipes that’ll have you feeling well-nourished and satisfied. There’s nothing quite like a hearty dinner – it is one of the finer things in life.
1. Sauteed Kale with Garlic Lemon
Not only is this a great keto recipe, but it is also vegan and gluten-free! This is a tasty side dish that goes well with soup or any mains. Not to mention, kale has wonderful health benefits too!
2. Cream of Mushroom Soup
This cream of mushroom soup fills the body and warms the heart. This creamy soup is quick to make and is perfect for any season. The combination of chili and garlic gives this meal a great kick, while the mushrooms give it a sweet touch to create that perfect balance.
3. Air Fryer Eggplant Pizza
Going on a keto diet doesn’t mean you need to give up the foods you love – you just have to come up with creative ways to eat them! One of these ways is by making this eggplant pizza. Eggplant is one of the healthiest vegetables (that’s actually a fruit!), and it tastes amazing with cheese and pizza sauce.
4. Crispy Air Fryer Cauliflower
These crispy air fryer cauliflower wings taste so good you’ll be convinced chicken wings are a thing of the past. Aside from the taste, the best thing about this recipe is its versatility. These crispy cauliflower wings can go with just about any meal – buddha bowls, salads, in a warm, cauliflower soup…you name it!
5. Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup
Think you’ve tasted good tomato soup? Think again. This is the ultimate comfort food that is also great for you in terms of nutrients. Red bell peppers are high in beta-carotene and tomatoes contain a lot of lycopene. What a perfect combo!
6. Vegan Cauliflower Hash Browns
America’s beloved breakfast item just got even better thanks to the tasty crunch of cauliflower. This superfood has a copious amount of nutritional value.
From cell protection to a healthier nervous system, to a lowered risk of heart disease, you know you’re enjoying a delicious meal and taking care of your body with this recipe!
7. Cabbage Gratin With Vegan Cheese
Using hemp seeds and tahini as a replacement for the high-carb soaked cashews, this vegan cheese, and cabbage gratin proves that many foods can be made to fit a keto diet provided you learn a few extra, easy food and cooking skills.
8. Cauliflower Fried Rice
Appetizing. Easy to make. Vegan and gluten-free. This keto take on cauliflower fried rice is so good it’s perfect for all the family! Try making it for friends the next time you invite them over for dinner – they won’t be disappointed.
9. Mushroom Pepper Stir-Fry
This meal is packed with lots of healthy veggies, which makes for a wholesome and hearty dinner. Best of all, this recipe doesn’t compromise on taste either.
You have the option to combine a variety of different spices and herbs to create unique flavors each time you crave this meal. Get your chef’s hat on!
10. Curried Cauliflower Soup
There’s nothing nicer than a warm bowl of soup after a day out in the cold. The cream used in this soup adds the necessary fats for your keto diet. If you’re vegan, this recipe can easily be altered by using dairy-free cream.
11. Sauteed Green Beans With Garlic
This is such a simple recipe, you’ll look forward to making it. The main ingredient – aside from the green beans- is garlic. Garlic has a strong flavor which means no other ingredients are required to make this meal taste good, and you feel satisfied as a result!
12. Buttery Garlic Sauteed Spinach Recipe
Learning how to sautee is a valuable skill for any young chef in the making. It’ll advance your cooking skills, allowing you to make fresh and delicious recipes, like this garlic-sauteed spinach! Spinach has low carbs but is very high in fiber, making it the perfect keto food.
Not only that, the butter used contains lots of fat, so you know you’re getting the nutrition you need.
13. Broccoli & Mushroom Soup
Broccoli is a wonderful detoxifier, which is great for clearing your body of anything unhealthy and making you feel fresh. Combined with mushrooms, it makes for a homely soup that’ll stay in your mind long after you’ve had your last spoonful.
14. Low Carb Stir-Fried Zucchini
Perfect on its own or paired with quinoa or rice, this stir-fried zucchini is so easy to make. Throw the ingredients together for a quick lunch and feel renewed as you go back to your work tasks, chores, or relaxing weekend away. Any day calls for this wonderful meal!
15. Vegetable Stir Fry
A colorful stir fry appealing to the eye, with vegetables full of nutrition and goodness appealing to the body. This is not an exhaustive list of vegetables, you can add more to the stir fry provided they work within the keto diet.
Best of all, there are plenty of options for extra flavors, such as a garlic Chinese-style sauce, or a homemade stir fry sauce that you can find in the recipe.
16. Ridged Gourd Sautee
This ground vegetable meal is perfect for someone following a keto diet because it is so low in carbs! Ridged gourd vegetables are light and fresh. Being 90% water, they’re the perfect food for summer.
Filled with aromatic spices, this recipe smells and tastes so good it’ll attract everyone in the neighborhood to your front door.
17. Oven Roasted Garlic Broccoli
A staple meal for the majority of homes, roasted broccoli is a sure winner for those on a keto diet, and for those who are not! With no extra-fancy ingredients required, this is one of the easiest recipes to make on this list. However, if you want a little extra, why not add some vegetarian parmesan cheese? You can thank us later.
18. Creamy Tomato Bisque
Sometimes, you don’t need to drastically alter what you eat to follow the keto diet. Some recipes will need just one or two changes and they will become a keto-friendly meal. Take this tomato bisque for instance. All you’ll need to do is add butter for sauteeing and a cream to create a thicker, richer texture and there you go!
Your keto requirements for macros have been met and you can continue your day with another recipe under your belt.
19. Vegan Eggplant Meatballs
After going vegetarian or vegan, there will inevitably be some foods that you start to miss. The good news is, is that there are many alternatives that taste different, but just as good as, the real thing. These eggplant meatballs are a prime example!
Not only do they taste scrumptious, but they’re a healthier alternative to traditional meatballs. They take more preparation and time to make than some of the other recipes on this list. However, once you add these meatball alternatives to your pasta or noodles and take the first bite, we know it’ll be worth it.
20. Keto Spinach Soup
Great cuisine that’s easy to make and even easier to eat. Made primarily from pureed spinach with added spinach left on top, this soup is spinach-lover heaven. Combined with other tasty vegetables like eggplant, it is a delicious weekday meal for all.
21. Tofu Mac And Cheese
It is important to know that a few cheat meals aren’t going to do much damage, so go ahead and tuck into that carby mac and cheese!
However, this tofu mac and cheese can be a great alternative that you can eat even on your non-cheat days! This recipe promotes creating a lifestyle full of healthy cuisine that tastes just as good as it is for you.
22. Creamy Broccoli And Kale Soup
Did someone say green? This creamy soup is made up of two amazing superfoods. The first is broccoli, which is a good source of vitamin C, Vitamin K, potassium, fiber, and folic acid, among so much more.
The second is kale, which contains lots of vitamin C and A, making it great for your immune system. With all of these health benefits and an easy recipe to make, it would be wrong to exclude this soup from our list.
23. Lemon And Garlic Sauteed Cabbage
Using lemon in cooking adds a tangy hint of freshness and zest that everyone can enjoy. This is one of the best side dish options on this list. Cabbage is a low-carb vegetable, making it easy to incorporate into a keto diet. And if you need to hit your fat targets, this recipe allows for a little extra butter.
24. Avocado Spring Rolls
Spring rolls are not what you’d expect to be on this list, given that the rice wrapper they’re usually made from contains too many carbs for a keto diet. However, this recipe offers an alternate form of wraps – Nuco wraps – which only have 4g of carbs – how good it will feel to eat spring rolls again!
And not only that, these healthy spring rolls are made with avocado. Avocado is a great food to include in your keto diet because it contains a lot of healthy fats.
25. Green Beans Almondine
Another fantastic green bean recipe. Green beans are high in protein, meaning that you’re protected from muscle loss while burning calories.
The almonds can be cooked either in the oven or with a skillet, but either way will produce a wonderfully nutty flavor and a great crunch. A fantastic snack that is almost too easy to make!
26. Keto Garlic Bread
Another recipe you wouldn’t expect on this list, this garlic bread is made from flourless, gluten-free keto bread which ensures you won’t exceed your carb targets. Keto-friendly garlic bread is a real game-changer, it creates an excellent balance between healthy eating and tasty food, what more could you ask for!
27. Greek Salad Stuffed Cucumber Bites
Perfect for summer BBQ season, these keto cucumber slices are the perfect light bite as you wait for your mouth-watering, keto main course! These stuffed cucumber bites require no cooking, making them criminally easy to prepare – and don’t forget that delicious lemon juice dressing!
28. Stuffed Eggplant
Who doesn’t love stuffed veg? This particular recipe includes walnuts and cheese, which is a great balance of protein and fats. Not only that, but the contrast of the melted cheese and the crunch of the walnuts creates a unique texture and taste that’ll have you looking to create this meal over and over.
29. Cheese And Broccoli Soup
Rich and flavorful, this keto cheese and broccoli soup will quickly become your go-to for winter. Imagine fresh snowfall, crisp evenings, and being huddled up in a blanket with this creamy, warm soup. We can’t say no to that!
30. Spinach Stuffed Mushrooms
Another colorful meal to add to the list, this keto recipe includes many veggies that are packed full of flavor and nutrients. It also includes feta cheese but this can be swapped for a dairy-free alternative if you want to make it vegan. You can mix and match keto veggies too, this is by no means an exhaustive recipe (just an amazing one).
31. Cheese Stuffed Pumpkin
Whether it’s Halloween, Thanksgiving, or a totally different time of year, you can never go wrong with cheese-stuffed pumpkins. Don’t forget to pack them with loads of veggies so you’re hitting your keto targets! Do this, and you’ll be making quality cuisine you won’t be able to get enough of.
32. Green Bean Casserole
A green bean casserole baked with a flourless cheese sauce. A tasty low-carb take on a classic meal. This keto recipe is the perfect side dish but is so good it can be eaten as a main, too.
33. Roasted Pumpkin Broccoli With Feta
You should know by now that the top priority of this list is giving you healthy foods that don’t compromise on taste.
This recipe fits the bill, with its combination of sweet roasted pumpkin that is high in vitamin C and fiber, and broccoli florets – a known superfood.
34. Cranberry Walnut Tarts
Gone are the days when going on a diet meant no desserts. It is all about balance, and the keto diet is no different.
These cranberry walnut tarts are made with coconut flour pastry, making them gluten-free as well as low-carb. They are also cooked in a low-carb brown sweetener for that extra bit of flavor!
35. No-Bake Keto Pecan Cheesecake
Last but not least, we have the no-bake pecan cheesecake. Thanks to the light and crunchy pecans, the pecan crust, and low-carb caramel sauce, this is dessert like you’ve never tasted before – that doesn’t take up all of your calories, and is still keto!
Final Thoughts
So there you have it! 34 keto vegetarian recipes that are as delicious as they are good for you (plus an extra dessert because we all deserve keto cake every once in a while!)
We know starting a new diet, or finding a way to make a diet last, can be time-consuming and difficult. However, we hope this list provides you with some great recipes and ideas for your next meal, so you can feel good about buying ingredients, cooking amazing cuisine, and doing it all over again tomorrow.
