Family friendly meals, can anyone help get me started?

[CovidCantKillChristmas]

A week ago I made the decision to go plant based. My eyes were opened to the dairy and meat production world and that was that. The only problem is, I am struggling with family friendly, easy, week night dinner ideas.

I hit the shops and bought lots of (processed) vegan foods but I really want to be cooking from fresh (and most of it was really bad!).

I have 2 teens that are on board with the change but equally don't want a plate of veg each night. Please can you share your firm family favourites, with links if possible. It would be really helpful! X

Great idea for a thread, I’m watching as cooking for kids is beyond me at the best of times.
if it helps Korean fried chicken made with cauliflower goes down well here.

Hands down the best vegetarian chilli I’ve tasted.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/burnt-aubergine-veggie-chilli

It makes a massive pan full too - I don’t tend to put all the stock in though, start with half and see how it goes.

Eat Well For Less:

www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/puy_lentil_bolognaise_40407/amp

I expect you can do without the cheese on top!

Jack Monroe's website and cookbooks have some brilliant family- friendly vegan recipes.

Tinned jackfruit, sautéed in a pan with some (vegan friendly) BBQ sauce/spices, served with mash and corn cobs... it's got a similar texture/feel to pulled pork and was a hit in my house!

Butternut squash curry with rice, 5 bean chilli, veg and chickpea stir fry, chunky mushroom fajitas (plant based cheese/soured cream), roasted veg and hummus wraps with chips, lots of pasta dish options.... or just good old jacket potato with vegan cheese and baked beans!

I should say, any curries/chillis etc I make midweek I chuck in the instant pot so ready in 20mins, or could do them in a slow cooker too so really low prep!

Veggie sausage casserole is another easy one pot wonder that I find goes down well x

Thanks all for your ideas. They are most helpful! X

Burgers - realfood.tesco.com/recipes/spicy-corn-and-chickpea-burgers.html 
Satay sweet potato curry - www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/satay-sweet-potato-curry 
Sticky sesame soy tofu - www.sainsburysmagazine.co.uk/recipes/mains/sticky-soy-and-sesame-tofu-with-broccoli-rice 
Tofu peanut stir fry - www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/tofu_peanut_stir-fry_62729
Falafel and couscous - realfood.tesco.com/recipes/sweet-potato-falafel-with-tomato-couscous.html

I'd have a a look at The Green Roasting Tin cookbook, there's some great easy recipes in there, I use it a lot.

Lentil lasagne/spag bol. Jacket potatoes and bean chilli. LOADS of Indian dishes - saag aloo, dhal, chana masala for example. Tofu can be very versatile - particularly if you get the ready flavoured versions. So tofu stir fry, tofu roasted with baby potatoes and veg. Spicy bean burgers (beans, pre-cooked veg and some flour plus chilli and seasoning all mushed up together and formed into burger shapes then fried) with chips or wedges.

Sorry, no links as I tend to make it up as I go along! I'm also not vegan but the above feature regularly in the meals I make.

Not sure if it's an option for you or not but Gousto have some great plant based meals too, I maybe use them once a month you then have access to the recipes and can reuse with your own ingredients at a later date.

Oyster mushrooms also work really well for fried "chicken"

If you are on Instagram or Tiktok you can get loads of great ideas for vegan family meals. I would personally just make vegan versions of what you would normally eat.

thehiddenveggies.com/fried-oyster-mushrooms/

Meera Sodha’s second two books are vegetarian and most recipes are either vegan or could be adapted to be vegan if you are looking for recipe book inspiration. I find her recipes are easy to make, don’t require too many specialist ingredients and they are reliably tasty. Here are some of my favourite other vegan meals.
Tadka dal
Pho with crispy leeks
The most delicious veggie chilli I’ve tried though I halve the chilli paste
Pasta alla norma - still delicious without cheese
Miso braised aubergine
Jamaican squash and coconut stew with pineapple salsa

I’ve never subscribed to Gousto, but I do often use them for meal planning when I’m stuck. You can view the meals available that week, and if you Google the name of a recipe that appeals, more often than not the recipe is there. Or if not, it’s often not hard to figure out a method based on the ingredients available.

Bbc good food has a really easy Dahl with sweet potato and spinach that takes about half an hour.

Cauliflower walnut tacos from tasty.co website - fantastic

www.loveandlemons.com/best-veggie-burger-recipe/
Also these - hands down best burger recipe which don't involve damn black beans! This is mushrooms, walnuts and brown rice and taste amazing!

Itdoesnttastelikechicken.com also an excellent website from a vegan in Texas who has veganised all home comfort foods.

I'm not a fan of beans except edemame, and don't do too well on grains so I tend to stick to salads and roasted vegetables. Made stuffed mushrooms for dinner last night and they were excellent.

The more you experiment with foods you usually like, its very easy. I'm a far better "plant based" cook than I ever was when I ate meat/fish!

This one pan spaghetti meatballs was on Eat Well for Less the other week and is easy to veganise. You can make your own meatballs or buy ready made, and skip the Parmesan. Done!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/one-panspaghettii_38086

I can also recommend the new Linda McCartney book for family meals. I've made loads of the recipes in there and they have all come out great.

Are the Richmond sausages vegan? They're really nice. sausages, sweet potato mash, vege, gravy. I like to roast some shallots in with the sausages.

Loads of different curries, Indian or Thai style.

Vegan chilli with rice or wedges, or jacket potatoes.

Tacos/burritos/fajitas.

I make a lentil bolognaise sauce using Merchant Gourmet lentil sachets as the 'mince'