How many meals should I actually plan?

Plan five dinners, assume two will be leftovers, takeout or improvisation. Over-planning is the number-one reason weekly plans fail by Wednesday.

What if my family doesn't want the same meal?

Cook a shared base (rice, roasted veg, beans) and offer two toppings — one familiar, one new. Everyone eats; nobody negotiates every night.

How do I plan without wasting produce?

Buy hardy veg for late-week meals (cabbage, carrots, squash, potatoes) and delicate veg for early-week (leafy greens, herbs, tomatoes). Freeze what you can't use by Friday.

Tool · Weekly menu builder

Vegan meal planner

A balanced 7-day menu in one click. Reshuffle until you like it, then export your shopping list.

Daily kcal target

2000 kcal/day (scaled)

92 g protein/day

2000

kcal / day

target 2000

92g

g protein

≈ 1.31 g/kg (70 kg)

ingredients

whole-food, low-waste

Mon

1859 kcal · 94 g P

Breakfast: Tofu scramble on sourdough
Lunch: Chickpea salad wrap
Dinner: Red lentil dal with basmati
Snack: Roasted chickpeas

Tue

2041 kcal · 100 g P

Breakfast: Berry-soy smoothie bowl
Lunch: Lentil & vegetable soup + bread
Dinner: Pasta with tempeh bolognese
Snack: Apple + peanut butter

Wed

2070 kcal · 83 g P

Breakfast: Chickpea flour pancakes
Lunch: Bean burrito with rice & guac
Dinner: Chickpea curry with roti
Snack: Trail mix

Thu

2060 kcal · 92 g P

Breakfast: Overnight oats with peanut butter & banana
Lunch: Buddha bowl (quinoa, chickpeas, tahini)
Dinner: Tofu stir-fry with rice
Snack: Hummus + carrots

Fri

1859 kcal · 94 g P

Breakfast: Tofu scramble on sourdough
Lunch: Chickpea salad wrap
Dinner: Red lentil dal with basmati
Snack: Roasted chickpeas

Sat

2041 kcal · 100 g P

Breakfast: Berry-soy smoothie bowl
Lunch: Lentil & vegetable soup + bread
Dinner: Pasta with tempeh bolognese
Snack: Apple + peanut butter

Sun

2070 kcal · 83 g P

Breakfast: Chickpea flour pancakes
Lunch: Bean burrito with rice & guac
Dinner: Chickpea curry with roti
Snack: Trail mix

Shopping list

almonds
apple
avocado
banana
basmati rice
black beans
broccoli
brown lentils
brown rice
carrot
carrots
cashews
celery
chia
chickpea flour
chickpeas
coconut milk
dark chocolate
extra-firm tofu
frozen berries
ginger
granola
hemp seeds
hummus
kala namak
kale
lettuce
olive oil
onion
peanut butter
pita
quinoa
raisins
red lentils
rice
rolled oats
roti
salsa
sourdough
soy milk
soy sauce
spices
spinach
sweet potato
tahini
tempeh
tomato
tomato sauce
tortilla
turmeric
vegan mayo
whole-wheat pasta
whole-wheat wrap

Set your protein target Do it on a budget

Building a week of plant-based meals that actually happens

Most abandoned dietary changes fail on logistics rather than conviction. A plan works when it reduces the number of decisions made while hungry, and when the shopping list matches the recipes exactly.

The three-base system

Cook one grain, one legume and one sauce in bulk at the start of the week — for example brown rice, a pot of seasoned lentils and a tahini-lemon dressing. Those three components recombine into at least five distinct meals with fresh vegetables and different spicing. The approach removes the largest single friction point, which is starting a recipe from zero at seven in the evening.

Protein spread across the day

Aim for 20–30 g of protein per main meal rather than one large evening dose; muscle protein synthesis responds better to distribution and it makes the total far easier to hit. Practical anchors: tofu 17 g per 150 g, tempeh 19 g per 100 g, cooked lentils 18 g per cup, seitan 25 g per 100 g, soy milk 8 g per cup, and 6 g in two slices of wholemeal bread.

Cover the four watch-list nutrients

B12 requires a supplement or reliably fortified foods — this is non-negotiable and not a matter of clever meal planning. Vitamin D matters in winter above roughly 37° latitude. Algal oil covers DHA and EPA. Iodine comes from iodised salt or a supplement, since plant milks are usually not fortified with it. Iron and zinc are covered by legumes and seeds when eaten with a source of vitamin C and away from tea and coffee.

Plan the failure modes

Every plan meets a late meeting, an unexpected guest and a day with no energy. Build in one deliberately trivial meal — beans on toast, a jar of sauce with pasta and frozen peas — and keep the ingredients permanently stocked. A plan with a designated collapse option survives; a plan of seven ambitious dinners does not.

A worked week

Batch-cook Sunday; each dinner reuses at least one prepared base.

Day	Main meal	Core protein	Approx. protein
Monday	Lentil bolognese	Red lentils + walnuts	28 g
Tuesday	Tofu stir-fry with rice	Firm tofu	26 g
Wednesday	Chickpea curry	Chickpeas + soy yoghurt	24 g
Thursday	Black bean chilli	Black beans + rice	27 g
Friday	Tempeh tacos	Tempeh	30 g
Saturday	Peanut noodle bowl	Edamame + peanut	25 g
Sunday	Roast traybake + hummus	Butter beans	22 g

Protein estimates from USDA FoodData Central for typical portions.

Setting up your week

Pick three dinners, not seven

Repeat each roughly twice. Variety across weeks beats variety within a week for both cost and adherence.

Write the shopping list from the recipes

Not from memory. Missing one ingredient is the most common reason a planned meal turns into a takeaway.

Batch on the quietest day

Ninety minutes of grains, legumes and one sauce removes about four hours of weeknight cooking.

Freeze two portions every week

Within a month you have a rotating emergency shelf that removes the collapse risk entirely.

Stock list

Always in the cupboard

Dried and tinned legumes: lentils, chickpeas, black beans, butter beans.
Grains: rice, oats, pasta, couscous.
Flavour base: tinned tomatoes, stock, soy sauce, tahini, peanut butter, nutritional yeast.
Frozen: peas, spinach, edamame, mixed berries.

Common planning mistakes

Planning meals you have never cooked before on a weeknight.
Relying entirely on fresh produce that spoils by Thursday.
Skipping breakfast protein and trying to make it up at dinner.
Assuming B12 will come from food without checking fortification labels.

Planning questions

How much does a week like this cost?

Built on dried legumes, grains and seasonal vegetables it is typically cheaper than the omnivorous equivalent — legumes are among the cheapest protein sources available anywhere. Costs rise sharply if the plan leans on meat analogues and pre-prepared items.

Will I get enough protein without supplements?

Yes, if calories are adequate and legumes or soy appear at most meals. Protein powder is a convenience for athletes, not a requirement.

Do I need to combine proteins at each meal?

No. The 'complementary protein' rule from the 1970s was retracted decades ago. Eating a range of plant foods across the day covers all essential amino acids.

What about children?

The same principles apply with higher energy density: nut butters, avocado, full-fat soy products and more frequent meals. B12 and vitamin D supplementation matters more, not less.

How do I handle a household that isn't plant-based?

Build meals with a shared base and a divergent topping — the same chilli, one pot, with cheese or soured cream added at the table rather than cooked in.