5 Vegetarian Meal Swaps
That are as good (or better) than their counterparts
Burger->Black Bean Burger
Love a good burger? Swapping out a meat patty for a black bean burger is a simple and delicious trade. Nowadays, there are many varieties of vegetarian or vegan burger patties that are great substitutes of the traditional meat patty. There is even a brand: where the burger actually bleeds!
My favorite is greek style burgers with feta, spinach, roasted red pepper, and garlic alveoli-so delicious!
2.Gyros-> Falafel
Greek food is amazing, from honey soaked, crunchy baklava to succulent cucumber, watermelon, and feta salad, a staple Greek dish is gyros. Traditionally, gyros are made with roasted lamb or chicken meat, but you can easily swap the meat for another traditional Greek food-falafel. Falafels are made from chickpeas, spiced, and either fried or baked. Throw a few into a pita with some tzeiki, veggies, and hummus and you have a delicious meal!
3.Teriyaki chicken-> teriyaki tofu
The switch is so easy and so yummy, you will hardly notice the difference! Simply make the teriyaki sauce as normal, but instead of throwing in chicken, add tofu! First drain the tofu (extra firm is best) then lightly fry in olive oil until golden brown. Pour the sauce over the tofu and serve over rice with a side of edamame. Yum!
4.Bacon->Tempeh
Tempeh is tofu’s hardier cousin and can be seasoned and fried up to taste really similar to bacon. The texture is slightly different, but if you fry the tempeh long enough you can still get that perfect crunch like bacon
5. Breakfast burritos, tacos, enchiladas, chili, stuffed peppers, etc….
Basically anything that uses ground meat you can just swap out the beef in exchange for some hearty black beans. Any sort of beans work, you can get really creative with your swaps by using pinto beans, refried beans, chickpeas, and so on.
Bonus: A vegan swap from scrambled eggs-> chickpea scramble.
The other day I ran out of eggs and was really craving a breakfast scramble, so I just grabbed some chickpeas, mashed them, added some garlic, onions, and tomatoes, turmeric and a few other spices and sautéed it up. Sooo good! I was pleasantly surprised on how the texture and taste was really close to a traditional breakfast scramble! Serve over toast and you have a hearty vegan breakfast!